5th Grade English Language Arts Movie Guides

Explore themes of equity, disabilities, and resilience with this dynamic resource bundle designed for grades 5-8!

1. 18-Day Disabilities & Equity Unit (Grades 6+): This comprehensive unit includes engaging projects, thought-provoking essays, rigorous assessments, and Socratic seminars to help students explore visible and invisible disabilities, equity in schools, and societal challenges. Perfect for deepening understanding and fostering empathy in your classroom.
2. Out of My Mind Movie Guide and Activities (Grades 5+): Dive deeper into Sharon Draper’s Out of My Mind with this movie guide and activity pack! Students will analyze characters, themes, and key scenes while practicing critical thinking and reflection skills.

This bundle is ideal for educators looking to combine standards-aligned instruction with meaningful, real-world themes. Save time and inspire your students with these ready-to-use resources!

20 movie correlated activities for use with The Greatest Showman with Hugh Jackman (2017) to help students understand ELA concepts and history/social studies fact based events of P.T. Barnum and The Greatest Showman. Includes: Be a Hollywood Producer and cast the movie Design a movie poster Create a Movie Marquee Visual Plot Map (4 Stages of the Movie Plot) Interview with a Star (2 pages) Write a Newspaper Article and Teen Mag Article (Audience) Character Chart Graphic Organizer CRE Character Analysis Writing Ringmaster Chant & Rhyme Transformation Pros & Cons (Compare & Contrast) I'm Unique (Traits Chart) Fact or Fiction (Real Life Facts vs. Movie Facts) P.T. Barnum: Just the Facts (History) Barnum's Legacy (Design your own...) Barnum Festival (Design a statue) Barnum Poetry Lots of creative, engaging activities to showcase students' talents and build upon strengths while reinforcing concepts. Fact based information to encourage students to think critically and problem solve while using movie and media for cooperative learning. Great for centers, differentiation, flipped classes, homeschool, G/T, pre-Ap, history, and ELA.

This is a movie watch along to go with Pixar's Toy Story. Students will answer questions about main idea and theme while they watch the movie. This is a great product for a fun Friday, and even a quick assessment of main idea and theme.

I hope you enjoy it. Please rate and review.

Special Thanks to Julia Sunrain Graphics for supplying the Toy Story Clip art. Go check out her store!

Bring the heartwarming and inspiring Disney+ adaptation of Out of My Mind into your classroom with this comprehensive movie guide and activity bundle. Perfect for grades 5-8, this resource engages students in thoughtful discussion, critical analysis, and creative reflection while exploring key themes of inclusion, perseverance, and advocacy.

What’s Included:

Pre-Watching Activities:

• Agree/Disagree/Justify Statements: Students reflect on key themes like inclusion, disability, and perseverance before viewing the movie.
• Author Investigation: Research questions about Sharon M. Draper’s life, career, and motivations for writing Out of My Mind.

During-Watching Questions:

• 3 Open-Ended Discussion Questions: Encourage critical thinking and active viewing, focusing on the film’s characters, themes, and key moments.

Post-Watching Reflection:

• Creative Reflection Choices: Students choose from a variety of activities, including:

• A personal essay exploring connections to Melody’s story.

• A diary entry written from the perspective of a character.

• A 6-panel brochure highlighting the movie’s plot, characters, and themes.

Skills Covered:

• Critical Thinking: Through open-ended questions and reflection activities.
• Research Skills: Investigating Sharon M. Draper’s life and work.
• Creative Expression: Writing diary entries, essays, or designing brochures.
• Empathy and Inclusion: Exploring themes that challenge perspectives and foster understanding.

Why Teachers Love It:

Engaging & Flexible: Perfect for a wide range of learners with multiple activity options.
Low Prep: Ready-to-use activities designed for easy implementation.
Standards-Aligned: Meets objectives in reading comprehension, writing, and critical thinking.

Perfect For:

• Movie Companion Activities
• SEL Lessons on Inclusion and Perseverance
• Sub Plans or Flexible Learning Days
• Cross-Curricular Connections in ELA and Social Studies

This complete guide offers everything you need to turn Out of My Mind into a powerful teaching moment. Inspire your students to think deeply, reflect creatively, and grow in understanding with this must-have resource. Grab it today!

Additional resources with similar themes: 18-Day Disabilities & Equity Unit Grades 6+ Project, Essay, Assessments, Seminar

This is a watch-along activity to go with the movie How to Train Your Dragon. Students will take doodle notes as they watch, analyzing hints that tell them what point of view is the story being told in, and also the Hiccup and Stoick's attitude towards dragons and each other. They will then identify what point of view the story is told in and how they know. Then they will describe Hiccup's attitude towards his dad and how it changes and Stoick's attitude towards dragons and how it changes.

I hope you enjoy it. Please rate and review.

If your students loved reading Kwame Alexander's The Crossover, they need to see the new Disney+ series! As teachers, we want our students to be engaged, even when they are watching a film. With this resource, students will be challenged to think critically about the text and film in a variety of ways including comparing and contrasting, evaluating director decisions, and tracking character development across the series. Check out the preview for one handout from the bundle!

This resource includes:

• A double-sided handout for each episode 1-8
• Each handout contains:
• Do now question, discourse questions, compare and contrast section, and two rigorous writing tasks in DOK 3 or 4 and Bloom's Taxonomy Evaluate/Analyze categories.
• Each handout contains a teacher-facing answer key with answers students may write about.

The Crossover Summary: Kwame Alexander's text The Crossover is a coming-of-age story written in verse about 7th graders Josh and Jordan Bell as they navigate life, family, friendship, health, and most importantly basketball! The book became a graphic novel and later an 8 episode series streaming on Disney plus!

While watching the movie How to Train Your Dragon, students will analyze the characters in the movie. They will describe the character's traits using adjectives. They will also take a deeper look into Hiccup's character and how he changes from the beginning of the movie to the end of the movie and what events cause that change. Students will also look at Toothless and how his character impacts the story. I hope you enjoy it. Please rate and review.

If your students loved reading Kwame Alexander's The Crossover, they need to see the new Disney+ series! As teachers, we want our students to be engaged, even when they are watching a film. With this resource, students will be challenged to think critically about the text and film in a variety of ways including comparing and contrasting, evaluating director decisions, and tracking character development across the series.

This resource includes:

• A double-sided handout for episode 1
• This handout contains:
• One do now question, three discourse questions, compare and contrast section, and two rigorous writing tasks in DOK 3 or 4 and Bloom's Taxonomy Evaluate/Analyze categories.
• This handout contains a teacher-facing answer key with answers students may write about.

Check out every episode bundled 1-8: Disney's The Crossover Series Text Companion Handouts Episodes 1-8 BUNDLE (TeachShare.com)

This is a watch-along activity to go with the movie How to Train Your Dragon. Students will start by taking doodle notes as they watch. Then they will list the major events in the story.

Doodle Notes: This is a great way to allow students to visualize what they are watching/reading. Instead of writing what they see, students "doodle" what they are seeing/hearing. This is also a great accommodation for students who might need support with writing.

I hope you enjoy it. Please rate and review.

This is a movie watch along for Dr. Seuss's Horton Hears a Who. This product focuses on main idea and theme, along with supporting details for both. This is a great product to help keep students on task during a movie day and also a great assessment for main idea and theme.

I hope you enjoy it! Please rate and review.

This is a movie watch along to go with Disney's The Lion King! Students will be identifying the Main Idea of the movie and providing supporting details for the main idea. They will also be identifying the theme of the movie and also providing details.

This is a great product to help keep students engaged and focused during a movie while also getting practice on Main Idea and Theme!

I hope you enjoy it! Please rate and review.

These products include 5 activities to go along with watching How to Train Your Dragon. The activities will focus on 5 different skills: Main Idea and Theme, characters, Sequence of events, Story Elements, and Point of View and Attitude. Each watch along focuses on one of these skills and includes 3 - 5 worksheets to go with it. I hope you enjoy it. Please rate and review.

This bundle includes 10 Lorax products I have created. These products include multiple movie-watch-along, activities focused on characters and events, coloring sheets, a virtual and physical escape room, and a Lorax-themed jeopardy game! I hope you enjoyit. Please rate and review!

Special Thanks to Plearn for supplying the Lorax Clip Art. Go check out Plearn’s Store!

This is a collection of activities that can be done while watching the movie The Lorax. Each activity focuses on a different skill for ELA. These include Story Elements, Characters, Sequence of Events, Main Idea and Theme, and Point of View and Attitude.

These would be great for a fun Friday, connection from book to movie, and even an assessment for these different skills. I hope you enjoy it. Please rate and review.

This is a collection of 5 movie watch-alongs to go with Pixar's Wall-E! The 5 watch-alongs focus on Main Idea and Theme, Characters, Story Elements, Sequence of Events, and Point of View and Attitude.

These are to help with keeping students engaged during the movie, practice for each skill, and to help grow students' comprehension. I hope you enjoy it! Please rate and review.

A watch along activity to go along with the movie The Lorax. Students will write about characters, settings, and events. For students who might need a little more support, I have included a sentence bank for the events sheet.

Please rate and review!

Special Thanks to Plearn for supplying the Lorax Clip Art. Go check out Plearn’s Store!

Watch Along to go with Dr. Seuss's The Lorax

This activity is a watch along to go with the movie The Lorax. This product is focused on the events in the story. Students will take doodle notes of what they see/hear. Then describe their doodle notes, and finally sequence the events in the correct order.

Doodle Notes: This is a great way to allow students to visualize what they are watching/reading. Instead of writing what they see, students "doodle" what they are seeing/hearing. This is also a great accommodation for students who might need support with writing.

I have also included an event bank if students need some more support with sequencing the events.

Please follow and review!

This is a movie watch along to go with The Peanuts Movie! Students will be identifying the Main Idea of the movie and providing supporting details for the main idea. They will also be identifying the theme of the movie and also providing details.

This is a great product to help keep students engaged and focused during a movie while also getting practice on Main Idea and Theme!

I hope you enjoy it! Please rate and review.

What is included in this product:

1. Movie Watch Along - Focused on Characters - During/After watching the movie, students will describe some characters using adjectives and write about how the Once-Ler’s character changes from the beginning to the end

2. Characters Crossword Puzzle - Students will complete a crossword puzzle that is focused on characters (mainly from the book but can be done with the movie too)

3. Character Word Search - Basic word search to go along with the Lorax Movie and its characters

4. A Maze - A simple maze for students to complete of the Lorax trying to get ot the Truffula Trees

5. Describe the Lorax with Adjectives - Students will draw the Lorax and then give 4 adjectives to describe their drawing of the Lorax

I hope you enjoy it. Please rate and review.

Special Thanks to Plearn for supplying the Lorax Clip Art. Go check out Plearn’s Store!

This is a movie watch-along activity to go with How to Train Your Dragon. Students will identify the main idea of the movie and also the theme. They will need to provide supporting details for the main idea and the theme. I hope you enjoy it. Please rate and review.