This Element examines the opportunities that interactive digital editions give teachers, software developers and scholars to connect Shakespeare's works to twenty-first century students by presenting three case studies of interactive digital editions of Shakespeare incorporated into classroom teaching.

What actions are justified when the fate of a nation hangs in the balance, and who can see the best path ahead? Julius Caesar has led Rome successfully in the war against Pompey and returns celebrated and beloved by the people. Yet in the senate fears intensify that his power may become supreme and threaten the welfare of the republic. A plot for his murder is hatched by Caius Cassius who persuades Marcus Brutus to support him. Though Brutus has doubts, he joins Cassius and helps organize a group of conspirators that assassinate Caesar on the Ides of March. But, what is the cost to a nation now erupting into civil war? A fascinating study of political power, the consequences of actions, the meaning of loyalty and the false motives that guide the actions of men, Julius Caesar is action packed theater at its finest.

As a high school and college student, Mary Janell Metzger sat through old-school lectures that swamped Shakespeare in literary tradition and form, leaving no breathing room for individual interpretation. As a teacher, she yearned to connect students to Shakespeare's plays, and in Shakespeare Without Fear she tells you how she finally removed the barrier between text and inquiry by focusing on the rich interactive possibilities between student, teacher, and bard. Shakespeare Without Fear offers methods that will get students emotionally and imaginatively involved with the plays while developing their capacity for critical judgment. Ideal for the experienced teacher as well as for the English Education methods course, Shakespeare Without Fear first debunks the idolatry and polarizing academic politics surrounding the study of Shakespeare and then allays reader anxieties by setting up the plays as engaging historical works instead of items to check off a cultural literacy list. Next Metzger takes you into real classrooms for a complete look at how she and other educators teach several major works, including Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet, offering both a framework for teaching any Shakespearean drama and play-specific essential questions for teaching ten of his other most popular plays. Covering topics like teaching to standards, the challenges nonnative speakers face reading Shakespeare, and formatting lessons for AP instruction, Shakespeare Without Fear will help you create conditions where Shakespeare explodes off the page and into the imaginations of your students.

A practical handbook of ideas and suggestions for all teachers of Shakespeare. Focusing on the process approach it helps students discover and experience Shakespeare's plays for themselves.

Outlines an engaging way to instill an understanding and appreciation of Shakespeare's classic works in children, outlining a family-friendly method that incorporates the history of Shakespearean theater and society.