Using Feature Films to Teach Social Development

To promote understanding of children's social development during middle childhood, students select, view, and analyze a feature film using theory and research from the course. Students write papers analyzing the protagonist's social development, focusing on peer relations and friendship issues. The quality of these papers and student evaluations demonstrate that this assignment is a valuable educational experience. The exercise enriches students' understanding of course content and fosters a more sophisticated perspective on movies about children. Instructors can modify this technique for other developmental topics.