ADAPTED VERSION · dyslexia and neurodiverse students · B1

Session 2: Act I: the prophecy

Question: What do the witches promise, and how does Lady Macbeth react?
Step 1

Goals

Step 2

Warm-up

Image analysis. Look at the painting for one minute in silence.
Théodore Chassériau, Macbeth and Banquo Meeting the Witches on the Heath, 1855, Musée d'Orsay, Paris
Théodore Chassériau, Macbeth and Banquo Meeting the Witches on the Heath, 1855, Musée d'Orsay, Paris. Public domain, Wikimedia Commons.
  1. Who are the two men on horses?
  2. Where are the witches?
  3. What is the weather like?
Step 3

Read

The story. Macbeth is a brave soldier. Three witches tell him he will be king. He writes to his wife. Lady Macbeth wants him to kill King Duncan.
All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, thane of Glamis!
William Shakespeare, Macbeth, Act I, Scene 3, First Witch
Glossary: hail: greetings · thane: Scottish lord
yet do I fear thy nature; It is too full o' the milk of human kindness To catch the nearest way
William Shakespeare, Macbeth, Act I, Scene 5, Lady Macbeth about her husband
Glossary: thy: your · the nearest way: the quickest way, murder
look like the innocent flower, But be the serpent under't.
William Shakespeare, Macbeth, Act I, Scene 5, Lady Macbeth
Glossary: serpent: snake · under't: under it
I have no spur To prick the sides of my intent, but only Vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself And falls on the other.
William Shakespeare, Macbeth, Act I, Scene 7, Macbeth
Glossary: spur: a metal point that makes a horse go faster · intent: plan · vaulting: jumping · o'erleaps: jumps too far
Step 4

Tasks

Task a. Match the lines and the characters.
Task b. The flower and the serpent: what does it mean?
Task c. Small task: Lady Macbeth persuades Macbeth.
Step 5

Sentence starters

  • The witches say that...
  • Lady Macbeth thinks her husband is...
  • She wants him to...
  • Macbeth is ambitious because...
Step 6

Role play

Pairs: Lady Macbeth and Macbeth. She says: "Be brave!" He says: "I am not sure." Five lines each.

Step 7

Gap-fill worksheet

QR code to this worksheet
Word bank: king · kind · serpent · flower · ambition · wife
  1. The witches say Macbeth will be .
  2. Lady Macbeth is his .
  3. She thinks he is too .
  4. Look like the innocent .
  5. But be the under it.
  6. Macbeth has a lot of .
Answer key
  1. king
  2. wife
  3. kind
  4. flower
  5. serpent
  6. ambition
Step 8

Homework

Write Lady Macbeth's letter to her husband (60 words).

Watch the film at home

  1. The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021), directed by Joel Coen, with Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand, in black and white. Where to watch: JustWatch France.
  2. Macbeth (2015), directed by Justin Kurzel, with Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard. Where to watch: JustWatch France.
  3. DVD: ask at your local library or médiathèque.
  4. Scenes to watch: the witches on the heath (Act I), the dagger and the murder of Duncan (Act II), the banquet and Banquo's ghost (Act III), the sleepwalking scene (Act V).

Watch with English subtitles if you can. The films contain violence.

Step 9

Assessment grid

CriteriaLevel 1Level 2Level 3Level 4
Role playVery shortBasicClearClear and convincing
VocabularyFew wordsSomeGoodMany words

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