Act 5, sc 3 + 5: Macbeth loses the battle against Macduff

Here I chose to read Act 5 quite quickly with my class and this is how we did it. Feel free to adapt this into 2 or more lessons.

In this lesson students are asked to comment on how Macbeth’s attitude to losing the throne highlights how he’s changed as a character. At the start of the lesson,students are presented with a list of qualities expected within a tragic hero and consider how Macbeth is clearly one himself. Students are then asked to read act 5 scene 3 and consider how his attitude towards his position has changed since the start of the play. For the study of scene 5, students are given selected quotes and asked to explore these ideas further, including his use of imagery for effect. There are film clips of his famous 'Tomorrow' soliloquy from both the Patrick Stewart and Fassbender film. To end the lesson students are then asked to consider whether Macbeth was a hateful or sympathetic character and present their ideas on a continuum.

All lessons in this series include:

- Links to online videos (see 'notes' under powerpoint slides)
- Starter tasks which introduce the main idea of the lesson
- Differentiated tasks
- Opportunities for pair and group talk within activities ('Talk for Writing')
- Handouts of scenes or a selection of quotes from scenes studied
- Alternating opportunities for self and peer assessment
- Essay writing prompts to allow students to write about the scene
- References to the AQA English Literature mark scheme for Paper 1, particularly to the demands for attaining a grade 5 - what is considered a 'good pass' for the qualification.

It's suggested that you download the whole series to appreciate the full learning journey.