The documentary is the go-to genre for high schoolers, but it can be a challenge to make the presentation, and the subject matter, compelling. Here are six amazing documentaries on a variety of topics that are engaging, entertaining, and informative. They’re all a great start to get high schoolers interested in the wild world of documentary.
13th (2016)
Director Ava DuVernay’s 13th is a must-see documentary about the United States prison system and the history of racial inequality. Despite the U.S. only consisting of 5% of the world’s population, 25% of the people incarcerated live here. DuVernay looks at the law and the media to present a searing indictment of the for-profit prison system in America and the numerous lives affected. DuVernay’s documentary is powerful and unrelenting, but presents everything in an accessible way for a high schooler to understand how things have gotten to where they are, and how it affects them.
Why it’s great for classrooms and libraries: This is a must for explorations of social justice through documentary, as well as any classroom studies on Black history, either in the US or abroad, as well as American social justice issues. This is also worth watching in conjunction with reading books like The New Jim Crow or other fiction and non-fiction looks at American slavery or Black history as well as Juneteenth discussions.
Stream 13th on Netflix here.
Try Harder! (2021)
Director Debbie Lum’s Try Harder! casts its eye on high school itself, and the transition into college. Lum follows a variety of teens attending Lowell High School, one of San Francisco’s top public high schools where the student body is predominately Asian American. The various teens struggle with the competition, both to be the best in school as well as to get into their top colleges. Along the way they also struggle with the intense need to please their parents and how that goes along, or doesn’t, with their own personal desires.
Why it’s great for classrooms and libraries: Try Harder! is a great palate cleanser to showcase how documentaries can be fun and focus on issues not related to politics or other social factors. It can be used to explore the filmmaking and entertainment purposes of documentary. It can also be used to discuss issues affecting teenagers today, from personal autonomy to peer and societal pressure. It can be curated and used alongside guidance counseling sessions or classes focused on preparing for college.
Get your copy of Try Harder! on DVD or stream Try Harder! on Prime Video.
Hoop Dreams (1994)
This legendary documentary tells the story of two high school basketball players living in inner-city Chicago and going through their high school career in the hopes of making it to the NBA. The documentary explores the pair’s struggles with injuries, finances, and more. Through it all, they hope that going pro will change their lives forever.
Why it’s great for classrooms and libraries: Hoop Dreams is essential for any library, high school or otherwise, documentary collection. It can be utilized to examine social and financial differences in the public school system, as well as economic inequality in the inner-city system. Playing it alongside other sports docs like The Last Dance can allow for discussion of the genre and why sports make for popular documentary material.
Stream Hoop Dreams on Prime Video.
An Inconvenient Truth (2006)
Presented by Al Gore, An Inconvenient Truth is the landmark documentary all about global warming. Using a variety of graphs, images, and other visual components, Gore lays out the cause and effects of global warming, the history, and what people can do to stop it. If you’ve ever wanted a comprehensive, yet accessible, explanation of climate change, here it is.
Why it’s great for classrooms and libraries: An Inconvenient Truth can be utilized in science classrooms and specific discussions on climate change today. The film garnered a 2017 sequel that can be played concurrently, along with modern discussions of climate change today, to track the progression of the topic. It can also be used as a visual component alongside readings on the topic.
Get your copy of An Inconvenient Truth on DVD or stream An Inconvenient Truth on Prime Video.
Science Fair (2018)
This charming documentary explores the lives of a variety of teenagers competing in the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair. One student does research on the effects of risk-taking behavior in her age group while a pair from Brazil have conjured up a way to cure Zika virus. The documentary looks at not only their intelligence, but their hopes, dreams, and why science is so important to them.
Why it’s great for classrooms and libraries: This documentary from National Geographic can be used in science to not only explore the impact of high school science classes—combating the “when are we going to need this” mentality—but the significance of STEM careers. It can be played alongside other documentaries focused on high schoolers transitioning to college (like the aforementioned Try Harder!) to help students who maybe have not selected a career path yet.
Stream Science Fair on Prime Video.
Bowling for Columbine (2002)
Director Michael Moore’s Bowling for Columbine changed how American talk about gun control, while remaining relevant in its stark examination of the threat schoolkids remain under in a landscape of gun violence. Initially focusing on the Columbine school shooting in 1999, Moore’s camera goes across the U.S. interviewing politicians and everyday people about the role of guns in our society. He also looks at what, if anything, the average person can do about it.
Why it’s great for classrooms and libraries: This can be utilized alongside other Michael Moore documentaries in a discussion of American issues including the healthcare system. Libraries can curate this alongside other popular Moore works as well as series aimed at Oscar-winning documentaries. Schools can use this to open up discussions on gun violence, particularly what has changed or stayed the same since Moore’s documentary was released.
Get your copy of Bowling for Columbine on DVD or stream Bowling for Columbine on Prime Video.
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