Romeo and Juliet Lessons

I used the following questions as discussion board threads to assess students' understanding as they read Romeo and Juliet. These questions could be used as prompts for short written responses or small-group discussions. Some question sets include two types of questions: (a) a personal or creative response related to a general topic, and (b) a critical thinking question requiring analysis of the play.

Here are some sample questions:

Act I, Scenes 2-3:

(a) Describe your relationship with your mother (or the most significant adult female in your life). What factors affect the quality of this relationship? What are the sources of conflict? In what ways has she impacted your life? Is it important to have a strong female influence in one's life?

(b) Apply your discussion to an analysis of Juliet's relationship with Lady Capulet and the Nurse. Evaluate the quality of the relationship Juliet has with each woman. (Consider the questions from part a.) Which relationship is probably more satisfying or important to Juliet?

Act III, Scene 1:

(a) What qualities distinguish a coward? In general, are you a coward or not? Share two examples to support this characterization of yourself.

(b) Consider the actions of the characters in this scene. For each character, determine whether or not each character acted cowardly based on his words and actions. (Romeo, Mercutio, Tybalt, Benvolio, Prince, Capulet, Lady Capulet, Montague.)