The Merchant of Venice Bundle of Quizzes, Close Readings and a Test

Item description

This bundle contains everything high school English teachers need to assess general reading comprehension of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, support analysis of the play’s characters and plot, and apply knowledge of literary elements and techniques applied by the author. Included are five plot-based quizzes (one per Act), twenty close reading analysis worksheets (one per scene), a summative test, and answer keys. Materials are delivered in editable Word Documents and printable PDFs. Relevant student performance tasks are outlined below:

• Identify what the text states explicitly and implicitly
• Define complex words and phrases as they are used
• Explore how complex characters think, behave, develop, and interact
• Examine how Shakespeare’s character choices affect the audience
• Isolate opinions with which characters are likely to agree
• Examine narrative techniques used to make Portia seem emotionally flustered
• Consider the motif of the guest-host relationship and argue whether Portia conforms to the expectations of a good host, or whether she fails to meet expectations and represents a bad host
• Compare and contrast characters (Antonio and Shylock; Portia and Antonio; Jessica and Portia)
• Apply knowledge of many literary devices with emphasis on metaphor, oxymoron, onomatopoeia, allusion, personification, symbolism, invective, euphemism, juxtaposition, hyperbole situational irony, and dramatic irony
• Conduct brief online research (if necessary) to determine the symbolic value of a particular object
• Determine the functions of given passages
• Discern the tone of several passages
• Explore how Shakespeare creates suspense
• Explore themes
• Explore cause-and-effect relationships
• Come to class/leave class better prepared to discuss the play
• Defend claims with reasoned thinking and relevant evidence
• Write ideas with accuracy, clarity, and precision

Materials are available for teaching a variety of texts such as:

• Animal Farm by George Orwell
• Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
• Feed by M.T. Anderson
• Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
• Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare
• The Adventures of Ulysses by Bernard Evslin
• The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
• The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare