Teaching Shakespeare through Collaborative Writing and Performance in a Norwegian Primary School ESL Classroom: An Interview with Ellen Marie Kvaale

Abstract

This interview outlines the experience of Ellen Marie Kvaale, primary school teacher in Hoberg Primary School, in Stange, Norway. She discusses her innovative three-year project introducing three of William Shakespeare’s plays to 5th, 6th, and 7th -grade ESL students. Her project successfully employed challenging pedagogical methods that resulted in student performances, as well as student publications. The project was designed to develop their written and communicative skills in English with students producing multimodal written texts and collaborating on all levels of scene writing, performance design, and production. Building on her project, Ellen Marie also held workshops at Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences for pre-service teachers in which her primary school students participated. Her experience demonstrates the value and efficacy of using Shakespeare and his texts in ESL Primary School classrooms through active and interactive approaches, including performance, music, and collaborative writing that effectively engaged the four basic language skills.