Lesson 1: Exploring Shakespeare - Students recap some key facts about William Shakespeare before focusing on Romeo and Juliet. They explore the scene with Mercutio’s death and begin devising a scene between two gangs to develop their understanding of the Montague’s and Capulet’s. Lesson 2: Emotions and Power within Shakespeare - Students explore the dynamics between both families and build towards a devised performance of the two. Lesson 3: Applying Understanding - Students develop understanding of the context around Mercutio’s death and then begin bringing the scene to life. Lesson 4: Performing Shakespeare - Students are given time to rehearse the scene they explored in L3 and develop their performance skills. Lesson 5: Students reflect on their performances and identify good rehearsal habits when practicing a performance. Students then engage with devising a scene which focuses on creating specific characters.

This 5-lesson scheme focuses on exploring key elements of Shakespeare’s Othello with practical exploration work embedded into each lesson. Lesson 1: The Story of Othello - Students recap the story of Othello and begin exploring key moments through freeze frames. Lesson 2: Relationships within Othello - Students learn about key relationships within Othello and then develop understanding by exploring them practically. Lesson 3: Interpreting Characters - After reading through the scene where Cassio is manipulated by Iago into drinking, students explore their interpretations of Iago, Cassio and Othello. Lesson 4: Performing Othello - Students are given time to rehearse the scene they explored in L3 and develop their performance skills. Lesson 5: Students reflect on their performances and identify good rehearsal habits when practicing a performance. Students then engage with devising a scene which focuses on creating specific characters.