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Create Lesson Plans Based on Movies and Film
THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS
SUBJECTS
--- U.S. 1991 to Present and Biography;
SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING --- Father/Son; Parenting;
Surviving, Work/Career; with the student handout
"Episodes in the Life of Chris Gardner (What's Not in
the Movie)" add: Alcohol & Drug Abuse; Breaking Out; Spousal
Abuse; Child Abuse; Education; Male Role Model; Ambition;
MORAL-ETHICAL EMPHASIS --- Responsibility; Caring.
Age: 12+; MPAA Rating -- PG-13 for some language; Drama; 2006; 117 minutes; Color.
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In this movie, an African-American man, abandoned by his father as an infant, vows that he will always be present in the life of his child. Caught in a perfect storm of bad luck, he becomes homeless. However, he manages to take care of his son while pursuing a highly competitive unpaid internship as a stockbroker. The film was "inspired by" events in the life of Christopher Gardner, who was once homeless but who is now a wealthy stockbroker, as well as a proud father.
Other than the example of a black man being committed to his child, most everything about this movie is in some way problematic. The TeachWithMovies.com Learning Guide to this film will show teachers and parents how to turn these problems into strengths by teaching children about:
(1) the liberties with the facts that can be taken by filmmakers in movies "inspired by a true story";
(2) how the filmmakers, in search of a dramatic story line, ignored Mr. Gardner's most important achievement;
(3) the victimization of the homeless by criminals;
(4) how movies can gloss over troubling ethical questions raised by the "true story"; and
(5) how "feel good" movies often feature Cinderella stories of extraordinary good fortune which, given the economic structure of our society, are unrealistic for all but one in a million.
TeachWithMovies.com has prepared an 19 page handout entitled "Episodes in the Life of Chris Gardner (What's Not in the Movie)". This provides fascinating information about the life of Chris Gardner and the many life lessons that can be derived from his story. It is designed as a reading exercise that will interest students. The Learning Guide also provides a handout and short quiz on homelessness in the U.S. With the handouts, the quiz and the Discussion Questions, teachers and parents can turn The Pursuit of Happyness into an excellent learning experience.
TeachWithMovies.com's Movie Lesson Plans and Learning Guides are used by thousands of teachers to motivate students. They provide background and discussion questions that lead to fascinating classes. Parents can use them to supplement what their children learn in school.
Each film recommended by TeachWithMovies.com contains lessons on life and positive moral messages. Our Guides and Lesson Plans show teachers and parents how to stress these messages and make them meaningful for young audiences.
Learning Guides feature the following sections:
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- Benefits
- Possible Problems
- Helpful Background
- Building Vocabulary
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- Discussion Questions
- Links to Internet
- Bridges to Reading
- Class Projects
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New Learning Guides are added on a regular basis!
The Pursuit of Happyness will help children get over a visceral negative reaction to the homeless and teach important lessons in social-emotional learning.
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"Learning Guides" help educators create lesson plans by providing background, discussion questions, projects, and vocabulary lists. "Movie Lesson Plans" are more formal with lectures, student handouts, comprehension tests and answer keys.
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TEACHERS: A film or movie can be an alternative educational experience that highlights points covered by the curriculum. Each Movie Lesson Plan and Learning Guide will help you maximize the benefits that your class derives from watching and discussing the movie.
PARENTS: Watch the movie with your children and briefly talk about its message. Often, just one or two comments will make the film a meaningful experience. Your family will grow closer as all of you learn about history, culture and people. You will gain some positive control over screen time.
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To give you a sense of how our Learning Guides can be used by teachers to help develop lesson plans, we have set out below a section of the Guide entitled "Suggestions for Using The Pursuit of Happyness in a Classroom Setting".
TWM suggests showing the movie when a substitute will be handling the class or at a natural break in the curriculum. The handout "Homelessness in America -- The Facts, The Causes and a Call to Action" (2.5 pages) should be assigned as homework before the movie is shown. The "Short Quiz on Homelessness" can be given any time after the class has read the handout.
The handout "Episodes in the Life of Chris Gardner (What's Not in the Movie)" should be distributed and assigned as homework after the class has finished watching the film. Teachers should review the vocabulary and terms that students might not know before assigning the handout. See "Building Vocabulary" and "Cultural and Geographic References . . . ." Consider assigning additional work with the handout such as outlining it, highlighting it, writing a short essay, or making a list of vocabulary words the kids don't know with the definitions they have looked up.
Select the Discussion Questions that will be helpful to the class. Media Literacy Questions 2 and 5, as well as Homelessness Questions 1 - 5, serve well before students read "Episodes in the Life of Chris Gardner (What's Not in the Movie)". The remaining Discussion Questions are designed for use after the class has read the longer handout. A number of essay topics are also suggested. See Projects and Activites.
The Learning Guide to The Pursuit of Happyness also contains sections on Benefits of the Movie, Possible Problems, Helpful Background, Discussion Questions, Links to the Internet, and Bridges to Reading. The Discussion Questions are divided into three categories: Subject Matter, Social-Emotional Learning, and Moral-Ethical Emphasis.
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