Integrating Technology into 9th Grade ELA: Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet

Romeo & Juliet Unit Plan and Links Sheet

Description of Unit:
This unit is designed around understanding concepts of love and emotion in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Early in the unit, we discuss the types of love present in Romeo & Juliet while we read through the text together as a class. The teacher is careful to explain that each form of love manifests itself in different ways and has different effects on the plot of the play. As an end product and performance task, students will work together in groups to choose at least one form of love and investigate it throughout the play.  They will then, connect the experiences in Romeo and Juliet to modern day and personal experiences by summarizing these connections in the form of a podcast or video. This is being delivered to students through Google Classroom LMS.

Sample Romeo & Juliet Unit and Lesson Plan/Calendar
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1bPlZR1unoYgVD2pbXGn0ca_MUPDYK6qaXrxATCLDneg/edit#gid=0

​Common Core Essential Standards to be addressed:

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The Essential Question for this unit:

• How does Shakespeare provide insight into modern life?

​In this unit, Students Will:

• Understand and explain the parts of speech.
• Analyze Shakespearian poetry/writing to look specifically for types of love exemplified within the text and annotate those examples.
• Understand how different types of love and analyze their contribution to “Romeo and Juliet” and modern society.
• Analyze the different types of love within “Romeo and Juliet” and apply them to modern society.
• Apply research in an essay and will continue to analyze Romeo and Juliet.
• Creatively craft an informal expository essay with in Google Docs.
• Create an digital portfolio in Google Drive.
• Analyze literary aspects of Romeo and Juliet.
• Peer edit and revise an essay using Google Docs and use it to create a podcast.
• Create a podcast in order to explain an idea.
• Compare and analyze director’s choices and interpretations when adapting a play into a film.
• Understand and explain how authors use “change over time” in stories to influence theme and plot.
• Understand and explain how to analyze author’s influences on texts.

ISTE Standards for Students met in this unit:

• ISTES Standard 1 Empowered Learner:
  • C. Students use technology to seek feedback that informs and improves their practice and to demonstrate their learning in a variety of ways.
• ISTES Standard 2 Digital Citizenship:
  • B. engage in positive, safe, legal and ethical behavior when using technology, including social interactions online or when using networked devices.
  • C. demonstrate an understanding of and respect for the rights and obligations of using and sharing intellectual property.
  • D. manage their personal data to maintain digital privacy and security and are aware of data collection technology used to track their navigation online
• ISTES Standard 3 Knowledge Constructor
  • C. curate information from digital resources using a variety of tools and methods to create collections of artifacts that demonstrate meaningful connections or conclusions.
  • D. build knowledge by actively exploring real-world issues and problems, developing ideas and theories and pursuing answers and solutions.
• ISTES Standard 4 Innovative Designer:
  • B. select and use digital tools to plan and manage a design process that considers design constraints and calculated risks.
  • C. develop, test and refine prototypes as part of a cyclical design process.
• ISTES Standard 5 Computational Thinker:
  • B. collect data or identify relevant data sets, use digital tools to analyze them, and represent data in various ways to facilitate problem-solving and decision-making.
  • C. break problems into component parts, extract key information, and develop descriptive models to understand complex systems or facilitate problem solving.
• ISTES Standart 6 Creative Communicator
  • B. create original works or responsibly repurpose or remix digital resources into new creations.
  • C. communicate complex ideas clearly and effectively by creating or using a variety of digital objects such as visualizations, models or simulations.

Technology used in this unit:

• Google Classroom -  Delivery LMS
• Google Drive - Digital Portfolio creation/ housing and group collaboration/sharing.
• Google Docs - Essay writing, revising, and collaboration
• Garageband for iPad (Podcast Creation) and itunes for publication
• Hardware needed/used: Laptops, iPad, video camera, etc

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Handouts and Student Resources:

• Romeo and Juliet Podcast/Video Essay Project Guide
  • https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Bob_YoreyGdo_6jjWk7ZFGBd7wcAseYwJ43wBgzNu_0/edit?usp=sharing

• R&J QR Activity Exit Ticket
  • https://docs.google.com/a/wcpss.net/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdhYfTUtgPibFDcQB_CDG2BvG-FuHN1k2zqBWSrTpdxOhSWxw/viewform

• Types of Love Brainstorm Form - Romeo & Juliet
  • https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OZSa8l8FROO58oR_Uv4-ytLjnsabZ-hxVzpn4d66IJM/edit?usp=sharing

• R&J Language Activity - QR Codes
  • https://docs.google.com/document/d/1V9zGUtrAYa11YU0eHrqoYaFlo5Rl_uegs-po7urCrzU/edit?usp=sharing

• Expository Essay/Podcast Rough Draft Peer Editing: Leadership Instructions
  • https://docs.google.com/a/wcpss.net/document/d/1uTyqEm2ansqogXxopcNQHlUSqab4hfbyq0ylzhu5cIA/edit?usp=sharing

• Expository Essay/Podcast Peer Editing Instructions
  • https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mpiHQI3c836xD_L1t20YhV6Dj5lsa4yu0TGcs4lhig8/edit?usp=sharing

• Expository Podcast Peer Editing Grouping and Sharing Assignments Spreadsheet
  • https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/1/d/1Vt7Sy4WX1wK57u3JxBJKhKFunexycdBuTmUj4pVStrI/edit#gid=1014666442 ​