Shakespeare Sub Plans: No-Prep Reading Passages, Questions and Crosswords (Grades 9–12)

Four no-prep Shakespeare lessons for grades 9–12. The substitute prints the packet and teaches from it; no knowledge of Shakespeare is needed.

What's inside (PDF, 18 pages):

- A note for the substitute teacher with a day-by-day plan (45–50 minutes per lesson)

- 3 reading passages, each with 6 questions: 3 multiple choice, 2 short answer and 1 "Think deeper"

- 5 crosswords: The Tragedies, The Comedies, The Histories, Villains, Fools & Lovers, and Who Said It?

- Answer keys for every passage and crossword

The passages check three Shakespeare legends against the documents:

- The Play That Must Not Be Named. The story of the Macbeth curse, traced back to an 1898 theater review.

- Three Women in a Wood. What Simon Forman, the first known eyewitness, wrote about the witches after seeing Macbeth at the Globe in 1611.

- Shakespeare's Mulberry Tree. Relics, Garrick's rained-out Jubilee of 1769, and a Stratford clockmaker's sworn oath.

How the lessons run:

Days 1–3: a reading passage with questions (20–25 minutes), then a crossword (20 minutes).

Day 4: two crosswords, about 20 minutes each.

US spelling. A UK edition (Shakespeare Cover Lessons, Years 10–13) is also available.