August 25, 2014

Dear Parent/Guardian:

This year, the English department has asked each teacher to send home a parent consent
form for the films that our students may view in the classroom as a part of their
instruction. In accordance with district policy, any film rated PG, PG-13, or R must
receive the principals prior approval and parental permission before teachers can use the
film for educational purposes.

All of the films we study in the English classroom feature concepts or literature presented
in the curriculum, help address the visual learning styles of the majority of todays
students, and satisfy the state mandated TEKS requirement of media literacy.

Below is a list of the commercial films that we may be using in our classrooms this year.
If you would prefer that your son or daughter NOT view these films, he or she will
receive alternate library assignments, which will take the place of the film-related
assignments.

Possible films:
The Scarlet Letter, 1979, WGBH Boston Video (Public Television Miniseries NR) Starring Meg Foster,
John Heard, Kevin Conway Based on the classic novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne, an American
Romanticist

The Crucible, 1996, PG-13, Starring Daniel Day-Lewis and Winona Ryder Based on the Arthur Miller
play.

Dead Poets Society, 1990, PG, Starring Robin Williams Displays the views and philosophies of
Transcendentalist writers.

Death of a Salesman, 1986, KLV-TV Video, Starring Dustin Hoffman, Charles Durning, and John
Malkovich Based on the Arthur Miller play.

The Glass Menagerie, 1994, PG, Starring Joanne Woodward and John Malkovich Based on the
Tennessee Williams play.

The Great Gatsby, 1974, PG, Starring Robert Redford and Mia Farrow. Based on the novel by F. Scott
Fitzgerald.

The Great Gatsby, 2013, PG-13, Starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Carey Mulligan. Based on the novel by
F. Scott Fitzgerald.

The Grapes of Wrath, 1940, not rated, Starring Henry Fonda and Jane Darwell. Based on the novel by John
Steinbeck.

The Simpsons The Raven episode acts out The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe.

The Red Badge of Courage, 1951, not rated MGM/UA Home Video program, Starring Audie Murphy.
Based on the novel by Stephen Crane.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, 1993, PG, Starring Elijah Wood OR 1975, G, Starring Ron Howard.
Based on the novel by Mark Twain

30 Rock- NBC sitcom used in conjunction with The Crucible and irony

The Queen of Versailles-used in conjunction with The Great Gatsby


Thank you very much for your assistance,

Clear Springs High School English III Teachers