Community Classroom Engaging Seattle Teachers Through Film

Community Classroom currently offers a diverse selection of FREE DVDs and online modules designed with teachers, students, classroms, and community learning in mind.

The Seattle International Film Festival presents myriad year-round events, workshops, and films

On Tuesday, Dustin Kaspar, Educational Programs Coordinator for the Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) presented Community Classroom to a group of teachers from various Social Studies departments throughout the Seattle Public Schools system. Local ITVS National Community Coordinator, Patrick Baroch, provided each teacher with a free DVD and information about upcoming events.  Free Community Classroom materials feature curricula paired with specially edited video modules taken from the best of Independent Lens and other cutting-edge documentaries, Web original projects, and online activities. All activities incorporate national standards, teaching strategies, worksheets and extension ideas. These FREE resources are a powerful tool for teaching and learning around issues crucial to educating young people in classroom and community settings. Kaspar said, “The training was a rousing success, and teachers were very excited about the availability of the free DVDs.” Teachers learned about the diverse calendar of films at SIFF Cinema, the film festival’s year-round cinematheque who also partners with Community Cinema. Kaspar shared a clip from Community Cinema selection MARCH POINT (which was shot by teens north of and in Seattle and Washington, D.C.) as an example of youth using film to tell their story. The teachers took their materials back to their schools to share with colleagues and students.  Turn your classroom into a Community Classroom.

Tags: Community Classroom, education, seattle, seattle international film festival, teachers