Only Yesterday Movie Guide Questions & Worksheet

This Only Yesterday Movie Guide Questions & Worksheet helps Grades 6 to 8 students examine how memory shapes identity, adulthood, and the choices people make about work, family, and belonging. As Taeko moves between present-day farm life and remembered scenes from childhood, students trace how quiet moments, old expectations, and unresolved feelings still influence the future she is trying to choose.

This packet gives you flexible ways to teach a full-length film without losing instructional time: use the pre- and post-movie discussion prompts to build purpose before viewing, pause at key time stamps for guided writing and conversation, or assign the written guide after the film for review and deeper analysis.

Engaging questions include scene-based, time-stamped prompts, reflection questions, and a multiple-choice quiz for easy differentiation. It works well for whole-class viewing, independent writing, film study, substitute plans, or guided small-group discussion.

Check the thumbnail images for sample questions to see if this movie guide is suitable for your students.

Film Summary:

During a ten-day trip from Tokyo to the countryside, Taeko reflects on childhood memories that continue to shape her life as an adult. Present-day conversations about farming, work, and belonging blend with remembered scenes about family pressure, embarrassment, growing up, and self-consciousness, turning the film into a study of how a person learns to understand the life she actually wants.

Parental Guidance:

Rated PG. Teachers can expect mild language, some emotionally intense family conflict, and candid discussion of puberty, gender expectations, and adult life choices, but no graphic content. See details on IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102587/parentalguide/

Perfect For:

• Grades 6-8 coming-of-age and ELA units
• Memory, identity, and belonging discussions
• Family expectation and adulthood themes
• Urban and rural life comparisons
• Reflective whole-film analysis with scene evidence

Skills Addressed:

• Character motivation
• Cause and effect
• Memory structure
• Theme development
• Vocabulary in context
• Discussion
• Whole-film synthesis

What's Included: (a zip file with)

Student Worksheet

• Google Slides/PPTX Print Version (Toner Tip! Print 2 Slides/Page)
• Google Slides/PPTX Digital Version
• Self-Graded Multiple Choice Quiz (30 Questions | Easy Language)
  • Digital Version (Google Forms)
  • Print Version (can be derived from the Answer Key not Self-Graded)

Teacher's Guide & Lesson Plan

• Pre & Post Movie Discussion Questions (themes, schema-building)
• Lesson Plan Options A, B, and C (3-day, 4-day, and 5-day pacing)
• Worksheet Answer Key + CCSS Alignment
• Multiple Choice Quiz Answer Key
• CCSS Alignment + Admin Movie Request + Parent/Guardian Permission Slip (2 Pages)
  

(Note: All files formatted for seamless upload to your Google Drive if desired.)

Time & Tech:

Runtime: 119 minutes. Use this resource before, during, or after viewing. Print the worksheet or assign the Google Slides/PPTX digital version, and use the Google Forms multiple-choice quiz when you want a self-grading differentiation option.

DISCLAIMER: This product is an independently created worksheet and question set for classroom commentary and instruction. It is not affiliated with the film's creators or distributors, and it does not include the movie itself. Teachers should preview films for local policy fit.