Tag Archives: family functioning

Human Growth and Development

High School Muscial

Title: High School Musical

Date: 2006

Media type: Film

Format: Complete

Category: Human Growth and Development

Keywords: adolescence, family functioning, parenting styles, type of parents

Rating: PG – Parental Guidance Suggested

Audience(s): Children Under 12, High School Age, Families

Language: English

Film/Episode Summary: Troy Bolton and Gabriella Montez are two teenagers that live in completely different worlds, but they meet singing Karaoke on New Year’s Eve while on Christmas vacation. When Troy goes back to school in New Mexico, he realizes that Gabriella is a new student there. They quickly become friends and accidentally try out for the musical together. When Troy and Gabriella get a callback, Sharpay Evans and her brother Ryan are furious because they are always the stars of the school’s productions. Gabriella has to try to juggle the play and the decathlon team and Troy has to juggle that play and the basketball team.

Comments or Recommendations for Teaching: What are the differences in parenting styles between Gabriella’s parents and Troy’s parents?

Places to view: Amazon Video, Itunes

Contributor: Krista Hamann

Ethical Issues and Dilemmas

The Help

Title: The Help

Date: 2011

Media type: Film

Format: Complete

Category: Ethical Issues and Dilemmas

Keywords: family demographics, family functioning, parent-child relationships, parenting styles, types of parents, work and family

Rating: PG 13 – Parents Strongly Cautioned

Audience(s): High School Age, College Age, Adults, Parents, Couples, Families

Language: English

Film/Episode Summary: The Help takes place in Mississippi in the 1960’s. Skeeter Phelan is a writer that has just returned from college looking to write a book. While she was away at college, most of her friends got married and had children. Now her friends have help to run their homes and take care of their children. Skeeter has noticed how rampant racism is in her hometown and in the South and is on a mission to stop it. She decides to write a book about the help and tell their stories. While it puts all of their lives at risk, they write the book anyway to help eliminate racism and division in the South.

Comments or Recommendations for Teaching: Who does more parenting in the film, the birth parents or the help? How do you think being raised by the help affected Skeeter’s relationship with her own mother?

Places to view: Itunes, Youtube, Amazon Video, Vudu, Google Play

Contributor: Krista Hamann

Internal Dynamics of Families

She’s the Man

Title: She’s the Man

Date: 2006

Media type: Film

Category: Internal Dynamics of Families

Keywords: conflict management, types of parents, family functioning, divorce

Rating: PG -13

Audience(s): High School Age, College Age, Adults, Couples

Language: English

Film/Episode Summary: Viola (played by Amanda Bynes) pretends to be her brother Sebastian so that she can play soccer at his new private school because the girls team at her high school was cut. She got away with it by lying to her divorced parents saying to each of them that she was at the other parent’s house. The film follows Viola as she becomes a better soccer player, all the while she is trying to fight her mother’s desire that she be a lady like debutant instead of being a rough and tough soccer player.

Comments or Recommendations for Teaching: How does having divorced parents affect how Viola and Sebastian act? How does Viola’s mother learn to draw the line between letting her daughter pursue her desire to be a soccer player while still wanting her daughter to be a debutant?

Contributor: Krista Hamann