Lesson Plan

Power's Price Lesson Plan

Students will analyze Macbeth’s ‘Is this a dagger’ soliloquy to identify how ambition and power shape his choices, annotate key language devices, and connect themes to personal experiences through discussion and reflection.

Understanding Macbeth’s ambition-driven actions helps students develop close-reading skills, interpret literary devices, and draw connections between classical texts and modern decision-making, fostering critical thinking.

Audience

Time

Approach

Materials

Prep

Teacher Preparation

10 minutes

Step 1

Warm-Up

5 minutes

Step 2

Contextual Mini-Lecture

5 minutes

Step 3

Soliloquy Reading & Annotation

10 minutes

Step 4

Class Discussion

7 minutes

Step 5

Exit Ticket

3 minutes

Slide Deck

What's Power's Price?

Welcome students and introduce the lesson title. Explain that today we’ll explore how ambition shapes Macbeth’s actions and what price comes with power.

Learning Objectives

Review each objective aloud. Encourage students to keep these goals in mind as they read and discuss.

Historical & Literary Context

Briefly present historical context: Macbeth was written around 1606. Define soliloquy and its purpose. Highlight key themes.

Soliloquy Excerpt: Act 2, Scene 1

Read the soliloquy aloud once, then have a volunteer pair read together. Ask students to listen for words that signal ambition and conflict.

Annotation Focus

Distribute the annotation worksheet and excerpt. In pairs, have students annotate, marking ambition, imagery, and internal conflict.

Class Discussion Questions

Use these prompts to guide a whole-class discussion. Encourage students to cite specific lines as evidence.

Exit Ticket

Pass out the exit ticket. Collect responses as students leave to assess their understanding of ambition’s impact.

Lesson Plan

Power's Price Lesson Plan

Audience

Time

Approach

Materials

Prep

Teacher Preparation

Step 1

Warm-Up

Step 2

Contextual Mini-Lecture

Step 3

Soliloquy Reading & Annotation

Step 4

Class Discussion

Step 5

Exit Ticket

Slide Deck

What's Power's Price?

Learning Objectives

Historical & Literary Context

Soliloquy Excerpt: Act 2, Scene 1

Annotation Focus

Class Discussion Questions

Exit Ticket

Worksheet

Reading

Activity

What's Power's Price?

Camryn