Six Additional Activities for Arthur Miller's The Crucible

No matter how much we love our activities for a literature study, sometimes we crave

more lessons to engage our high school students. This 14-page packet, "Comprehension & Writing - Additional Activities for The Crucible," offers six more activities you can add to your repertoire.

Pre-Reading
"Anatomy of a Witch Hunt" - Directions – Each of you is responsible for detailing one of the teacher-assigned topics on this list. Only facts will be accepted. Write your findings in the spaces by your topic. Write one of your facts in the space provided for your topic on the large sheet of paper taped to the wall. When it is your turn to share, if the fact that you chose has been used, select another one. Initialize your fact. Finally, take notes about the other topics in the provided spaces on this sheet. Use the back of this paper, if needed.


During the Reading
"Know Their Roles" - Directions
Part 1 - As you read and discuss this play, for each of the following characters, explain his/her MAIN ROLE in the plot. After that, copy a quote made by each person (include the page number) that shows his/her beliefs and feelings about the situations that occur. 
Part 2 - Write each name in the Protagonist, Antagonist or Neutral box. Be ready to defend your choices.

 

"Easy Target-Darts" -Directions – Consider the people who were accused and convicted of practicing witchcraft. Write each one’s name on the flames of one of the darts. Next, cut out the darts and glue each one to the bull’s-eye target. Place the hardest to convict in the outer circle and move toward the center, with the easiest in the red bulls-eye. Be sure that the point of the dart is in the correct circle. Write your reasons for your choices on the Easy Target-Defenses sheet. You do not have to use all of the darts.
"The Truth or A Lie? That is the Question" - Directions– Before you consider which characters in The Crucible are lying and which are telling the truth, address the following thoughts about lying in the spaces provided.

 

"Lies! Lies! Lies!" - Directions – Which characters are lying? Why? Choose which of the characters listed here are Lying, Telling the Truth or if you are Not Sure. Write each character’s name in one of the columns, and then briefly state how you arrived at this conclusion. Remember that the characters in the play do not see/hear everything like the reader does. Use the back of the paper if necessary.

Post-Reading
"Emotional Fuel – That Was Then" - Directions
Part 1 - The following factors all affect the thinking, speaking and, actions of the people in

The Crucible. Each one propels the plot by fueling the intolerance and hysteria of these times. Choose three of them, as well as a character that is motivated by the issue, and detail how their choice drives the plot.
PART 2 - "Emotional Fuel –This is Now" - Directions: discuss two of the above factors that influence people's thinking, speaking and actions in contemporary times. Give examples from current events that defend your choices.
Part 3 - Could a witch hunt occur in the United States now or are enough safeguards in place to keep this from happening? Support your answer with facts from current events as well as your own interpretations of these situations. Write your explanation on the back of this sheet of paper.

Plus, in the detailed Teacher Notes, I offer a number of lesson suggestions -and the link- for using Arthur Miller's piece that was originally printed in The new Yorker- , “Why I Wrote The Crucible- An Artist’s Answer to Politics".

Engage your high school students and give yourself the gift of time with these six lessons for Arthur Miller's "The Crucible". 

Download this packet from
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Crucible-Additional-Comprehension-Writing-Activities-1450756 ($5.00)

You can download my original 53-page unit plan for The Crucible from  http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Crucible-Unit-Plan-1617

Happy Teaching, ($19.95).