Have students interview another student they don’t know. They can interview about their summer vacation or something interesting about the student. Then have the students translate parts of the script into Shakespeare’s language. Use Michael LoMonico’s hand out Speak Like Shakespeare from his book The Shakespeare Book of Lists to help the students find the vocabulary. So instead of saying “I hunted birds with my sappy grandmother” they can say “I went a-birding with my onion-eyed dotard.” Sounds WAY more fun!
Don’t forget how tough the first day of school is for students. Very few of our students have been up at 6am since June and even fewer have sat silently for 90 minutes. We’re all nervous. Make the day easier by making it enjoyable for all. I promise the time you spend creating an community that is comfortable with performance-based instruction on the very first day of class will make every class meeting for the rest of the year more productive.
So, ditch the syllabus. Embrace the first impression. Create optimism. Your students will thank you. You will thank you.
Deborah Gascon teaches English 2 and AP Literature and Composition at Dutch Fork High School in Irmo, South Carolina. She participated in the Teaching Shakespeare Institute at the Folger Shakespeare Library in 2012 and continues her work with Folger Education through the Folger National Teacher Corps. She can be contacted at dgascon@lexrich5.org.