Professional Development

The Folger Shakespeare Library offers a range of programs for teachers, both at the Folger and in a classroom near you.

TSI: Weekend Intensives

In October 2017 and February 2018 we will hold our first-ever Teaching Shakespeare Institute: Weekend Intensives for teachers. Apply now to be one of thirty teachers to learn the most essential strategies and tools for connecting all kinds of students to Shakespeare’s language and the Folger collection. Gain special access to scholarship, performance, rare materials, digital resources, and teaching methodologies found only at the Folger. Collaborate closely with expert faculty and curious, dedicated colleagues.

TSI: Summer Academy 2017

In July 2017, we held our second-ever Shakespeare Institute: Summer Academy, a week of powerful professional development led by master teachers, scholars, and performance faculty. Thirty teachers from all over the US took a deep dive into Macbeth to extend their content knowledge and gain strategies for teaching the play to middle and high school students.

TSI: Professional Learning Days

Led by master teachers in the Folger National Teacher Corps, these one-day workshops provide lively, hands-on practice with techniques that work with all kinds of students in all kinds of classrooms. Through a range of activities rooted in Shakespeare’s language and aligned to national standards, teachers learn how to get students on their feet and into complex texts in minutes. Professional Learning Days draw on the Folger’s unique blend of scholarship, performance, and education, and can be customized to incorporate texts from your school’s curriculum. 

Teaching Shakespeare Institute

Since 1984, the National Endowment for the Humanities has supported the Teaching Shakespeare institute, an intense, month-long study of Shakespeare. The institute looks at Shakespeare's work from three essential perspectives: scholarship, performance, and curriculum.  This rigorous but joyful program gathers secondary school teachers from all over the country for multifaceted studies of plays, poems, criticism, rare materials, live theater, and educational technologies. Stay tuned for more information about future institutes!

DC Public Schools

We love our city and its teachers. We have partnered with DCPS to lead the teaching and learning of Shakespeare in our city’s public schools. From developing a new high school Shakespeare curriculum and providing professional development for English teachers to hosting student matinees and public demonstrations of student learning, we are committed to supporting the work of DCPS teachers and students. This initiative is multifaceted and growing, so please check back, or email Corinne Viglietta (cviglietta@folger.edu), for more information.