Canterbury Tales
Resources and sites
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Collection of updated sites with lesson plans and resources at English Teacher’s Friend Delicious
account
Audio file of reading in Middle English
Site that features Canterbury Tales with side by side translation to modern text
Authentic medieval recipes and cooking related items
Pronunciation guide for the general prologue
Webquest on Canterbury Tales
Lesson Ideas
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Ye Olde Advert.
Have students create a poster or travel brochure advertising Canterbury pilgrimages starting from the
Tabard Inn in Chaucer's day. Tell them to include appropriate details from The Canterbury Tales, such
as the name of the inn's proprietor.
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A Distant Mirror.
Chaucer lived during a fascinating, but tumultuous period in British history. Have students create
parallel time lines, one listing important national events and the other listing important personal
events that occurred during Chaucer's lifetime.
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The Unknown Pilgrim
Students create a new character that was left out of the stories. Tell this character’s story in the same
style.
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The Life of Becket.
Instruct students to find out more about Thomas â Becket and his shrine at Canterbury. Have them
present their findings in a biographical essay on Becket's life, achievements, and the importance of his
shrine as a place of pilgrimage.
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The Chivalrous Code.
Point out to students that Chaucer wrote for a courtly audience that was familiar with such traditions
as the code of chivalry. Have students use textbooks, the library, or the internet to find out more about
this tradition and its influence upon the literature of the Middle Ages. Instruct them to write a short
feature article to share their findings.
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Host the guests at the Inn
This lesson asks students to take what they know from the Tales and create a table setting, record a
conversation and menu for the guests.
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Use Wikis to explore the Prologue
HERALDRY
H
eraldry was first created in order to
help tell who was who beneath layers
of armor. After all, you wouldn't want
to accidentally kill a knight that was really your
neighbor. Emblems of geometric shapes as well
as the more recognizable birds, beasts and
symbols were then used to decorate shields. The
shield not only offered protection, but
identification as well. The shield offers a big, flat
surface— perfect for painting a design on.
Shields, then, became the medieval version of a
driver's license. Though you could not see a
knight’s face, it was possible to tell the morals
and the way his family acts through identifying the colors and symbols on his shield. Heraldry
fully developed not on the battlefield but within the tournaments. The tournaments were like
present-day ESPN, where the nobility (or athletes, in our case) competed. Since the peasantry
who watched these "games" were unable to read the scoreboards like sports fans do in presentday games, heraldry was developed to identify knights based on their shield design.
COLORS
CHARGES
(ANIMALS AND CREATURES ASSOCIATED WITH A KNIGHT)
CHARGES
(ANIMALS AND CREATURES ASSOCIATED WITH A KNIGHT)
YOUR SHIELD SHOULD HAVE
AT LEAST ONE CHARGE
A GEOMETIC DESIGN
THREE COLORS
COAT OF ARMS
In Medieval times the Coat of Arms was placed on banners and
shields to signify a knight’s allegiance. On it was a representation of
their lord’s heritage, values, and accomplishments. It was used to
identify friends and foes during battle.
Here is how you should create your coat of arms.
Section 1:
Draw an animal that you feel represents you
Section 2:
Draw a picture of your greatest accomplishment
Section 3:
Draw a picture of what you see yourself accomplishing in life
Section 4:
Draw a picture of your most prized possession
Section 5:
Draw a symbol of your strength that is not an animal
Section 6:
Draw a picture of one of the most important people to you in
the world and label them
Remember:
Fill every space completely. This way, each section will work
together to make a whole composition.
1
2
3
4
5
6
NAME
CLASS
DATE
Graphic Organizer for Active Reading
from The Wife of Bath’s Tale, from The Canterbury Tales
Geoffrey Chaucer, translated by Nevill Coghill
Pupil’s Edition page 138
From Sketch to Portrait
We get to know fictional characters in the same way we usually learn about real people—gradually.
In “The Prologue,” you were briefly introduced to the Wife of Bath. After reading her tale, you
know her better. In the chart below, summarize your more thorough knowledge of the Wife of Bath
by listing her strengths and weaknesses as well as your general observations of her. In the blank
area at the bottom of each list, you might want to sketch an example from that list.
Strengths
Weaknesses
1. Which of the Wife of Bath’s traits do you most like or dislike? Why?
2. In your opinion, how do the other pilgrims feel about the Wife of Bath? Choose one pilgrim and
describe what you think his or her reaction to the Wife of Bath and her tale would be.
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Graphic Organizers for Active Reading
Elements of Literature
Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.
General Observations
NAME
CLASS
DATE
Words to Own
from The Wife of Bath’s Tale, from The Canterbury Tales
Geoffrey Chaucer, translated by Nevill Coghill
Pupil’s Edition page 138
Making Meanings with Synonyms
Use a dictionary or a thesaurus to look up each Word to Own below. Find a synonym and write it
under the Word to Own. Then, on the lines provided, use the synonym in a sentence that contains
clues which make the synonym’s meaning clear.
EXAMPLE:
sauntered: The Pardoner strolled leisurely down the street, calling people to look at
strolled
Synonym
his wares.
Sentence
1. bequest:
2. prowess:
3. lineage:
4. pestilence:
5. concede:
Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.
6. implored:
7. extort:
8. void:
9. temporal:
10. suffices:
Elements of Literature
Words to Own
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