JULIUS CAESAR: WHO IS A TRAGIC HERO?

Class Time: 3-5 Class Periods (50 minutes each)

Overview
The Ides of March (March 15) is a wellknown date in history as it marks the death of the Roman leader, Julius Caesar. William Shakespeare tells the story of Caesar's rise and fall and leaves his audience to consider whether Brutus, Cassius, or Caesar can be defined as tragic heroes. This activity will allow students to uncover the characterization of these characters and assert an argument of definition for which character best exemplifies a tragic hero.

Lesson Description
In this lesson, students will be examining the characters of Brutus, Cassius, and Caesar from William Shakespeares The Tragedy of Julius Caesar as a post-reading activity. By taking a closer look at the characterization of these major characters through mind mapping, students will determine which one best fits the role of a tragic hero. Using prior knowledge of the qualities that define a tragic hero, students will participate in an interactive essay map to help outline their ideas for an argument of definition. Once they have taken a stance, the students culminating activity will be to create an Xtranormal video that asserts their claim.

Objectives
Students will be able to... analyze the speech, actions, relationships, and thoughts of three major characters from Julius Caesar. create a mind map that traces the characterization of characters. define what makes a character a tragic hero. use an interactive essay map to create an outline for an argument of definition essay. take a position on a debatable topic and provide textual evidence for support. publish a 2-minute video on Xtranormal that asserts which character best exemplifies the role of the tragic hero.

Online Tools/Links
Gliffy (www.gliffy.com) - Create a mind map for free. This diagramming software allows students to share their creations with other students who are working together in a group. ReadWriteThink Essay Map - (www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/ essaymap/) - This interactive essay map creates a graphic organizer for students preparing to write a formal essay. Students follow the prompts for what to enter in each field and can save and print a copy when completed. Xtranormal (www.xtranormal.com) - This is a free online tool that turns original dialogue into a 3D animation. Students can choose the characters, setting, camera angles, character gestures and speech to create their own animated movie. Rubistar (www.rubistar.4teachers.org) - A free rubric generator for teachers.

Activities
1. After reading The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, recall with students the definition of a tragic hero. 2. Individually or with a partner, students need to have access to a computer with Internet capabilities. Once established at a computer, direct students to the Gliffy website (www.gliffy.com). Students will need to register for a free Gliffy online account in order to receive 5 free diagrams. 3. After registering, students open a new document and begin mapping the characterization of Brutus, Cassius, and Caesar. Students should be encouraged to include color, text, and graphics in their design. Students must find evidence of character thoughts, speech, actions, and relationships from the text for each of the three characters. Below is a skeleton for a possible template idea. Students should save and print their image when completed.

4. As a class, have students share their mind maps with other students for comparison. At this point, the students should be making a decision about which character they would like to write their paper on. Have them choose, according to textual evidence that is presented in their mind map, which character best exemplifies the definition of a tragic hero. 5. Bring students back to the computer lab. Every student must have their own computer for this task. Direct students to the Essay Map found on the ReadWriteThink website (www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/ essaymap/) . 6. Students must complete the interactive essay map using evidence from the text (which should already be found on their mind map). This can be done in complete sentence or bullet form as it serves as an outline for their next task. The Introduction should contain background information on the character and a thesis statement for their essay. The Main Idea boxes should describe the qualities met that define the character as a tragic hero. The Supporting Details need to contain textual evidence that supports the qualities presented in the main idea boxes. 7. Save and print the completed essay map. 8. Using the Essay Map as an outline, direct students to the Xtranormal website (www.xtranormal.com). Here, students will be creating a 2-minute animated movie that presents their claims on which character is a tragic hero. The video should contain two characters who are discussing or debating the argument of definition. Students should be using their mind map and essay map to guide them through the dialogue for this video. In the video, encourage students to use Xtranormal to its full potential. The integration of sound, gestures, and camera angles will enhance their grade for this project.

9. Students will save and publish their finalized videos. They can email the shared link to the teacher to access on the Xtranormal account or publish to a YouTube channel that they have and send that link instead.

Assessment
This assignment contains informal and formal assessments. Through observation, teachers should be helping students meet the requirements of the mind map and story map. These are informal assessments that can be counted as a participation or credit grade (pass/fail). Another option would be to require that students submit printed copies of both maps once they submit the final video and add these elements to the rubric. Create a rubric (www.rubistar.4teachers.org) for the video that looks for important elements of a definition argument essay. Emphasis should be placed on the claim, support, and organization of the video response.