On Stage
Create a character matrix for Henry IV, whilst reading the play. This is easy to do using an Excel chart or a Word document: This is easy to do using an Excel chart or a Word document: list each of the characters you are investigating in the columns and rows (x and y axis) as headings. For each character, have students write the nature of the relationship between the two characters, identifying the effect they have on one another.
Develop and extended the matrix including more characters such as Bardolph, Gloucester, Poins and Douglas. Notice how this builds the complexity of intricacy of Henry IV’s plot.
Another version of this task could be completing such a table for each act of the play to ensure student understanding of the play’s plot and characters.
