The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust (SBT), the organiser of the annual, national celebration of William Shakespeare for primary school children has announced further information about the programme of events and new teaching resources for Shakespeare Week 2025.
From Monday 24 to Sunday 30 March 2025, thousands of children, schools and cultural partners will be celebrating the 11th anniversary of Shakespeare Week.
Since its launch in 2014, Shakespeare Week regularly reaches approximately 2 million children nationwide, sparking curiosity and fostering creativity through specially designed in-person activities and online resources provided by the SBT’s learning team and their cultural partners. The celebration has also supported thousands of teachers and home educators across the UK, helping them engage with Shakespeare in an accessible and positive way.
This year’s exciting programme is inspired by Shakespeare’s iconic female characters, as part of the SBT’s programme celebrating The Women Who Made Shakespeare. Pupils will explore a range of emotions and feelings, such as empathy, through cross-curricular activities, including performances influenced by Shakespeare's First Folio: All The Plays: A Children's Edition (Children’s Folio), workshops and online assemblies, all drawing inspiration from these remarkable characters.
‘’Shakespeare Week plays a vital role in unlocking the transformative power of an iconic writer for today’s generation.
‘’Through the free resources and programme of activities, we nurture essential skills needed for youngsters to thrive in life in creative and enjoyable ways. We not only give teachers and educators the tools to help foster a deeper appreciation for the arts, but we also support the development of confidence, resilience, and oracy skills. These are crucial abilities for children as they progress from primary to secondary school and into adult life.’’
Added Andy Reeves, Head of Learning Development at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
What to Expect for Shakespeare Week 2025
Shakespeare Week highlights include a day of free workshops for Warwickshire school children, daily online broadcasts from much-loved children’s authors and presenters including Michael Rosen and Ben Cajee and a new online exhibition.
Additionally, new cross-curricular digital resources will be published, providing home educators and teachers with invaluable tools to teach Shakespeare in creative outlets, all for free.
Highlights include:
- Monday 24 March, 9am to 3pm: Launch event, hosted by Joanna Adeyinka-Burford at the Birmingham Old Rep Theatre. A special music, dance and design show based on Shakespeare’s characters with children from the SBT’s Birmingham and West Midlands Hub schools.
- Daily, 11am: Daily online broadcasts aired on the Shakespeare Week website and videos exploring Shakespeare’s characters.
- Monday 24 to Sunday 30 March, with a special event on Tuesday 25 March, 10-3pm: A special exhibition showcasing A Midsummer Night's Dream themed artwork at Barnsley Library created by local school children.
- Tuesday 25 March: Children from the hub region are invited for a special Shakespeare Week poetry event focussed on Shakespeare's female characters with Ian McMillan.
- Tuesday 25 March, 9am to 3pm: A special poetry event at the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education in London based on Shakespeare’s female characters with children's author Michael Rosen.
- Wednesday 26 March, 10am to 3pm: Children are set to perform a captivating street dance based on the shipwreck scene from Twelfth Night at SS Great Britain.
- Thursday 27 March, 9am to 3pm: The Children's Folio Festival at Nottingham University's Lakeside Arts. During the festival, children from two Nottingham Hub schools will perform extracts from the Children's Folio in a day of playmaking and celebration.
- Friday 28 March, 10am to 3pm: Warwickshire schools open day - a day of free workshops for local school children in partnership with organisations across Stratford-upon-Avon including Shakespeare’s Schoolroom.
- Saturday 29 and Sunday 30 March, 10am to 4pm: Shakespeare Weekender, a free festival of events, activities, workshops and performances on Henley Street, outside of Shakespeare’s Birthplace.
New Resources for Teachers and Home Educators
Teachers and home educators will have access to hundreds of free resources across multiple curriculum subjects in KS1 and KS2, including literacy and STEM, offering a creative range of ideas and teaching materials to make Shakespeare fun and accessible for pupils.
Resources include new language activity booklets, written by Professor David Crystal and Ben Crystal, and illustrated by Marcia Williams. Available both online and in print. These resources will help explore Shakespeare’s words for emotions and feelings.
There will also be a new interactive online exhibition, ‘Are Ye fantastical?’ featuring some of Shakespeare’s iconic female characters. The exhibition brings these remarkable characters to life with videos and original artwork, as well as fascinating archive images.
Children’s illustrators, including Jane Ray and Claire Powell, have also created ‘fantastical’ costume designs for some of Shakespeare’s female characters to inspire children to create their own.
At the heart of this year’s celebration is Shakespeare's First Folio: All The Plays: A Children's Edition, produced in partnership with Walker Books, abridged by Dr Anjna Chouhan and lavishly illustrated by Emily Sutton. The Children’s Folio retains Shakespeare’s original language while distilling each play’s essence, making them easily performable by small groups of children. Since publication this book has become a special resource in bringing Shakespeare to life for young people.
‘’Following an incredible year of celebrations for the 10th anniversary of Shakespeare Week, we are delighted to once again join schools, venues, and partners across the nation for this special event.
‘‘It is important for us to make Shakespeare fun and accessible for children of all abilities. This year, our diverse programme is inspired by Shakespeare’s remarkable female characters. From Viola to Lady Macbeth, their richness and complexity offer fascinating insights into the world we live in and the intricacies of human nature. We are excited to see how children engage with and explore these characters and their emotions through our new resources, activities and costume design competition.’’
Commented Sally Gray, Shakespeare Week Project Manager at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
Shakespeare Week 2025 Competition Now Open
To launch celebrations, children are encouraged to let their creativity flow by participating in the annual Shakespeare Week competition. This year, they are invited to design an imaginative costume for one of Shakespeare’s characters using paint, pens, or any other creative medium.
The competition closes on Monday 26 May 2025. The lucky winners will have their entries featured in the online exhibition, ‘Are ye fantastical?’ and will receive a bundle of Shakespeare-themed goodies, art materials, and books.
Shakespeare Week 2025 will run from Monday 24 to Sunday 30 March 2025. Teachers and home educators are encouraged to visit Shakespeare Week to register for free resources and stay updated.