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My students are thrilled to collaborate on their learning in Romeo and Juliet by reading the play out loud and performing historical detective. Shakespeare's famous love story contains an astonishing number of references to disease, injury, plague and pestilence, often comparing love to a medical problem (as in the early line where Romeo's cousin urges him, "Take thou some new infection to thine eye" in order to forget his first love Rosaline (1.2.51). We will be performing a cross-curricular analysis of Shakespeare's knowledge of early medicine and germ theory, with student collecting evidence from the play to argue whether or not Shakespeare was acquainted with renaissance atomism and the early germ theory proposed in the mid-15th century by scientist Girolamo Fracastoro (a physician who discovered the transmission of disease from "seed-like entities" over a hundred years before the term "scientist" was even in use!). They will then build on this knowledge of early modern medical theories in their Principles of Biomedical Science classes, examining the nature of scientific knowledge and the difference between scientific theories and ideas as well as observation vs. inference. Finally we will look at the extent to which knowledge of biology and medicine live in popular culture, and how these ideas can be used to influence and even manipulate people. This all sounds great, but our existing copies of Romeo and Juliet are literally falling apart. I have performed "book surgery" on several copies, but students are having to stand in front of the class to perform with a book that can't be held in one hand because it's in three pieces. I don't have enough whole copies of the book to replace any books that missing fewer than two pages.

About my class

My students are thrilled to collaborate on their learning in Romeo and Juliet by reading the play out loud and performing historical detective. Shakespeare's famous love story contains an astonishing number of references to disease, injury, plague and pestilence, often comparing love to a medical problem (as in the early line where Romeo's cousin urges him, "Take thou some new infection to thine eye" in order to forget his first love Rosaline (1.2.51). We will be performing a cross-curricular analysis of Shakespeare's knowledge of early medicine and germ theory, with student collecting evidence from the play to argue whether or not Shakespeare was acquainted with renaissance atomism and the early germ theory proposed in the mid-15th century by scientist Girolamo Fracastoro (a physician who discovered the transmission of disease from "seed-like entities" over a hundred years before the term "scientist" was even in use!). They will then build on this knowledge of early modern medical theories in their Principles of Biomedical Science classes, examining the nature of scientific knowledge and the difference between scientific theories and ideas as well as observation vs. inference. Finally we will look at the extent to which knowledge of biology and medicine live in popular culture, and how these ideas can be used to influence and even manipulate people. This all sounds great, but our existing copies of Romeo and Juliet are literally falling apart. I have performed "book surgery" on several copies, but students are having to stand in front of the class to perform with a book that can't be held in one hand because it's in three pieces. I don't have enough whole copies of the book to replace any books that missing fewer than two pages.

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Help teachers & students in your hometown this season! Use code HOME at checkout and your donation will be matched up to $100.

Mrs. Cook's Classroom Edit display name

Support her classroom with a gift that fosters learning.

Support Mrs. Cook's classroom with a gift that fosters learning.

About my class

About my class

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Help teachers & students in your hometown this season!
Use code HOME at checkout and your donation will be matched up to $100.