Reference
6th Grade English Teacher
Shady Side Academy
The Buddha: The Story of Siddhartha is a two-hour long documentary on Buddhism directed by David Grubin. It is appropriate for middle and high school. You could even use some parts in fourth and fifth grade. I think the information would be too much, but they could learn much from the images.
The documentary goes through the life of Siddhartha and his journey to become the Buddha. The film is narrated by Richard Gere. The main story is told through animation, but interwoven through the animation are interviews with Buddhists, including monks, nuns and lay followers. There are also interviews with the Dalai Lama. Ancient artwork is also featured in the firm, which was a highlight for me including paintings and sculptures. The film also shows footage of holy places in India today including scenes from Varanasi and scenes showing people bathing in the Ganges. It also shows young monks in training and joining the Sangha. It also shows people practicing meditation and yoga.
The film does an excellent job explaining Buddhism and how it is practiced today as well as how Siddhartha found his enlightenment.
The film is broken into the following sections: Birth, Siddhartha, Leaving the Palace, Reincarnation, Asceticism, A Childhood Memory, Enlightenment, The First Teaching, The Four Noble Truths, Then Sangha, Meditation, Teachings, Miracles, Earth of the Buddha, Epilogue.
Two hours was a long time even though it was interesting. I would recommend showing parts of the movie that best highlight what you are trying to teach otherwise I think the students will tune out. If there is a lot of the film you want to use, I would recommend breaking it up in shorter sections as you go through your unit because it is a lot of information and a lot of speaking.
The special features include an interview with the Dalai Lama talking about Buddhism and the differences it has from other religions. This is really short but interesting. There is also a special feature on Buddhist Pilgrimage Sites, which shows footage of people meditating and worshiping at these sites today.
