TEACH
DECIDE AND PLAN
PERSONALIZE FOR LEARNING
Read and Respond
Have students do their first read of the selection. Then have them complete their close read. Finally,
work with them on the Making Meaning, Language Development, and Effective Expression activities.English Language Support
Provide English Learners support with the
play’s structure and language as they read.Structure Remind students that although
the lines of dialogue are written as lines
of poetry, with upper-case letters starting
each line, they need to be aware of where
the sentence breaks are by looking at
punctuation, rather than reading individual
lines as sentences.
Language Point out that the syntax,
or arrangement and order of words and
phrases, is different in Shakespeare’s writing
than in modern English. Read aloud some
examples and ask students to listen for
the word order. Ask them to tell you how
the word order would change in modern
English. For example, (Scene i, line 19) Ride
you this afternoon? in modern English
would be Will you ride this afternoon?Strategic Support
Provide students with strategic support
to ensure that they can successfully read
the text.
Language As you discuss the meaning of
a section, look at individual lines, analyzing
and rewording the language. For example,
Lady Macbeth says in Scene iv, line 70, You
look but on a stool. Ask students if they
know what this means. (You’re looking at
an empty stool. No one is there.)
Meaning Ask questions about significant
events to make sure students understand
the meaning. Then explain if necessary.
For example, in Scene iv, ask Whose ghost
is at the table? (Banquo’s) Who sees the
ghost? (Macbeth) How do we know? (He
says the table is full, but Lennox says a place
is reserved.) What does this tell us about
his mental state? (He is not well.) Why is
Macbeth going crazy? (from guilt)Challenge
Provide students who need to be challenged
with ideas for how they can go beyond a
simple interpretation of the text.
Text Analysis Discuss the ghost of
Banquo, and what the presence of the
ghost and Macbeth’s reaction to it show
about Macbeth’s mental state. Have a group
of students read aloud Scene iv, from the
ghost’s entrance to its exit (lines 38–75).
Written Response Discuss that in different
productions of The Tragedy of Macbeth, the
ghost has been sometimes represented by
an actor and sometimes by no actor (so that
Macbeth is speaking to an empty chair). Ask
students to write about how they would
plan the scene if they were the producer/
director. Ask them to include an explanation
of why they think their choices would most
effectively show Macbeth’s madness and the
fact that no one else can see the ghost.Text Complexity Rubric: The Tragedy of Macbeth, Act III
Quantitative MeasuresLexile: NP Text Length: 18,031 words in the entire playQualitative MeasuresKnowledge Demands
1 2 3Multiple themes are addressed that are very sophisticated and complex, including corruption of
ambition, gender and relationship to violence, guilt and retribution, and conflicts of right and wrong.Structure
1 2 3 4 5Dialogue is structured with line breaks as in poetry. Both prose and verse are included. Use of rhythm
and rhyme is irregular, with varying meter. Characters mostly speak in unrhymed iambic pentameter
(blank verse).
Language Conventionality and Clarity
1 2 3Student will need to become familiar with Shakespeare’s language (especially if reading for the first
time). Elizabethan language is figurative and archaic with unfamiliar syntax and vocabulary.Levels of Meaning/Purpose
1 2 3This play, as with all Skakespeare’s plays, is full of symbolism and multiple meanings that are difficult to
identify and interpret, and require extensive analysis.Reading Support
WHOLE-CLASS LEARNING • THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH, ACT III4 54455296C UNIT 3 • FACING THE FUTURE, CONFRONTING THE PAST
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