For reasons I’ve covered elsewhere, Caroline and I do a lot of reading out loud in our high school homeschool. Because of this, getting through an ambitious high school reading list would be very challenging. Thankfully I learned about the 7Sisters Cinema Studies for Literature Learning a number of years ago so it gives us another option that works well for our family.
In this post, I’m simply going over the cinema studies in general. We’ve now completed two and I hope to write a separate post about each one we use.
7Sisters Homeschool Curriculum
I received some of these study guides six years ago when I wrote an iHN review of 7Sisters curriculum that you can see here: Sensible High School Curriculum – 7Sisters Homeschool. If you aren’t familiar with 7Sisters, I encourage you to read that post.
Because of this past opportunity, Caroline and I are using an older version of some of the cinema studies. Others I have purchased recently. I believe some of the curriculum has been updated over the past six years so my version may not match yours exactly if you purchase the same title. I don’t think it will matter, but I did want to offer that by way of full disclosure.
7Sisters Cinema Studies for Literature Learning
Here is how 7Sisters describes the cinema studies on their website:
Cinema Studies for Literature Learning Study Guides teach homeschool high schoolers the elements of good literature using the medium of movies.
Cinema Studies for Literature Learning is geared to:
- the visual learner in high school
- those who are reluctant readers
- or for whom reading is very time-consuming, and to those who love movies!
Good movies tell good stories, and good storytelling requires the use of traditionally respected literary devices and techniques. With a little help from a study guide, many movies introduce the viewer to excellent literature that is being presented in a visual medium.
There are approximately 30 titles available. Each study guide includes vocabulary and at least one literature focus such as satire, archetype, character development, anti-hero, redemption. etc. The cinema studies are flexible and can be adjusted to varying degrees of difficulty and challenge depending on the needs of your child and her transcript.
There are two options for purchasing these. If you would like a full credit course assembled for you, then you can purchase the Cinema Studies for Literature Learning Curriculum. It includes 15 titles (click link to see list). The other option is to simply purchase individual titles that interest you and your child.
Study Guides We’re Using
We have opted to pick and choose the ones we would like to use. Our list currently includes:
- The Wizard of Oz (completed)
- The Truman Show (completed)
- 12 Angry Men
- The 39 Steps
- A Christmas Carol (1984)
- Hoosiers
- Remember the Titans
I expect we may add a few more before we complete high school, but these are the first ones we will complete.
So that’s an introduction to 7Sisters Cinema Studies for Literature Learning. If these would be helpful in your homeschool, I hope you will check them out!
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