I guess I'm a little late to post on this topic, but I had a comment to make on it anyway. I'm taking adolescent literature and we deal with this issue of teaching the classics constantly. One solution to make teaching them easier and to get the students more involved is to use thematic units where you teach a lot of different genres or types of materials that all relate to a certain theme (for ex. love, death, homosexuality, etc.). Another, and one of the most effective and innovative ways to deal with teaching the classics is the pair a classic with another young adult novel. For example, when reading
Romeo and Juliet, read another more recent/modern version, remake, or just a novel that has a similar theme or plotline along with this classic. That way, students will have more fun or get more into the classic if they can relate to it in a present-day sense. This is a great class for all people who will be teaching language arts/English in middle or high school, and I highly recommend it! (Dr. O'Quinn or Dr. Vogel- ENG 3570)