We were really blessed to go to Shakespeare's birthplace in Stratford-Upon-Avon. We actually went back in March to double up this outing as my husband's birthday treat. In a way this worked out really well, because at this time of year you would struggle to get a clear picture of the house without hundreds of other tourists. One of the things that the children will probably remember, is the 'living statue' of Shakespeare, outside Stratford's public library. For a 20 pence donation, he would wave, move and shake hands!
Inside 'The Shakespeare Center' you couldn't take photos except when we were queueing for our tickets. Here, as we queued, the children were studying the ceramic tile map of Stratford in Shakespeare's day.
They were delighted to find a sundial in the gardens. It was pretty accurate, too. Since the Copernicus topic, we have loved sundials. The children tried to make one out of slate when they were staying with their grandparents.
They enjoyed making large Shakespeare posters, which began as the 'fact-wheel' inquiry. They wanted to have flaps and other moving parts on their posters, as well as the 'fact-wheel' with the answer window. I love how this activity involved research and choosing the facts that they wanted to include, then deciding which type of moving part would best display their information. Then they presented and decorated the poster in an attractive way too.
Here (xxx) is painting his Shakespeare 'fact-wheel'.
(xxx) and (xxx) worked together to prepare clues for 'The Shakespeare Fact Trail'. We enjoyed following the clues as a family and the sweets we found at the end! 
It goes without saying that we had an emphasis on 'Playwriting'. All of the children wrote their own play after we had studied the 'mechanics' of playwriting. I think they learned a lot from this. We're still thinking about acting out and videoing our plays.
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