Description
Most homeschool Shakespeare curriculums stop at Shakespeare. Stories from the Stage goes further — connecting students to the full world of performing arts through Shakespeare plays, Broadway musicals, and classic stage productions. Students don’t just read plays. They discuss them, analyze them, perform warm-ups, complete copywork, and ultimately rehearse and perform Much Ado About Nothing for a live audience.
This is a Scholar-level class designed for homeschool co-ops. It’s rigorous, joyful, and unlike anything else available for this age group.
What’s Inside — 28 Weeks, 2 Semesters
Semester 1 — Stories and Shakespeare:
- A Midsummer Night’s Dream
- Romeo and Juliet
- West Side Story
- The Comedy of Errors
- Twelfth Night
- Hamilton
- The Merchant of Venice
- Macbeth
- Wicked
- Much Ado About Nothing
- Othello
- Les Misérables
- Hamlet
- Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead
Semester 2 — Production:
- Lion King
- The Importance of Being Earnest
- Auditions
- Much Ado About Nothing Acts I–V (study and rehearsal)
- Tech Week and full production
Teaching Resources Included:
- Class overview, quickstart guide, class schedule, daily flow, and homework schedule
- Drama warm-ups, teaching tips, and scripts for awarding incentives
- Incentives system, iambic pentameter guide, presentations, and soliloquies
Who It’s For
- Homeschool co-op classes for students ages 12–15
- Scholar-level students ready for rigorous, creative coursework
- Co-op leaders and teachers with little or no theater experience — this curriculum is designed to make you confident, not just prepared
- Classes of 8–14 students, ideally with two teachers
How It Works Each week includes a clear weekly prep checklist and a structured in-class flow covering drama warm-ups, guided discussions, in-class activities, WOW discussions, and writing assignments. Students spend 2 hours in class each week and 2–4 hours on homework. The curriculum is self-explanatory and easy to follow — but you don’t have to figure it out alone.
Your Virtual Training Day When you purchase Stories from the Stage, you’re not just buying a curriculum — you get a full day of virtual training with the author. With over 10 years of experience teaching this class and directing student productions, Jennifer walks you through how to use the curriculum and, more importantly, how to believe you can do this. Most co-op leaders feel intimidated by Shakespeare and the idea of putting on a production. After your training day, you won’t.
FAQ
Do I need a theater background to teach this? No. The curriculum is designed to be self-explanatory, and your virtual training day with the author will give you everything you need — including the confidence to lead this class.
What plays and musicals are covered? Semester 1 covers A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Romeo and Juliet, West Side Story, The Comedy of Errors, Twelfth Night, Hamilton, The Merchant of Venice, Macbeth, Wicked, Much Ado About Nothing, Othello, Les Misérables, Hamlet, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. Semester 2 focuses on Lion King, The Importance of Being Earnest, and a full production of Much Ado About Nothing.
What is the virtual training day? A 6–8 hour virtual session with the curriculum author, scheduled upon purchase. It covers how to use the curriculum and how to lead your class and production with confidence.
What format is this product? Printable PDF, delivered as a digital download.
How large should the class be? The curriculum works best with 8–14 students and two teachers.
Is this a full year course? Yes — 28 weeks divided into two semesters.
Christine Reynolds (verified owner) –
Stories from the Stage was an excellent experience for my new Commonwealth. I had a wide range of scholars, ages 12 to 15, and every student who participated experienced real growth. The games—especially Jeopardy and the other activities in the curriculum—were both educational and fun.
Jennifer was fantastic to work with. She was clear, responsive, and open to any questions I had about implementation. That said, the curriculum is so well-organized that everything was clearly marked and easy to follow. Each week is planned out in detail, and it’s very easy to see what is expected of the mentor each day.
If you’re looking to fall in love with the arts more fully and foster overall growth and unity in your group—whether it’s a Commonwealth or any other community—this is absolutely the curriculum for you. It helped bring our new group together in powerful ways. By the end of the class, my kids were already asking what was next—they were excited and eager to jump into the next play!
I highly recommend this curriculum to any group working with a wide age range of scholars, whether they’re new to public speaking or more experienced. We thoroughly enjoyed it!