Let’s face it. Longform movies have become the new “books” that students are struggling to “read.” It used to be that a teacher would include a movie in a lesson or unit, and the students would break out the popcorn and settle in for a fantastic class! Nowadays, when we try incorporating teaching through film, students may roll their eyes, place their heads on their desks, and promptly fall asleep.
Their attention spans are super small, like the span of a gnat’s life! They click on social media videos, and they get a story and entertainment, all within a minute or less. How can teachers compete with this?
Unfortunately, we can’t; however, we CAN help our students build interest in how we are teaching through film, media, and even the printed word! Long gone is the time we could just press play on a movie and go.
So, let’s raise the standard a bit higher in our middle and high school classrooms. Keep reading for Teaching Through Film in 5 Powerful and Purposeful Ways!
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Why Teaching Through Film Is Still Relevant
I vividly remember the movies I watched in high school, probably because they were few and far between. For United States History class, we viewed Mr. Smith Goes to Washington with Jimmy Stewart, one of my favorite actors. Although the movie is in black and white, the characters, plots, and major themes are universal! The ending is also iconic.
Who doesn’t cry or at least sympathize with Jefferson when he faints in exhaustion, fighting for freedom and truth?
The other favorite that I try to watch every year or two is 12 Angry Men. The cast is stellar, the story captivating, and the setting real and gritty. Everything is simple but beautifully crafted. I have never had a student be bored while watching this film, but the last time I taught this movie was about 8 years ago…this new generation is something else.
We have to begin teaching through film because, honestly, many of our students don’t watch movies anymore. I mean, my kiddos (5 and 7) watch movies ALL THE TIME, but that is because their dad is from Gen X, and their mom is in that space between Gen X and Millenial. We were older when we started having children.
Guess what, though? My kids absolutely LOVE watching pretty much whatever I put before them, whether the movie is from the 1930s or 2020s! I am teaching through film as we view them together. Let’s give our students the same opportunity, as there is SO MUCH to learn from watching whole movies or even movie clips!
Teaching Through Film in 5 Powerful and Purposeful Ways
1. Include a Film Studies Unit
When it comes to film studies, you don’t need an entire year or semester, although it would be AMAZING if you did have that option. Instead, you might consider a Film Studies Unit for a quarter or six-week period.
Of course, you might not have that amount of time, but even a two or three-week mini-unit would radically and fundamentally change how your students see the role of movies historically and contemporaneously.
There are several elements of a Film Studies Unit I would consider in preparation for teaching through film.
- Consider what assignment you want students to complete by the end of the unit.
- Plan how you will get your students to engage.
- Teach film techniques just like you would any literature techniques or elements.
- Focus on the analysis and purpose of techniques throughout all the viewings.
- Offer time for discussion before, during, and after the films or clips.
- Select movies that your students haven’t seen and will challenge them in some way.
- Get permission from parents or use an opt-out form way ahead of time.
This unit should NOT be a time for students to sit back and take it easy. Instead, it should mentally require them to struggle. We don’t want them to simply comprehend what is going on, although for some classes, that might be an initial step.
We want them to go beyond. What techniques are used in the movie and why? How are they effective? What messages/themes is the movie attempting to convey?
Like any piece of literature, we ultimately want students to evaluate the ideas within. What do they think? How is the movie and its ideas relevant today, because most of the time, they are!
Check out this Film Analysis Resource to make teaching movies STREE-FREE!
2. Incorporate Movies to Teach Literary and Rhetorical Analysis
There are some fantastic ways to incorporate movies as a part of literary and rhetorical analysis. Understanding and practicing these types of analysis is important for our students while in middle and high school. Teaching through film can help our students in these areas!
LITERARY ANALYSIS:
Literary analysis typically focuses on how the author, or in this case, the director, develops universal ideas, mood, characterization, and overall theme(s).
As students view a movie or television episode from start to finish, we want them to focus on the above-related ideas by identifying scenes and/or techniques.
Here is an example focused on characterization:
EVIDENCE/SCENE: Ex. The opening credits of Sci-Fi show images of objects that turn out to be shavings of skin, hair, and nail clippings.
FILM TECHNIQUES: Ex. Extreme Close-Up and Close-Up
CHARACTER TRAIT: Ex. These extreme close-up and close-up shots connect to the protagonist in his struggle to become more than what society will allow. They reveal his desire to change and his willingness to do whatever it takes to achieve his goals.
IMPACT/MEANING: Ex. The opening credits of Sci-Fi show images of objects that turn out to be shavings of skin, hair, and nail clippings. This scene and the use of the techniques contribute to intrigue concerning the protagonist’s motivation.
RHETORICAL ANALYSIS:
There are so many techniques to help students examine film through the lens of rhetoric. I usually start with the appeals and move on from there.
Here is my shortlist:
- Logos-facts, statistics, real-life examples, historical knowledge
- Pathos-emotional imagery, language, and diction
- Ethos-appeal to authority and credibility (characters will employ this appeal, or the whole movie might use it in a documentary)
- Diction-word choice (specifically a type)
- Syntax-how sentences are arranged (notice types like parallel or varied lengths)
- Figurative Language-metaphor, simile, personification
- Hyperbole-extreme exaggeration
- Imagery-detailed description related to the five senses
- Repetition-repeated words, phrases, ideas, etc.
There are so many options and so little time to teach them all. Choose the ones you think will help your students most.
Then, select a film or two with relevant speeches or dialogue to analyze. Personally, I enjoy teaching through film with a focus on rhetorical analysis for 12 Angry Men or The Great Debaters. All of the rhetorical appeals are covered, and these films make for fantastic discussions and even culminating assignments later on!
3. Integrate Movies Into a Thematic Unit
There are so many ways that teaching through film can aid as a part of a thematic unit.
- It parallels the texts you are reading.
- It mirrors themes similar to poems, short stories, or novels your class is reading.
- It follows the same storylines or contains analogous characters.
- It uses comparable plot elements, mood, or literary techniques.
If you are teaching about Love in Literature, you might use a clip or two from the 1968 version of Romeo and Juliet.
If your students are learning about dystopian literature by reading “The Veldt” or “The Pedestrian,” you might show them The Hunger Games.
If you are reading and discussing revenge in “A Vendetta” or “The Cask of Amontillado,” you might watch Alfred Hitchcock’s “Lamb to the Slaughter.”
Or if you are reading texts with similar plots, you might watch a short film to introduce or reinforce different ideas.
There are so many options when using films, although I do tend to stay away from certain films that students have already seen or that cause too much controversy.
Check out 13 Must-Read Short Stories for 9th Graders!
4. Use Movies for Historical Reference and Shared Knowledge
Have you ever seen those videos where someone will go around asking people for basic knowledge about history, and most of the time, their answers are absurd or absent?
I mean, who doesn’t know that George Washington was the first president? Or that we fought a Civil War between the North and the South in the 1860s over slavery? Or that we actually do not live in a democracy (US) but a constitutional republic?
There is so much history I learned about not from any history class but from visiting certain places, reading books, and watching movies. I know. I know. Movies are not always accurate, but most of the time, they at least offer the audience a sense of major events or time periods.
The Patriot is historical fiction based on a legendary person who fought during the American Revolution, yet I love the film for what it offers. It gives us a glimpse into a world of 250 years ago. We think we have it tough? I don’t think so!
Our students would struggle to survive in Little House on the Prairie, let alone during the American Revolution, within 24 hours, and let’s face it, we would too!
Most often, the process of war is bloody, soul-wrenching, and evil, even if it comes about for a good cause. If you are teaching history or literature, teaching through film is so helpful as it provides context, which is sorely missing from our students’ knowledge base.
My favorite films to show either as a whole or in clips are the following:
- Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
- Schindler’s List
- Lincoln
- The Great Gatsby
- The Pianist
- Robin Hood
- Hidden Figures
- South Pacific
- Troy
- Ben-Hur
- Sergeant York
- Hamilton
Before, during, and after I show the films or clips, I make sure to highlight any inaccuracies. We also take the time to discuss the setting, the time period, the people’s motivations, how people lived, how people died, etc.
5. Introduce Movies as a Source of Storytelling and Literature
There are hundreds of movies out there that are part of our national identity because they contain just good, solid storytelling. They allow their audiences to see beyond themselves into what could be, which is what good literature does. Ultimately, we want to leap forward, not steep ourselves in the dregs of our horrible decisions or situations.
That’s why l love movies and teaching through film. I get to see a world beyond myself into the unknown! Have movies done that for our students? Maybe, maybe not. We can, however, expose them to good storytelling by teaching through film just like we would any text.
Here is the list of my favorite all-time movies that I sit and watch anytime they come to mind. (I don’t use all of them when teaching through film.)
- Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
- Pride and Prejudice
- Now Voyager
- The Shawshank Redemption
- To Kill a Mockingbird
- The Apartment
- Raiders of the Lost Ark
- Lord of the Rings Trilogy
- Harry Potter (like all of them)
- West Side Story
- It’s a Wonderful Life
- Star Trek
- To Catch a Thief
- Rear Window
- The Imitation Game
- Back to the Future
- Persuasion
- Gone with the Wind
- Meet Me in St. Louis
- Singing in the Rain
I probably like movies from the 1940s to the 1950s the most, but I am an old soul. While my parents watched some of the movies on this list when I was a kid, I just found over time that I loved seeing movies that were pretty or interesting to look at and depicted another time in a bygone era. Maybe that’s why I enjoy teaching through film so much!
I want that same feeling for my students when teaching through film! Most importantly, however, I want them to be able to know their history, to analyze what is put before them in any media format, and to critique and evaluate what they watch.
Otherwise, they will believe anything and everything later on in life!
Teaching Through Film Resource
Want help teaching through film? This Teaching Through Film Analysis BUNDLE is a FUN and EASY way to incorporate the analysis of movies into your classroom. You and your students will find this activity bundle helpful as your students work to examine how film techniques contribute to the purpose of ANY film!
Students will understand how to use teacher-led examples to pre-write / organize their ideas while they watch the film, use a template to easily create thesis statements, and go sentence-by-sentence as they outline their essays.
Just PRINT and TEACH with these teaching through film activities!!
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