What Shakespeare Has Taught Me
When I first came to this class, I had no clue what to expect. The only Shakespeare I had read before this class was Romeo and Juliet but let's be honest, almost everyone reads that in high school. I was honestly kind of nervous at first because I was worried I would not understand anything we read or I would not enjoy it. Truth is, I was able to comprehend most of what we read and I actually enjoyed most of the plays we read. So, going off of Nic's post, I thought for my last blog post I would reflect on what I actually learned this semester.
The biggest thing that Shakespeare has taught me is that everyone interprets things differently. I had never really thought this way, but this semester helped me see that. This is important for me as a future teacher to know as well, because my students will all interpret what we read differently. Most reading that middle school students read is pretty straightforward, but I will be more open to listening to my students' interpretations and why they interpreted our readings the way they did.
Following this, I will also be able to teach Shakespeare to my students if I end up teaching high school or even in some middle schools. I made another blog post about this idea, here.
I was also presented with many different teaching ideas while in this class. Dr. Way did a great job of relating what we were learning to being teachers. He would say why as teachers we would do something, or give us ideas to use in our own classrooms. My personal favorite was the Commonplace Book assignment, where we collected quotes while reading and while out in the real world that related to Shakespeare.
This class also helped me read plays better. The only class I have had where I have had to read a play since high school was English Literature, and in that class I struggled to comprehend what was happening sometimes because I was not used to the format. Since that is all we read this semester, I noticed I can more easily read through a play without having to stop and think about who said what.
Overall, I think I gained a lot from this class. It has influenced my own thinking as well as my thinking as a teacher. It is probably one of my favorite classes I have taken at Washburn.
The biggest thing that Shakespeare has taught me is that everyone interprets things differently. I had never really thought this way, but this semester helped me see that. This is important for me as a future teacher to know as well, because my students will all interpret what we read differently. Most reading that middle school students read is pretty straightforward, but I will be more open to listening to my students' interpretations and why they interpreted our readings the way they did.
Following this, I will also be able to teach Shakespeare to my students if I end up teaching high school or even in some middle schools. I made another blog post about this idea, here.
I was also presented with many different teaching ideas while in this class. Dr. Way did a great job of relating what we were learning to being teachers. He would say why as teachers we would do something, or give us ideas to use in our own classrooms. My personal favorite was the Commonplace Book assignment, where we collected quotes while reading and while out in the real world that related to Shakespeare.
This class also helped me read plays better. The only class I have had where I have had to read a play since high school was English Literature, and in that class I struggled to comprehend what was happening sometimes because I was not used to the format. Since that is all we read this semester, I noticed I can more easily read through a play without having to stop and think about who said what.
Overall, I think I gained a lot from this class. It has influenced my own thinking as well as my thinking as a teacher. It is probably one of my favorite classes I have taken at Washburn.
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