About Reading Shakespeare
Mary Ellen Dakin
Mary Ellen Dakin (NBCT) has taught English Language Arts since 1987 in both a private and a public school. A fellowship at the Folger Shakespeare Library in 1994 sparked her passion for exploring innovative ways to teach Shakespeare’s plays, and since that time she has presented workshops on teaching Shakespeare in Louisville, Nashville, Denver, Baltimore, San Francisco, New Orleans, and Pittsburgh. In 2002, 2004, and 2006, she held the position of master teacher at the Folger Library’s Teaching Shakespeare Institute. She was elected to the National Council of English Teachers (NCTE) Secondary Section Steering Committee in 2006 and will serve through 2010.
Dakin’s focus on adolescent literacy moved to the forefront of her practice after participating in the National Research Council’s Panel on Learning and Instruction in 2001-02. Her essays have appeared in Shakespeare magazine and the Harvard Educational Review, and she recently contributed to an article in the English Journal. Her lesson plans have been published online at web sites sponsored by the Folger Shakespeare Library, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
At Revere High School, Dakin teaches World Literature, Advanced Placement English Language and Composition, and the Shakespeare Elective.
Christina Porter
Christina Porter has been teaching English Language Arts to freshmen, sophomores, and seniors at Revere High School in Revere, Massachusetts since 2001. She recently completed her Masters in Educational Studies with a concentration in adolescent literacy from Tufts University. Porter is currently pursuing her license as a reading specialist and is passionate about helping adolescents become proficient and engaged readers. Her love of William Shakespeare extends back to her childhood, when she was frequently known to stage “living room productions” of some of the Bard’s most dramatic works.
Jonathan Mitchell
Jonathan Mitchell taught for eight years before becoming the director of humanities for Revere Public Schools this past August. While in the classroom, he taught grade 9 world literature and grade 11 American literature. Jonathan first became interested in teaching after having taken a fascinating course on Shakespeare’s politics while fulfilling the requirements for his undergraduate degree in political science from Boston College. After abandoning his plans to be a lawyer, Jonathan went back to BC to get his M.Ed. in secondary English education.