Captain America: Civil War

Marvel comics and movies are a hot topic for many upper elementary school students. In this Marvel movie, the Avengers become divided on an issue: whether or not their actions as superheroes should be regulated. They proceed to split into two factions and battle against each other in a civil war. This trailer would garner interest about the topic of civil war, exciting students with battle scenes and music, and possibly connecting to their funds of knowledge on superheroes, Marvel, and comics. While some of the dialogue and plot might be hard to understand from the trailer, there are many visuals, and the important takeaway will be the concept of civil war.

Possible Engagements

• Brainstorm ideas about the definition of "civil war"

• Since the students will only be viewing the trailer, this would be a good time to practice the skill of prediction

• Engage students in a conversation about their prior knowledge of civil war, generating a list of civil wars that the class knows about and/or times in which they had conflicts with their friends

• This text also introduces questions like:

  • "What is worth fighting for?"

  • "Why do we go to war?"

Advantages & Shortcomings