Adapting to Change

Adapting to Change — Classroom Collection

Help students recognize how people respond when life shifts under their feet—new schools, new identities, new pressures. This collection turns movie viewing into structured reflection with evidence-based questions, quick-writes, and small-group debate.

Guides emphasize decision-making, growth mindset, and evaluating how characters revise beliefs as circumstances change.

What you'll find

  • Printable PDF + Google Slides worksheets with short-answer & discussion prompts
  • Answer keys and teacher tips for pacing and differentiation
  • Mix of classic and contemporary films to reach diverse learners
  • CCSS-aligned ELA skills; SEL ties where appropriate

Spotlight Films

  • Inside Out 2 (PG – 2024) — Students track Riley’s evolving emotions and belief system during her first high-school tryout, weighing choices like allowing a friend to score and discussing how anxiety, envy, embarrassment, and ennui influence behavior and self-regulation.
  • Thirteen Days (PG-13 – 2000) — Learners analyze leadership under pressure during the Cuban Missile Crisis—comparing options, consequences, and argumentation to understand how flexible thinking averts catastrophe.
  • Lion (PG-13 – 2016) — Guides prompt reflection on identity formation and belonging as Saroo adapts to life across continents, then confronts the pull of memory and home.

Use these movie-based lesson plans to teach adapting to change with structured questions, reflection writing, and CCSS-aligned prompts.