Explore My Neighbor Totoro through this engaging 4-pack film study bundle, designed around discussion, interpretation and active learning rather than worksheets.

This resource includes four film analysis packs covering context, ideas and background; character, symbolism and key scenes; cinematic language and animation technique; and writing, discussion and assessment.

Students explore:
• Studio Ghibli’s history, Miyazaki’s semi-autobiographical inspiration, and Japanese animism and spiritual traditions
• Themes of childhood wonder, resilience during family illness, the healing presence of nature, and trust between children and adults
• Character analysis of Satsuki, Mei, Totoro and their father
• Symbolism, motifs, film techniques (Miyazaki’s use of quiet “ma” moments, hand-drawn animation, score) and visual storytelling
• Scene analysis, discussion and analytical writing

Includes rich learning activities such as debates, scene analysis, collaborative tasks, visual literacy activities, retrieval practice, exemplar analysis and essay planning.

Teaching approach
This resource is activity-based rather than a scripted lesson-by-lesson program. Teachers can select and adapt tasks to suit their classroom needs, with an emphasis on discussion, interpretation and collaborative analytical learning.

File information
• Non-editable PDF
• Not an editable PowerPoint
How to use
• Upload to your LMS for digital learning
• Print selected pages for classroom use
• Display pages to guide discussion and activities
• Adapt in presentation or design platforms if desired (formatting may vary)