Changing By The Minute Documentary Tool Kit
One year in a startlingly upbeat public middle school in New York City that mixes 5th – 8th graders in most classes, and somehow it actually works.
Private Screener page for AMLE members, AMLE regional affiliates, Success Bound
Pure joy!
— Sara Davis Powell, Belmont Abbey College
A novel and extraordinary window into the world of early adolescence.
— Penny Bishop, University of Maine
A terrific documentary and an authentic portrait of what it means to be an early adolescent today.
— Phyllis Fagell, Author “Middle School Matters”
An amazing documentary which captures the story of one school’s remarkable and memorable efforts to reach and engage early adolescents. It is a film that will launch viewers into lively discussion and critical reflection about how best to support the growth and learning of young adolescents, examining a wide range of issues from the nature of a school day, to radically inclusive school practices, to the nature of innovative curriculum, and to how adults can positively shape students learning and lives. Ultimately, it is a compelling and uplifting story of a middle school that works, and works really well to help young adolescents thrive. Most importantly, the film portrays middle grade students in a positive and hopeful light revealing just how this developmental window offers us a tremendous opportunity to guide students towards ever more satisfying futures.
— Nancy Doda, PhD, AMLE Lounsbury Award Winner
A documentary filmmaker spent one year embedded in a “startlingly upbeat” public middle school in NYC collecting unprecedented observational footage about the daily lives of students and teachers.
- authentic, unfiltered interactions of 10-14 year olds with their peers and teachers
- commentary directly from students about their social and emotional lives
- a view into a school that embraces early adolescence with joy, flexibility, and deep acceptance
The goal of the project is to help reverse the narrative of early adolescence as a negative time — and support teachers in decreasing the stress and distress experienced by 10-14 year olds. Discussion guides were developed by subject matter experts to:
- Catalyze dynamic professional development sessions with teachers and administrators
- Educate teacher candidates, new teachers and afterschool staff about the developmental characteristics and needs of early adolescents
- Engage 10-14 year olds in meaningful conversation
- Connect with parents and families about what to expect developmentally
- Inspire nuanced and rich discussions in graduate programs
From this page you can STREAM or DOWNLOAD the films and discussion guides :
- Changing By The Minute – 62 min documentary by award-winning filmmaker and child development experts
- Y’All R Real Ones: Middle School Moments – 10 min short documentary (based on the same footage but meant to be used on its own)
- Bonus Clips – 28 min additional commentary, anecdotes, insights
- 6 discussion guides for using the short and long films with students, new staff, experienced staff (download at bottom of this page)
- 1 discussion guide for using the bonus clips with staff
STREAM FROM THIS PAGE
• Headphones / external speakers recommended. Laptop speakers not recommended.
• Click “expand” button on lower right of each window to view full screen.
• TURN captions on or off via CC symbol, in lower right hand side of player.
DOWNLOAD FILES TO HOST ON SCHOOL SERVER (or hard drive)
You can download the films and bonus clips to your own server to avoid problems with internet connection at school (but you will have to upload closed captions, and reinstate chapter markers depending on your system).
- Download all files from this CBTM AMLE Google Drive Folder
- Follow the INSTRUCTION sheet carefully to make sure all the elements are downloaded from the drive and uploaded onto your server (you will need to re-import captions)
- The most important things to do (also explained in the instructions PDF in the folder) are:
– Do not play any materials directly off Google Drive. Everything must be downloaded.
– Once you upload to your server platform, TURN OFF auto generated captions in your system. Upload the ones we provide. See instruction sheet.
– Depending where you are hosting the files, check that chapter markers are available (see instruction sheet)
Trailer (3 min)
Changing By The Minute (62 min documentary)
SECTIONS:
00:00 The School
12:11 Friendship
16:09 Identity
31:41 Choices
46:29 Community
Middle School Moments (10 min documentary)
Bonus Clips
Click here to access seventeen short clips of commentary, anecdotes, and insights that are intended to augment the 62 min. documentary film Changing By the Minute and provide jumping off places for additional conversations.
Discussion Guides
Discussion Guide for using short film with 10-14 year olds, during school and afterschool
Discussion Guide for using short film with new teachers, teacher candidates, and school counselor candidates
Discussion Guide for using 10min short film in professional development sessions with teachers, administrators and school staff
Discussion Guide for using 62min film with 10-14 year olds during school and after school.
Discussion Guide for using 62min film in professional development sessions with teachers, administrators and school staff
Discussion Guide for using 62min film with new teachers, teacher candidates, and school counselor candidates
Discussion Guide for using Bonus Clips with teachers, administrators, teacher candidates, college students, after school staff
To learn more, see: ChangingByTheMinute.com