Unit: Romeo and Juliet (7 weeks)

This 28-lesson (7-week) unit plan explores Shakespeare's classic tragedy, Romeo and Juliet, via examination of several of the playwright's specialist structures, including the sonnet form, rhythm, rhyme and meter, as well as techniques common to several types of literature, including antithesis, hyperbole, and juxtaposition. An effort is made in the unit to encourage text-to-self, text-to-world, and text-to-text connections in the pupils' readings. Contextual information is introduced as and when it is relevant, as opposed to systematically. Pupils consider the links between style, context, content and purpose.