Introducing Iambic Pentameter Basic Lesson Plan
1. Buy class copies of the book, William Shakespeare's Avengers: The Complete Works. This sounds like a no-brainer, but each student needs to have a play in their hands to follow along. You may also choose to have a the movie ready to watch after reading, either through a Disney+ subscription, iTunes or however you obtain movies for your classroom.
In this case, Assemble, Ye Avengers is only 66 pages total, due to the nice, wide pages and double column format. There are illustrations interspersed, both on the pages and as full- and double page spreads (at the end of the book). Each "part" or individual play of the four (Assemble Ye Avengers; Lo, The Age of Ultron; Infinity War's Tale; and The Endgame's Afoot) makes for a quick in-class read.
2. Start by printing the Two Line Start Cards and laminating them, one set for each pair. Cut them up and put them in baskets on pairs of desks.
3. Allow students to pair up or assign partners.
If your class has already done the Two Line Start Cards for my lesson using Ian Doescher's William Shakespeare’s Star Wars: Verily a New Hope, they'll know what to do.
If not, follow the next steps.
4. Students watch Akala's TedX talk about the links between HipHop and the Bard. Have a copy of the Sonnet #18 ready for them to read and follow, as well as the lyrics to Akala's two other songs at the end. Then crank up the volume! The kids love these.
5. TW have students use Doescher’s sonnet generator to create their own sonnets. You read that right. Your students can generate their own sonnets, 14 lines of poetry, by answering four simple questions.
Students share their poems (if they want).
6. Students will practice reading the Two Line Start Cards to each other, in pairs.
7. Students use a dry erase marker to write in the breaks between syllables on the laminated cards and show the accent in the pairs.
8. TW circulate in the room (check student responses), checking to make sure students are placing the syllable breaks and accents in the correct places and that students "get" the iambic pentameter poetry form.
9. When they're familiar with the form, students begin reading the play. Keep track of which students read which parts using the Reading Role Sheets.
And bango!
You're ready to have some serious literary fun.
10. While reading or as an introductory set, you can start the movie. It often helps to do this to demonstrate to students how closely Doescher's plays follow the movies. You can then continue to have students view the movie as they progress in the reading, act by act, or just continue reading and watch the corresponding movie at the end, as a reward.
Enjoy!
Teachers Note
This book also has an excellent 7-page introduction to Shakespeare's plays and iambic pentameter, which breaks down the form even further for your students. You can download it from Scribd here, and it is free, but you will need to sign up for a free trial of Scribd to get it. The good news is, once on Scribd, you can load up with Doescher's other Educator's Guides for his William Shakespeare's series. You'll see a bunch of them, provided by Quirk Books, the publisher. They're all written by Doescher, so they're top-notch teaching materials.
Enjoy!
