Shakespeare 400
Primary teaching resources
Contents
Romeo and Juliet – The prologue
Romeo and Juliet – Act 1
Romeo and Juliet – Act 2
Romeo and Juliet – Act 3
Romeo and Juliet – Act 4 & 5
1
2
3
4
5
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Resources: KS2
p English
p > Romeo
p andp Juliet
y > Videos
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> Act 1 – Thegprologue section only
Learning objectives: To be able to understand and analyse the language of the prologue in Romeo and Juliet.
Curriculum Links:
• identifying the audience for and purpose of the writing, selecting the appropriate form and using other similar writing as models for their own
• in writing narratives, considering how authors have developed characters and settings in what pupils have read, listened to or seen performed
Activity
Discussion
• What do you think a prologue is?
• Does the prologue make you want to watch the play?
• What powerful words are used in the prologue?
Key quotation
Prologue Two households, both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
From forth the fatal loins of these two foes
A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life;
Whose misadventured piteous overthrows
Do with their death bury their parents' strife.
The fearful passage of their death-mark'd love,
And the continuance of their parents' rage,
Which, but their children's end, nought could remove,
Is now the two hours' traffic of our stage;
The which if you with patient ears attend,
What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend.
Further explanation: Explain to pupils that a prologue tells an audience
what to expect and that in Shakespeare’s day he needed to write one to
prevent his audience leaving or booing during the play!
Organise pupils into pairs and give each pair a piece of paper. Assign a
line of the prologue to each pair and ask them to translate into modern
English — provide a dictionary.
Create a class translation: Review the definitions as a class by asking
pupils to stick their lines on the whiteboard.
Discuss what words make the play sound like it’s going to be interesting.
Extension activity
Pupils should write their own short story based on just the prologue (without knowing anything else about the play). Or for pupils of lower ability, ask
get them to design a poster based on the prologue.
Further resources
KS2 English > Romeo and Juliet: Explore the activities for more resources about Shakespearean phrases.
KS2 History > Tudors: Develop historical skills and understanding of key events and people of the Tudor period.
KS2 News > Shakespeare Week: thousands of schools celebrate the great writer’s plays and poems every year.
© Discovery Education Europe Ltd.
Resources: KS2
>
> Act 1l
p English
p
p Romeo
p y j and Juliet > Videos
g
Learning objectives: To understand the story and themes of Romeo and Juliet.
Curriculum Links:
• identifying and discussing themes and conventions in and across a wide range of writing
• summarising the main ideas drawn from more than one paragraph, identifying key details that support the main ideas
• predicting what might happen from details stated and implied
Activity
Discussion
• Who are the two families at war?
• What are the main themes of the play?
• Can you think of other stories with a plot like Romeo and Juliet?
Key quotation
Act 1 Scene 1
Tybalt: What, drawn, and talk of peace! I hate the word,
As I hate hell, all Montagues, and thee:
Have at thee, coward!
Watch Act 1 as a class.
Give pupils cut-outs showing names or pictures of the members of each
family. In pairs, ask pupils to put the families together. Review as a class.
In their pairs, pupils should then write down their first impressions of each
character using only one adjective.
Write a letter or diary entry: Ask pupils to imagine they were present for
the fight in Act 1. How would they have felt? What are their first impressions of the Montagues and Capulets, and Verona.
They fight
Extension activity
Create a family crest: Ask pupils to choose a family (Montague or Capulet). Discuss what kind of images and colours could be used to represent a
family. In pairs, ask children to design a family crest. Pairs could then present their ideas to the class, explaining their designs.
Further resources
KS2 English > Romeo and Juliet: Explore the printable resources for more teaching ideas related to Act 1.
KS2 History > Tudors: Develop historical skills and understanding of key events and people of the Tudor period.
KS2 News > Shakespeare Week: thousands of schools celebrate the great writer’s plays and poems every year.
© Discovery Education Europe Ltd.
Resources: https:
KS2
p //centralEnglish
.espresso.
p co.uk/espresso/primary_uk/subject/module/video/item702207/grade2/module696887/index.
>
p Romeo
p y j and Juliet > Videos
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> Act h2
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Learning objectives: Explore the language used in the balcony scene and how Shakespeare uses metaphor.
Curriculum Links:
• participate in discussions about books that are read to them and those they can read for themselves, building
on their own and others’ ideas and challenging views courteously
• provide reasoned justifications for their views
• discuss and evaluate how authors use language, including figurative language, considering the impact on the reader
Activity
Discussion
• Why does Romeo compare Juliet to the Sun?
• What is Juliet asking Romeo to do? How likely would this be to
happen?
• Do you think Romeo and Juliet should choose love or family?
Why?
Key quotation
Act 2 Scene 2
Romeo: But, soft! What light through yonder window breaks?
It is the east, and Juliet is the sun…
Juliet: O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo?
Deny thy father and refuse thy name;
Or, thou wilt not, be but sworn my love,
And I’ll no longer be a Capulet...
Discuss Romeo’s desire: As a class, thought shower the word ‘sun’ with
pupils using mini-whiteboards. Explain that it is a metaphor (i.e. when
something is described as something else). Ask pupils the following questions, for them to answer using the whiteboards: What does the word ‘sun’
make them feel? Why does Romeo use the word to describe Juliet?
Write Juliet’s response: Keeping the first line: O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo? Ask the class to write their own versions of the next
three lines. Remind them to keep the feeling of frustration that Juliet has
due to Romeo coming from the ‘wrong’ family. There is a bonus point if
they can also include a metaphor.
Extension activity
Exploring metaphors: Ask pupils to come up with three alternative metaphors that Romeo could use when describing Juliet; they should be able to
justify each metaphor by explaining why they have chosen that particular word or phrase. (For classes who do not know what a metaphor is, write the
definition on the board and highlight the line said by Romeo as an example, with an explanation).
Further resources
KS2 English > Romeo and Juliet: Explore the printable resources for more teaching ideas related to Act 2.
KS2 History > Tudors: Develop historical skills and understanding of key events and people of the Tudor period.
KS2 News > Shakespeare Week: thousands of schools celebrate the great writer’s plays and poems every year.
© Discovery Education Europe Ltd.
Resources: https:
KS2
p //centralEnglish
.espresso.
p co.uk/espresso/primary_uk/subject/module/video/item702209/grade2/module696887/index.
>
p Romeo
p y jand Juliet > Videos
g
> Act h3tml
Learning objectives: To explore how adjectives can be used to describe characters.
Curriculum Links:
• drawing inferences such as inferring characters’ feelings, thoughts and motives from their actions, and
justifying inferences with evidence
• in writing narratives, considering how authors have developed characters and settings in what pupils have read, listened to or seen performed
Discussion
Activity
• What adjectives would you use to describe Romeo in Act 3 Scene 1?
• Discuss Mercutio’s final line: A plague o’both your houses! What does
he mean by this? Why?
• Why does the Prince choose to exile Romeo rather than kill him?
Pupils could draw a picture of Romeo and around the image write adjectives and adjective phrases that describe him, based on his actions in Act
3. Review as a class.
Key quotation
Act 3 Scene 1
Where are the vile beginners of this fray?
Prince:
Capulet:
Romeo killed Tybalt, Romeo must not live.
Prince:
Romeo slew [killed] him, he slew [killed] Mercutio
Who now the price of his dear blood doth owe?
Montague: Prince, he was Mercutio’s friend:
His fault concludes but what the law should end.
Prince:
And for that offence
Immediately we do exile him hence:
Write a newspaper report: Ask pupils to write a report based on Romeo’s
exile by the prince. They should write down the three most important things
as their paragraphs starters (for example: Mercutio’s death), then write the
report using as many adjectives as possible (include those from the last
task).
Pupils can peer assess by swapping reports and counting how many
adjectives have been used in the report.
Extension activity
Design a poster: Ask pupils to design a poster for the city of Verona, explaining that Romeo has been exiled and what residents should do if they see
him.
Further resources
KS2 English > Romeo and Juliet: Explore the printable resources for more teaching ideas related to Act 3.
KS2 History > Tudors: Develop historical skills and understanding of key events and people of the Tudor period.
KS2 News > Shakespeare Week: thousands of schools celebrate the great writer’s plays and poems every year.
© Discovery Education Europe Ltd.
Resources: KS2
> pRomeo
p English
p
p y and
j Juliet > Videos
g > Act 4 and 5
Learning objectives: To understand how Shakespeare uses the weather to describe mood.
Curriculum Links:
• discuss and evaluate how authors use language, including figurative language, considering the impact on the reader
• predicting what might happen from details stated and implied
Activity
Discussion
• What is the weather like in this scene? How does Shakespeare use
the weather to help us understand the mood?
• What do you think could happen between the two families now?
• Has the deaths of Romeo and Juliet changed Verona forever?
Key quotation
Epilogue
Prince: A glooming peace this morning with it brings;
The sun, for sorrow, will not show his head:
Go hence, to have more talk of these sad things;
Some shall be pardon'd, and some punished:
For never was a story of more woe
Than this of Juliet and her Romeo.
Write down the first two lines of the key quotation and ask pupils to draw
the scene that is described. Can they explain the choices they made?
Further explanation: Explain to pupils that when the mood of a story or
play is described by the weather it is called Pathetic Fallacy.
Write a diary entry: Using the idea of a new positive dawn and a new
sunny day, pupils should write a diary entry from a surviving character,
describing what happens the next day when the Capulets and Montagues
try to become friends following the deaths of Romeo and Juliet.
Extension activity
Quiz: Now the play is finished, ask pupils to write 10 questions to test the rest of the class.
Further resources
KS2 English > Romeo and Juliet: Explore the printable resources for more teaching ideas related to Act 4 and 5.
KS2 History > Tudors: Develop historical skills and understanding of key events and people of the Tudor period.
KS2 News > Shakespeare Week: thousands of schools celebrate the great writer’s plays and poems every year.
© Discovery Education Europe Ltd.