A 30-minute discussion
Allow five minutes to choose examples, fifteen minutes to compare responses in pairs or small groups, and ten minutes to share a claim with the class. Use additional time for the source-checking question. The worksheet assumes you have watched the film; it discusses the competition’s outcome.
For question 4, keep the film-versus-history comparison and its sources available. The cast guide helps distinguish actors, characters and real people. A scene can support an interpretation of the film, while a historical claim needs a historical source.
Print the student worksheet below, or choose “Save as PDF” in your browser’s print dialog. Facilitator notes stay on screen.
Spare Parts (2015) / Discussion worksheet
A team, a problem, a possibility
Name: ____________________________ Date: ______________
Use a specific example in each response. For question 4, name the source and its date. There can be more than one well-supported interpretation.
Different strengths
Choose two students. What does each contribute to the team? Describe a moment from the film that supports your answer.
A decision under pressure
Identify a problem the team faces. What options do they have, what do they choose, and what trade-off comes with that choice?
Learning together
Choose a moment when a student asks for help, shares knowledge or changes their mind. How does it affect the project?
Film and historical evidence
Choose one detail from the film. Check it against a source in the true-story guide. What does the source confirm, complicate or leave unanswered? Record its title and date.
Opportunity and support
How do money, education or access to advice affect the team’s choices? Support your interpretation with a specific example rather than a general statement about success.
Beyond the result
What would still make the project valuable if the team had not won? Explain which skills, relationships or questions might last beyond the competition.
Original worksheet by Spare Parts Film Guide · Free to print and use in your classroom.
sparepartsthemovie.com/discussion-guide · Independent guide to the 2015 film.
Facilitator notes
These notes support the six original questions above. They are not an answer key to another publisher’s worksheet. Ask students to explain their evidence before judging an interpretation.
- Different strengths: look for two distinct contributions and a clear example for each. If students name an actor, use the cast guide to identify the character they mean.
- A decision under pressure: a complete answer names the problem, an alternative and a drawback. Encourage students to distinguish a constraint from a choice.
- Learning together: ask what changed because of the interaction. “They worked together” needs a specific example and an explanation of its effect.
- Film and historical evidence: the teacher comparison is one starting point: George Lopez’s character is Fredi Cameron, while the real mentors were Fredi Lajvardi and Allan Cameron. Follow the sources in the true-story guide. An unverified detail should remain unverified.
- Opportunity and support: welcome different readings supported by evidence. Keep discussion on the film and sources; students do not need to disclose their family finances or immigration experiences.
- Beyond the result: ask students to explain why their chosen skill or relationship matters independently of a trophy. This is an interpretation question with no single required answer.
A simple response check: does the answer make a clear claim, give a specific example, explain the connection and identify the source when needed?
Sources & follow-up activities
- The true story and original sources — check historical claims and meet the real students.
- The team after the competition — practice reading dated follow-up accounts.
- Stinky’s design and printable STEM activity — move from film discussion to a paper engineering challenge.
- Macmillan’s resources for Joshua Davis’s book — a separate resource for readers of the nonfiction book.