This is part 3 of a 4-part Shakespeare in the Classroom blog series. With the help of several Shakespeare experts, APT Education Specialist Cody Carlton shares his experience as a former theatre director and classroom educator to help us understand the bard 's enduring legacy and how students can connect with the over 400 year-old literary icon.

Act 4: PBS LearningMedia Resources for Teaching Shakespeare

PBS LearningMedia provides engaging, classroom-ready resources for teaching Shakespeare across all grade levels. The following resources are categorized by grade level and include videos, interactive activities, and lesson plans to support performance-based learning, literacy development, historical context, and modern adaptations.

Elementary (Grades K-5)

• MONTANA SHAKES! Who Am I?: Movement and Characterization Workshop
  • A video workshop exploring how emotions influence acting and characterization. Students watch an adapted scene from A Midsummer Night’s Dream and experiment with movement and emotion to develop acting skills.
  • Best Use: Performance-based learning and character exploration.

• MONTANA SHAKES! DIY: Creative Design Workshop
  • A short video tutorial guiding students to create puppets of fairy characters from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Helps students visualize Shakespeare’s characters through an art-integrated approach.
  • Best Use: Combining performance and visual arts to understand characters.

• Dress Romeo and Juliet (Interactive Game)
  • A digital activity where students dress up characters from Romeo and Juliet, introducing them to Elizabethan fashion and theater.
  • Best Use: Interactive play for familiarizing young students with Shakespearean characters.

Middle School (Grades 6-8)

• Shakespeare or Taylor Swift? – Great Performances: Romeo and Juliet
  • A 9-minute video quiz where actors from a Romeo and Juliet production test whether a line is Shakespeare or a Taylor Swift lyric.
  • Best Use: Modern connections and literacy—engaging activity to compare Shakespearean language with pop culture.

• Behind the Scenes of the Balcony Scene – Great Performances: Romeo and Juliet
  • A behind-the-scenes video analyzing the famous balcony scene, focusing on performance choices and subtext. Comes with a lesson plan for discussion and classroom activities.
  • Best Use: Performance-based literacy—students analyze staging and character emotions.
• Exploring Shakespeare: An Immersive Experience (Interactive)
  • A digital interactive module that allows students to explore the world of Shakespeare and Romeo and Juliet. Includes set tours, 360° views, and interactive scene studies.
  • Best Use: Independent exploration of Shakespeare’s settings, characters, and themes.

• “Up On Your Feet” – Experiencing Shakespeare
  • A short video that demonstrates the importance of performing Shakespeare. Students watch peers act out a scene, then discuss the techniques used to convey meaning.
  • Best Use: Classroom acting exercises to help students experience Shakespeare kinesthetically.

High School (Grades 9-12)

• Julius Caesar – Rhetoric and Relevance (Shakespeare Uncovered)
  • A video and lesson plan examining Mark Antony’s speech in Julius Caesar alongside the contemporary novel The Hate U Give, highlighting how rhetoric can inspire action. 
  • Best Use: Literacy and modern connections—analyzing persuasive language in historical and contemporary contexts.

• History of Black Engagement with Shakespeare – Great Performances: Merry Wives 
  • A video discussing the rich history of Black actors and audiences in Shakespearean theater, focusing on an all-Black production of Merry Wives. 
  • Best Use: Historical context and modern adaptation—discussing diversity and representation in Shakespeare.

• Shakespeare: The Intersection of Art & Life (Interactive Timeline) 
  • A timeline tracing major events in Shakespeare’s life and historical context, highlighting how his works were shaped by his world. 
  • Best Use: Historical research—provides students with contextual background for deeper literary analysis.

• Rehearsing Macbeth 
  • A behind-the-scenes look at actors rehearsing scenes from Macbeth, focusing on the decision-making process behind performance choices, character motivations, and staging techniques. Students see how actors interpret Shakespeare’s words and how those choices impact the storytelling. 
  • Best Use: Performance-based analysis—students gain insight into how actors bring Shakespeare to life on stage.

This is part 3 of a 4-part Shakespeare in the Classroom blog series.

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