Who should take this class?

This ongoing class is fantastic for students who have insatiable curiosity and want to learn about ALL THE THINGS.  

This ongoing class is also great for "niche-learners" who have specific interests and would like to continue to go deep and add to their knowledge-base in a certain subject area.  

This class is also perfect for reluctant learners who might like the idea of watching TV as a homework assignment!  

Although the live portion of this class is only available to students, this class would be a fantastic opportunity to watch this content WITH your child.  This would support them with the content, provide discussion opportunities and allow you to spend time together in a wonderful learning opportunity that is disguised as a SCREEN.  

It is also a really good summer plan - a way to enrich and keep your teens learning without getting too much pushback.  If the homework involves Netflix, can you really call it homework?  

Each week, students will come to class having already watched the assigned viewing.  Students will also be expected to have completed an accompanying assignment in advance of the class meeting.  This assignment can be printed and completed in a paper/pencil format or may be completed digitally in a google slides format.  

Classes cover TED Talks, documentaries and films based on true events. Rating for and length of viewing are included in the Course Description below.  Any content that has been given anything other than a rating of "G" includes a detailed review from Common Sense Media below.  TED Talks are "not rated" and if you are unsure if this content is right for your child, please screen the content yourself.  Most of the TED Talks are 10 - 15 minute in length.  

The class will be structured as follows:

15 min - Welcome, introductions, informal initial reactions to assigned media

30 min - Students and teacher will informally share portions of completed assignments in a discussion based format, student-led discussion, teacher-led discussion, questions, challenges, critiques etc.

15 min - Preview of the next week's assigned viewing content.  This is intentional and based on brain-based learning.  We will spend  time activating prior knowledge about the upcoming content.  Essentially creating a "file" or "schema" where new learning and constructs will be housed.  Any student who will not be taking the next week's class will be invited to log off just prior to this time, should they choose to do so.  

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Week 1 - TED Talk David Katz - The Surprising Solution to Ocean Plastic, 11 min 44 sec, free streaming, not rated
https://www.ted.com/talks/david_katz_the_surprising_solution_to_ocean_plastic

Can we solve the problem of ocean plastic pollution and end extreme poverty at the same time? That's the ambitious goal of The Plastic Bank: a worldwide chain of stores where everything from school tuition to cooking fuel and more is available for purchase in exchange for plastic garbage -- which is then sorted, shredded and sold to brands who reuse "social plastic" in their products. Join David Katz to learn more about this step towards closing the loop in the circular economy. "Preventing ocean plastic could be humanity's richest opportunity," Katz says.

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Week 2 - TED Talk Greta Thunberg - The disarming case to act right now on climate change, 11 min 3 sec, free streaming, not rated
https://www.ted.com/talks/greta_thunberg_the_disarming_case_to_act_right_now_on_climate_change

In this passionate call to action, 16-year-old climate activist Greta Thunberg explains why, in August 2018, she walked out of school and organized a strike to raise awareness of global warming, protesting outside the Swedish parliament and grabbing the world's attention. "The climate crisis has already been solved. We already have all the facts and solutions," Thunberg says. "All we have to do is to wake up and change."

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Week 3 - TED Talk Bryan Stevenson - We need to talk about an injustice, 23 min 20 sec, free streaming, not rated
https://www.ted.com/talks/bryan_stevenson_we_need_to_talk_about_an_injustice#t-732

In an engaging and personal talk -- with cameo appearances from his grandmother and Rosa Parks -- human rights lawyer Bryan Stevenson shares some hard truths about America's justice system, starting with a massive imbalance along racial lines: a third of the country's black male population has been incarcerated at some point in their lives. These issues, which are wrapped up in America's unexamined history, are rarely talked about with this level of candor, insight and persuasiveness.

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Week 4 - TED Talk Rutger Bregman - Universal Basic Income, 14 min 49 sec, free streaming, not rated
https://www.ted.com/talks/rutger_bregman_poverty_isn_t_a_lack_of_character_it_s_a_lack_of_cash

"Ideas can and do change the world," says historian Rutger Bregman, sharing his case for a provocative one: guaranteed basic income. Learn more about the idea's 500-year history and a forgotten modern experiment where it actually worked -- and imagine how much energy and talent we would unleash if we got rid of poverty once and for all.

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Week 5 - TED Talk Hans and Ola Rosling - How not to be ignorant about the world, 18 min 56 sec, free streaming, not rated
https://www.ted.com/talks/hans_and_ola_rosling_how_not_to_be_ignorant_about_the_world

How much do you know about the world? Hans Rosling, with his famous charts of global population, health and income data (and an extra-extra-long pointer), demonstrates that you have a high statistical chance of being quite wrong about what you think you know. Play along with his audience quiz — then, from Hans’ son Ola, learn 4 ways to quickly get less ignorant.

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Week 6 - TED Talk Pia Mancini - Democracy 2.0, 13 min 15 sec, free streaming, not rated
https://www.ted.com/talks/pia_mancini_how_to_upgrade_democracy_for_the_internet_era

Pia Mancini and her colleagues want to upgrade democracy in Argentina and beyond. Through their open-source mobile platform they want to bring citizens inside the legislative process, and run candidates who will listen to what they say.

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Week 7 - TED Talk Brene Brown - The Power of Vulnerability, 20 min and 3 sec, free streaming, not rated
https://www.ted.com/talks/brene_brown_the_power_of_vulnerability

Brené Brown studies human connection -- our ability to empathize, belong, love. In a poignant, funny talk, she shares a deep insight from her research, one that sent her on a personal quest to know herself as well as to understand humanity. A talk to share.

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Week 8- David Attenborough's Our Planet - Episode 1: One Planet, 49 min, Netflix and https://watchdocumentaries.com/, PG
Witness the planet's breathtaking diversity -- from seabirds carpet-bombing the ocean to wildebeests eluding the wild dogs of the Serengeti.   

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Week 9 - David Attenborough's Our Planet - Episode 2: Frozen Worlds, 53 min, Netflix and https://watchdocumentaries.com/, PG
On the unforgiving frontier of climate change, polar bears, walruses, seals and penguins find their icy Edens in peril.  

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Week 10 - David Attenborough's Our Planet - Episode 3: Jungles, 51 min, Netflix and https://watchdocumentaries.com/, PG
Jungles and rainforests are home to an incredible variety of species like preening birds, intelligent orangutans and remarkably ambitious ants.  
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Week 11- David Attenborough's Our Planet - Episode 4: Coastal Seas, 50 min, Netflix and https://watchdocumentaries.com/, PG
From fearsome sharks to lowly urchins, 90% of marine creatures live in coastal waters.  Protecting these habitats is a battle humanity must win.  

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Week 12 - David Attenborough's Our Planet - Episode 5: From Deserts to Grasslands, 51 min, Netflix and https://watchdocumentaries.com/, PG
Cameras follow desert animals seeking sustenance, bison roaming North American grasslands and caterpillars living the good life underground. 

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Week 13 - David Attenborough's Our Planet - Episode 6: The High Seas, 48 min, Netflix and https://watchdocumentaries.com/, PG
Venture into the deep, dark and desolate oceans that are home to an abundance of beautiful - and downright strange- creatures.  

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Week 14 - David Attenborough's Our Planet - Episode 7: Fresh Water, 49 min, Netflix and https://watchdocumentaries.com/, PG
The need for fresh water is as strong as ever.  However, the supply is becoming increasingly unpredictable for all manner of species.

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Week 15 - David Attenborough's Our Planet - Episode 8: Forests, 48 min, Netflix and https://watchdocumentaries.com/, PG
Examine the fragile interdependence that exists between forests' wide variety of residents including bald eagles, hunting dogs and Siberian tigers.  

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Week 16 Brave Blue World, documentary, 50 min, Netflix, TVPG*
*Review from Common Sense Media - Parents need to know that Brave Blue World is a documentary about the world's water crisis. It quotes shocking statistics and includes footage of children and adults in developing countries being forced to drink and bathe in dirty water. Big business is highlighted, including L'Oréal, though mostly to show the ways in which companies are tackling the problem of water shortage and waste. The film is more inspirational than scare-mongering, its interviewees -- including celebrities such as Matt Damon and Jaden Smith -- proving intelligent, passionate, caring, and determined. The overall tone is hopeful and motivating.

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Week 17-  13th, documentary, 1 hour 40 min, Netflix and https://watchdocumentaries.com/, TVMA*
*Review from Common Sense Media - Parents need to know that 13th is a powerful documentary that addresses racial issues confronting America in 2016. In a time of polarized attitudes about mass incarceration, brutality, and the explosion of for-profit prisons and their affiliates, director Ava DuVernay interviews social activists, academics, journalists, and political figures to make the case that today's prisons, which house millions of persons of color, are simply the next incarnation of the centuries-old U.S. exploitation of those who have been deemed "lesser personages." Using archival footage and a clearly developed historical narration to bolster her contention, DuVernay's epic film is not for the faint of heart. The violence onscreen is not "re-created"; it gives prominence to actual beatings, murders, deaths from point-blank gunshots, lynching, and the profound intimidation and caging of both individuals and large groups of African Americans. Incendiary language (visual and audio uses of the "N" word, "f--k," "a--hole") as well as discussions of rape and sexual assault add to the impact of the story. Two men are naked as they are dragged by police officers. Provocative and heartbreakingly real, this documentary is recommended for mature teens and up.

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Week 18- Kiss the Ground, documentary, 1 hour 24 min, Netflix, TVG
Science experts and celebrity activists unpack the ways in which the earth's soil may be the key to combating climate change and preserving the planet.

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Week 19- Biggest Little Farm, documentary, 1 hour 32 min, Hulu, PG*
*Review from Common Sense Media- Parents need to know that The Biggest Little Farm is a poignant, multi-year-spanning documentary about Southern California filmmaker John Chester (an Emmy-winning documentarian) and his wife, personal chef Molly Chester, who embark on a journey to go back to the land and run a traditional farm. With help from an expert mentor and a team of both experienced and new-to-farming staffers, the Chesters deal with the ups and downs of starting an organic, biodynamic farm just an hour north of Los Angeles on a 200-acre plot that was initially parched earth. While there's no sex, language, or substance use, you can expect several potentially upsetting scenes of dead animals, including some blood left on the predators. Animals also die due to environmental reasons and giving birth, and John is shown loading a gun and chasing a coyote. A beloved dog dies after several years, a human friend's death from cancer is discussed, and there's wildfire-related fear. Families will have lots to discuss after the film, from the importance of eating locally, supporting farmers, and understanding how farms work to character strengths like teamwork and perseverance.

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Week 20 :My Octopus Teacher, documentary, 1 hour 25 min, Netflix, TVG
A filmmaker forges an unusual friendship with an octopus living in a South African kelp forest, learning as the animal shares mysteries of her world.
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Week 21  Amend, Episode 1, docuseries, 58 min, Netflix, TVMA*
*Review from Common Sense Media - Parents need to know that Amend: The Fight For America is a limited multimedia series about the history of the 14th Amendment, the resistance to it, and the impact it has had on oppressed groups. There’s some cursing ("f--k," "hell"), and the "N" word is audible. Archival photographs, film excerpts, and news imagery featuring graphic violent images of assaults and arrests, lynchings, protests, hate speech, the KKK, and immigrant children in cages are featured, but all of this is offered in an informative context. Sodomy laws, same-sex marriage, and reproductive rights are also discussed. There’s a lot to be learned from the series, but the strong content makes it better suited to older viewers. 

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Week 22 A Life on Our Planet, documentary, 1 hour 23 min, Netflix and https://watchdocumentaries.com/, PG*
*Review from Common Sense Media - Parents need to know that David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet is a must-watch nature documentary that offers a bleak, but also hopeful, look at climate change. The natural historian, Sir David Attenborough looks back at his long career and assesses the state of the planet and what needs to be done in order to save it. Much of the conversation is somber, with talk about declining animal populations and the destruction of the planet. However, in the final third of the film, Attenborough does offer hope with a list of actions that can be made to hep prevent Earth from further decline. The film includes clips from Attenborough's previous documentaries -- some as far back as the 1950s -- as well as contemporary footage, both of which capture incredible moments of the natural world. Some of this footage also includes upsetting imagery such as animals falling to their deaths. Due to the seriousness of the documentary, parents may wish to consider how prepared their kids are for the realties discussed, or at least be prepared for difficult, albeit important, conversations.

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Week 23- The Boy who Harnessed the Wind, film based on a true story, 1 hour 53 min, Netflix, TV PG*
*Review from Common Sense Media - Parents need to know that The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind is based on the true story of William Kamkwamba (Maxwell Simba), a 13-year-old boy living in a small village in Malawi, Africa, who created a device that would restore the land and save his people after flooding ruined their grain fields. Expect sad moments, including some significant deaths. There are also a few violent sequences: Government officials beat a village chieftain, and thieves invade a home, threatening two women. A sprinkling of curse words are heard, including "damn," "hell," "bulls--t."  The movie's source material is Kamkwamba's same-named book. Both English and Chewa (subtitled) are spoken in the film, which has clear, strong themes of perseverance, courage, curiosity, and integrity.