Beowulf Lesson Plans

The Adventures of Beowulf
Introductory background information and links to a modern version of the epic, broken up into episodes.

Anglo-Saxons
This site from the BBC offers extensive information and activities about the Anglo-Saxons.

Audio Files
Listen to Seamus Heaney read excerpts in Modern English. MP3 software required for access.

The Beauty of Anglo-Saxon Poetry: A Prelude to Beowulf
Students study the literature and literary techniques of the early Middle Ages, preparing to read Beowulf with an appreciation for its artistry and beauty. Students will learn the conventions of Anglo-Saxon poetry, solve online riddles, write riddles, and reflect on what they have learned.

Beowulf
Links to extensive resources about Beowulf.

Beowulf
Using a theme of good vs. evil, this site includes theme openers, crosscurricular activities, research assignments, and suggestions for related reading.

Beowulf
This 7-page packet addresses vocabulary drawn from the text. Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader or compatible application for access.

Beowulf for Beginners
This extensive resource offers audio files to help with pronunciation of names. It also has the story in prose, divided by chapters, with explanations and artifacts. Young readers, older students who have trouble reading the poem, and those looking for background information will find this site very helpful.

Beowulf Lesson Plans
A teacher's chapter-by-chapter notes, including summary, teaching approaches, and discussion questions.

Beowulf Mock Trial
Click on the title link for thorough instructions on how to put Beowulf on trial. From Outta Ray's Head.

Beowulf on Steorarume (Beowulf in Cyberspace)
An introduction, an Anglo-Saxon text and two translations, and related texts. Be sure to click on "Beowulf Resources" for links to a wealth of background information on Anglo-Saxons: language, history and culture, religion, and leisure activity, including a link to Anglo-Saxon recipes.

Beowulf: Still a Hero
Journal assignments, seminar topics, creative topics, links to a variety of versions of the epic, and study questions for John Gardner's Grendel.

Beowulf: Suggested Essay Topics
These topics are divided up by sections of verse.

Beowulf Unit - Kamishibai
Students retell the story using an ancient Japanese storytelling technique.

Beowulf
The British library site presents samples of Old English, Middle English, and Modern English using Beowulf and other texts. This page introduces the Beowulf section with a summary of the epic and a brief discussion of kennings. Follow the link at the bottom to activities, including audio files of a scholar reading Old English and practice with the language.

The Earlier Epic Battles of Grendel's Mother
Author Eric Silver presents vignettes from modern time, just for fun. (Grendel's Mother and Tom Cruise?)

The Funny Side of Beowulf
Humorist Dave Barry discusses Beowulf, driving in Miami, and homework.

Grendex
Based upon John Gardner's Grendel, this site offers questions to explore character, point of view, setting, and theme. Follow the links to find related works, vocabulary words, projects, even bulletin boards.

The Hero Connection: From Beowulf to Batman
After reading Beowulf,students will identify Beowulf's heroic traits, generalize from these traits a list of typical traits for heroes, and then use these traits to compare Beowulf with contemporary heroes. As a culminating activity, students will define their concept of hero and then create a booklet of personal heroes from various areas.

"Hrodulf the Red-Nosed Reindeer": An Original Old English Poem
Philip Chapman-Bell offers this children's classic in Old English.

An Introduction to Beowulf: Language and Poetics
"Although this lesson assumes students will read Beowulf in translation, it introduces students to the poem's original Old English and explains the relationship between Old, Middle, and Modern English. The lesson then goes on to introduce students to alliteration, alliterative verse, and kennings and their importance to Beowulf."

Legends - Beowulf
A collection of links about the text itself and about Ango-Saxon life.

The Linguistic and Literary Contexts of Beowulf
A scholarly background to the epic.

Lord of the Rings
This page compares Tolkein's Lord of the Rings trilogy with the Star Wars trilogy and examines the influence of Beowulf.

Modern Beowulf
In this writing assignment, students bring Beowulf into modern times. The prompt includes background and some guidelines.

Monsters
This lesson is intended to have students investigate the idea of "monsters" in society. They will begin by defining the idea of what a monster is. They will then read Beowulf. The reading of Grendel by John Gardner will follow. Students will design and present their own conceptions of a monster.

Reading Literature in Translation: Beowulf as a Case Study
By comparing a number of translations of Beowulf with each other and with the basic poetic elements of Old English alliterative verse, this lesson asks students to reflect upon the nature of translation not as an act of accurate representation of a literary work but as an act of interpretive re-creation.

Readings from Beowulf
Follow the links to hear portions of the epic in Anglo-Saxon.

Resources for the Study of Beowulf
Extensive resources, including information about movie versions.

A Teacher's Guide to Beowulf
This 13-page documents includes an introduction and prereading activities, journal topics, vocabulary, questions for discussion, supporting activities, quotations, activities, and a bibliography. Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader or compatible application for access.

Scops, Rappers, and You: Historians with Style!
Students compare Beowulf with stories told in modern music, including kennings and appositives. From the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.

Study Questions on Beowulf
Sixteen questions for writing or discussion.

Using History Through Literature
The first lesson deals with drawing historical evidence about the time period from the literature. The second lesson deals with tracing the monomyth, the archetypal hero's journey, throughout the epic. These lesson plans are designed for 7th graders and can be adapted to other epics.

What good is Beowulf?
This article emphasizes the development of language as part of the study of the epic. It includes a link to a Webquest on language.