Coolidge Education presents

Welcome to Coolidge Classroom, a free field trip program for students grades 6–12!

Each three-hour session starts at 10:30am and includes a film screening, lunch, facilitated discussion, and contextual resources for students and educators. Learn more in the FAQ section below!

The Program

Developed in collaboration with local educators, Coolidge Classroom programs support existing curriculum in a variety of disciplines including STEM, world language, and the humanities, while simultaneously engaging media literacy skills and foundations of cinema studies.

In order to ensure youth programs are accessible for all, the Coolidge is committed to providing free transportation and meals for students.

Want to stay in the loop? Sign up for our Coolidge Classroom email list here.

Persepolis

November 18-20 [WAITLIST ONLY]

Directed by: Marjane Satrapi & Vincent Paronnaud | 2007 | PG-13 | 1h 36m | In French, Persian, and English

Marjane Satrapi's animated adaptation of her autobiographical graphic novel about coming-of-age in Iran during the Islamic Revolution.

Themes: Adaptation, visual storytelling and memoir, transnational literature, immigration and displacement, rebellion and activism

Dìdi

December 9-11 [WAITLIST ONLY]

Directed by: Sean Wang | 2024 | R (14+ Common Sense Media Rating) | 1h 31m | In English and Mandarin

An irreverent and affecting ode to adolescence and growing up online in 2008, as seen through the lens of a 13-year-old Taiwanese American boy.

Themes: Coming of age, intergenerational families, Asian American experience, “screenagers” and social media

Pan's Labyrinth

January 27-29

Directed by: Guillermo del Toro | 2006 | R (15+ Common Sense Media Rating) | 1h 58m | In Spanish

Eleven-year-old Ofelia navigates an eerie fairy tale world symbolic of her life in Franco's Spain.

Themes: Magical realism, fascism, war-time childhood, del Toro as auteur, violence on screen

Flee

February 10-12

Directed by: Jonas Poher Rasmussen | 2021 | PG-13 | 1h 30m | In Danish, English, Dari, Russian, and Swedish with English subtitles

In this animated documentary, Amin Nawabi tells the story of his extraordinary journey as a child refugee from Afghanistan.

Themes: Immigration, Intersectionality, LGBTQ experience, documentary storytelling and memoir

Coded Bias

March 10-12 [WAITLIST ONLY]

Directed by: Shalini Kantayya | 2020 | TV-MA | 1h 30m | In English

This documentary explores the fallout of an MIT Media Lab researcher’s discovery that facial recognition does not see dark-skinned faces accurately. This screening features an introduction and Q&A with a local guest speaker from the field of AI and computer engineering.

Themes: Artificial intelligence, systemic racism, computer engineering, STEM careers, algorithmic justice

Throne of Blood

April 7-9

Directed by: Akira Kurosawa | 1957 | NR | 1h 50m | In Japanese

An adaptation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth set in feudal Japan.

Themes: Adaptation, Shakespeare's “universality," gender norms, Japanese theatrical traditions, Akira Kurosawa as auteur

More Details and FAQs

Who can sign up for this?

Coolidge Classroom welcomes middle- and high school educators of all disciplines and their students. Register now!

How many students can I bring?

Our new Center for Education and Community Engagement can accommodate up to 45 students and chaperones. Moviehouse 1 can accommodate more than 400! We look forward to facilitating dialogue among students from multiple schools, classrooms, or disciplines simultaneously, so whether your class is large or small, you’re invited!

Is this movie a good fit for my students?

We encourage teachers to preview films and refer to Common Sense Media when determining whether a film is appropriate for their students. We are also happy to consult on sensitive content and available scaffolds for discussing challenging subjects. For questions about curricular applications, email sophie@coolidge.org.

More about our curriculum

In curating films that speak to themes in STEM, world language, social studies, and ELA, we strive to build a series that reflects the plural, intersecting identities of our students, including a variety of documentary and narrative, classic and contemporary, international and American films.

Coolidge curriculum addresses both Massachusetts State Frameworks and the Learning for Justice Social Justice Standards.

Program designed by Director of Education Sophie Blum in collaboration with an advisory committee of local high school teachers representing 5 districts and 4 core disciplines.

Film offers such a powerful gateway to deep classroom conversations. In just a couple hours together, students share in a rich, engaging text that they can analyze, discuss, connect to, and write about. Partnering with the Coolidge means expanding students' film horizons and helping them turn "going to the movies" into a pathway for lifelong learning.

– Brookline High School English Teacher