Here’s the thing about movie nights: they can be just entertainment, or they can be meaningful.

You can hand your teenager popcorn and press play. Or you can create an experience – one that makes them think differently about what they’re watching, that sparks conversation, that becomes a memory.

Project Hail Mary just became available to rent (streaming now on Amazon!), and it’s the perfect film for a homeschool movie night with teeth.

The science is real. The character development is stunning. The cinematography is beautiful. And the philosophical questions it asks – about bravery, sacrifice, connection, what it means to be human – those are the conversations that matter.

So here’s what I’m thinking about this week: Movie night with intention.

I’ve collected themed recipes for you that connect to the film. You’ll watch together. And then, with the free 33-page film studies unit study, you’ll have the tools to actually talk about what you just saw. Real conversations. The kind that help teach your teenager how to think critically about media instead of just consuming it.

This is homeschooling done right!

WHY THIS MOVIE MATTERS

Project Hail Mary is technically PG-13. But it’s not a kids’ movie. I wouldn’t even call it a family movie. So why am I showing this to my kids?

It’s emotionally intense. There’s real grief. Real sacrifice. Real questions about what it costs to believe in someone else.

Before you watch, know this: Your teenager might cry. You might cry. And, that’s okay!

This film treats its audience with respect. It doesn’t talk down. It assumes you understand things like centrifugal force. It doesn’t oversimplify. It asks: What is real bravery? What does it mean to sacrifice? Can you find connection with someone completely alien to you?

These are the questions worth wrestling with!!

And if you want to turn a movie into an actual learning experience – something that teaches film literacy, character analysis, philosophy, creative design thinking, and visual storytelling – that’s what my unit study does.

But first: the movie night.

Make it special. Serve intentional food. Create an atmosphere. Then engage deeply with what you watched.

HOW TO SET UP YOUR MOVIE NIGHT

The Basics:

Rent on Amazon
Runtime: ~2.5 hours
Have snacks ready!
Create a distraction-free space (clicky gadgets away during the film)
Plan for conversation after
Have the unit study ready to unfold over the next week.

The Intentionality: “We’re not just watching a movie tonight. We’re exploring what makes this film meaningful. Pay attention to how the director makes you feel things. Notice the colors. Notice the moments that hit hard. We’ll talk about it after.”

This simple framing changes how they watch. They’re not passively consuming. They’re actively observing.

Seeing what the artists who made the movie want you to see makes you more of an artist yourself.

THEMED RECIPES

These recipes use natural ingredients and natural food coloring. They’re simple enough for high schoolers to make independently. Plus, each one connects to the film thematically!

RECIPE 1: ROCKY’S ROCK CANDY

Why this recipe: Rocky is crystalline. Solid. Beautiful in a hard way. Yet, sweet!! Rock candy is the visual perfect match – crystals that sparkle, that look like gems.

What you’ll need:

2 cups sugar
¾ cup water
Natural food coloring
String or wooden skewer
Glass jar
Clothespin

Steps:

Boil water, add sugar slowly until dissolved. Keep stirring until it’s clear.
Add natural food coloring, as desired.
Pour into glass jar
Tie string to clothespin, dip string in mixture, clip clothespin across top of jar so string hangs in center
Wait 3-7 days as crystals form
Remove, let dry on parchment paper

Quick Option: Don’t have time to make it? These rock candies from Amazon are colored only with saffron – no artificial colors – and they’re gorgeous crystalline pieces that look exactly like Rocky’s world.

The conversation starter: “Rocky is made of solid, crystalline material. His world is harsh and beautiful at the same time. Just like this candy – hard, but sparkly and gorgeous. What does it tell us about Rocky that he comes from a world of crystals?”

Time to make: 5 min hands-on (+ 3-7 days waiting). Needs plenty of prep before movie (or a couple of days for Amazon shipping!).

RECIPE 2: SUMO CITRUS WHITE CHOCOLATE MATCHA LATTE (Adrian’s Warm & Cool Colors)

Why this recipe: Adrian’s atmosphere is filmed in warm ambers and golds, but also has touches of green from vegetation. This drink is literally orange (from the Sumo Citrus) and green (from the matcha) – it’s Adrian’s colors in a latte!

Plus, it’s naturally beautiful, energizing, and something your teenager can make themselves. The white chocolate sweetness paired with the bright citrus captures that sense of danger and beauty existing together.

What you’ll need:

For the Sumo Citrus White Chocolate Syrup:

2 Sumo Citrus, peeled and chopped
½ cup Granulated Cane Sugar
2 oz. White Chocolate, chopped (about ⅓ cup)
1 cup Water

For the Matcha Latte:

2 teaspoons Matcha Powder
¼ cup Water
½ cup Whole Milk (or milk of choice)
Ice
Matcha whisk (or small whisk)

Steps:

For the Sumo Citrus White Chocolate Syrup:

Combine the chopped Sumo Citrus, sugar, and water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 15-20 minutes until the flavors infuse.
Strain out the citrus pieces (or blend smooth if you prefer). Stir in the white chocolate until completely smooth while still warm. If it gets too thick, just reheat gently before using.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days.

For the Matcha Latte:

Add 2 tablespoons of the cooled syrup to a glass.
Add ice to fill the glass, then pour in the milk.
In a small bowl, combine the matcha powder and ¼ cup water. Use a matcha whisk to make it smooth and frothy (no lumps!).
Pour the frothy matcha on top of the milk and syrup.
Stir everything together with a straw and drink!

The conversation starter: “Adrian’s atmosphere is filmed in warm golds and ambers, with hints of green from life. This drink is orange (Sumo Citrus) and green (matcha)—literally Adrian’s color palette. Notice how danger and beauty exist together in the film. The Petrova Lines are deadly, but they’re also gorgeous. This drink is sweet (white chocolate), bright (citrus), and energizing (matcha)—layered, like the film itself. When you’re watching, pay attention to how color communicates emotion.”

Time to make: 30 minutes total (15-20 to make syrup, 10 to make the latte when you’re ready)

Pro Tips:

Make the syrup ahead of time and chill it – then the latte takes only 5 minutes
Use a real matcha whisk if you have one (they’re inexpensive) for the best froth
Sumo Citrus are sweet and juicy – if you can’t find them, regular oranges work but won’t be quite as special
The white chocolate thickens as it cools, which is normal—just reheat gently if needed
Recipe Source

RECIPE 3: ASTRONAUT TRAIL MIX

Why this recipe: Grace is on a spaceship, surviving on limited resources. And, guess what? Trail mix is actually sent with real astronauts to space. NASA has been packing trail mix on spacecraft missions since the Space Shuttle program – it’s lightweight, shelf-stable, protein-packed, and requires no preparation in zero gravity. (The Smithsonian Institution even has a space shuttle trail mix in their collection!) This is the perfect space-themed snack for a Project Hail Mary movie night because it’s literally what astronauts eat.

Check out SugarSpiceandGlitter.com for the recipe!

The conversation starter: “Real astronauts eat trail mix in space. Grace is eating rations, trying to survive on a spacecraft far from Earth. This trail mix is protein-packed with cashews and Moon Cheese – real nutrition, shelf-stable like astronaut food. When you’re watching the film, notice how Grace stays calm under pressure (mostly) and rations his energy (mostly!). What does it take to think clearly when you’re scared and far from home? And how does it feel knowing you’re eating the same kind of food that actual astronauts have eaten on real space missions?”

Time to make: 5 minutes

RECIPE 4: REALISTIC ROCK COOKIES (Like Rocky’s Crystalline World)

Why this recipe: Rocky comes from a crystalline, rocky planet. These cookies look exactly like realistic rocks – textured, varied in color, genuinely beautiful. They’re also surprisingly forgiving to make, which is perfect for a movie night with your teenager.

Check out Bakers Brigade for the recipe!

The conversation starter: “Rocky is made of crystalline, rocky material. These cookies look just like real rocks – textured, varied, beautiful in their imperfection. When you’re decorating them, you realize: beauty isn’t about being perfect. It’s about being real. What makes something genuinely beautiful versus just looking nice on the surface?”

Time to make: 30-45 minutes hands-on (+ overnight drying for both coating and decorating)

Here’s where the unit study comes in.

A movie night is fun. But a movie night + intentional learning = transformative.

Our free Project Hail Mary unit study is designed to deepen what you just experienced.

It teaches:

Film Studies: How cinematographers use color, light, sound, editing to tell stories. You’ll rewatch specific scenes and understand why they made you feel what you felt.

Character Philosophy: What the film teaches about bravery, vulnerability, sacrifice, and what it costs to believe in someone else.

Literature & Screenwriting: Why the screenplay made different choices than the book. How adaptation works.

Visual Symbolism: What objects mean (barbed wire, glasses, rainbows, beaches). How symbols communicate without words.

Creative Design: Your teenager can design their own scenes from the movie with my 9 unique coloring sheets with tons of details!

Discussion Questions & Answer Keys: For every section. Real questions that make people think, not busywork.

The unit study is printable, discussion-based, and designed for high school students who actually think instead of just consuming.

Here’s how to use it:

Pick one section at a time. Rewatch a scene from the film. Read the analysis. Have the conversation. Do a project if it interests you. No timeline. No pressure. Just learning that sticks because it’s rooted in something your teenager actually cares about – a film that moved them.

This is how you turn a movie into a complete learning experience.

You serve intentional food. You watch together. You talk about it. You offer them tools to understand how the film made them feel what they felt.

That’s parenting done right.

That’s homeschooling done right.

That’s the kind of memory that shapes how your teenager sees the world.

Project Hail Mary is available to rent right now on Amazon. This weekend could be the weekend you do this.

The 33-page complete unit study is free when you sign up for Homeschool with Joy emails.

It’s designed to turn this movie night into actual learning – the kind that changes how your teenager thinks about film, character, courage, and connection.

I hope it brings joy to your homeschool!

homeschooling

Project Hail Mary Movie Unit Study & Free Film Curriculum

May 21, 2026May 21, 2026 Jessica Lovett

At our house, we are currently obsessed with Project Hail Mary! My husband and I went first to the movie together alone as a date. You may not think it constitutes a Date Kinda Movie, but for total space nerds as we are, it definitely counts! 🤓🌌

Ironically, right as I was drafting this article, I saw a funny Instagram with a dude making a joke of “well, I had fun but she’s never going on another date with me again!” because he “made” his girl go with him. Well, at least she learned about centrifugal force and Petrova lines! That is NOT us!

After going to it, we were so impressed, we knew we wanted the kids to see it, too!

Now, quick disclaimer: While we felt that our kids were able to deal with the intensity of the film, it does deal with very heavy subject matter (i.e. you know.. the world ending!! mass destruction!!) and other difficult topics. It doesn’t have any cursing (that I caught) or sexual content beyond the merest of nods.

PARENT PAUSE: However, I do not want to declare that it is necessarily the right movie to see for your family. You have to be the judge of that!

I recommend checking Kids-in-Mind and perhaps even watching it first before you decide whether your kids are mature enough to see it. In my experience, Kids-in-Mind is much more objective and also lays out more specifics than Common Sense Media. CSM also has issues with reviews being either hit or miss. Their volunteers aren’t always consistent in their movie review quality, but I digress…

This film is EMOTIONALLY INTENSE. And I don’t just mean “sad.” I mean the kind of intensity that makes you understand – on a deep spiritual level – what it costs to love someone. What it costs to be brave when you have no choice. What it looks like to give up everything for someone else.

There are moments of real grief in this film. There’s a scene involving a character’s deaths that are not quick or easy. There are moments where you’re watching a person face their own mortality and make peace with it. These are beautiful moments. Meaningful moments. But they’re heavy.

After we told the kids some spoiler-less points about the movie, they were desperate to see it in theatres, too… So, I was dragged to it again after a week or two! I say “dragged…” – I mean, I adore the movie, but…

We went on a Tuesday afternoon and it was $5! Just like what Real Good-Ol’-Days pricing is supposed to be! Can’t complain there!

We may or may not have smuggled in Goldfish and chocolate-covered Craisins…

So, while I was watching it AGAIN, I had an epiphany! Homeschoolers need a unit study inspired by the movie!!

Deep inside my canvas tote bag tunnel, with the phone brightness turned all the way down, I quickly scribbled down my tons of ideas.

I also realized that the same people who directed Lego Movie, Lego Move 2, and Penguins of Madagascar – all of which I adore and have seen multiple times when I generally despise watching things more than once – are behind this movie, too! Phil Lord and Chris Miller! So therefore, I will only watch *their* movies multiple times.

Evidently I’m the demographic and have the sense of humor of a 13-year-old boy.

Sadly, and also joyfully, later that evening, I saw that there already was an official Project Hail Mary unit study! They did this just for homeschoolers! How amazing is that?!!

The Official Project Hail Mary Science Unit Study curriculum was written by Apologia author Sherri Seligson, M.Ed. Sherri Seligson is a marine biologist, homeschool veteran, speaker, and author of several science courses and educational videos. You can find her at Sherriseligson.com

If that isn’t cool, I don’t know what is… I immediately followed all Sherri’s socials, too! What an awesome thing to honor homeschoolers in this way. And, with a specifically Christian company, I might add!

One thing I noticed – while the unit study is great, it is about science!

The movie is so full of symbolism, great cinematography, deep characters, and philosophical dilemmas, it seems to be begging to have another complementary unit study focusing on the creative side!

So, I made one! You can have it for free after subscribing.

My background in graduate level film studies academia worlds gave me extensive tools to explore the beauty of this movie and I’m thrilled to share my work with you!

And, just for fun, I also made 9 unique color sheets featuring scenes from the movie! I made them myself and there are none like them out there…

I mean, you need this download just for the coloring sheets! I’m super proud of how they turned out.

Ahem. Disclaimer #2 in this Blog Post: This is unofficial fan art inspired by Andy Weir’s Project Hail Mary. I do not own the rights to these characters; all rights belong to the author and Amazon MGM Studios. I’m not making a profit off of any of this – cough cough – like the bagillions of RedBubble shirts and 3D printed models and jewelry popping up on Etsy!

My recommendation: Read Kids in Mind’s breakdown. It’s detailed enough that you can decide: “Yes, my teenager can handle this” or “This is too intense for my family right now.” And that’s a completely valid decision either way.

If you decide to watch it, after seeing the movie, check out the official sciencey unit study and also my film studies/art based one!

What you’ll get for 100% free:

🎥 Film Studies as an Academic Discipline – Learn cinematography, symbolism, sound design, editing, color theory

🛡️ Character Philosophy – Explore bravery, courage, vulnerability, sacrifice, faith

🖋️ Screenwriting Craft – Understand why filmmakers made different choices than the author

🎵 Music & Sound Analysis – How composer Daniel Pemberton uses sound to build emotion

🖼️ Visual Literacy – Learn to “read” a film like you’d read a novel

🎨 Color and Artistic Expression – Decorate 9 unique color pages with tons of details

✨ Discussion Questions & Answer Keys – For every section

The Philosophy Behind This Unit Study:

When I built this curriculum, I asked: “What can I teach that other curricula aren’t teaching?”

The answer: Film literacy.

Here’s the thing: We teach kids to read books. We teach kids math and science. But almost no curriculum I’ve seen teaches kids to read a film – to understand cinematography as a language, to recognize symbolism, to understand how a composer uses sound to build emotion.

Yet our teenagers live in a visual culture. They watch films, shows, YouTube videos… They understand that they’re feeling something, but they don’t always understand why or how.

This unit study teaches them that! Or is at least a good start!

Remember… NOT TO DO THE UNIT STUDY UNTIL AFTER THE MOVIE.

I repeat: No spoilers are allowed!! Bad Bad Bad! (as Rocky says.)

(And won’t get why until you watch the movie!)

I intend to make more film unit studies in the future. Let me know your suggestions for future studies!

homeschooling

Tool or Teaser?

February 25, 2026April 24, 2026 Jessica Lovett

A No-Guilt Guide to Screen Time in Your Homeschool

Someone recently asked me if I feel guilty letting my kids use a screen during school time. I had Spotify playing, a graphic I was designing open on my laptop, and a Google Meet music lesson coming up in twenty minutes. So.

I made another cup of coffee and thought: we have to talk about this.

Because here’s the truth: I pay my property taxes online. I Google Meet my kids’ music lessons and video call family I love. I have Spotify running on continuous loop because, frankly, I would be a terrible Luddite and silence is not my friend. I design graphics, use the internet to plan field trips, and I’ve spent a genuinely happy afternoon setting up protected networks for my kids. [see this post] As I’m trying this, I hear my daughter doing an algebra lesson video, coordinating with her on-paper curriculum, but the video explainer is online, nonetheless.

I check the weather to see if we’ll get drenched by unpredictable Texas rain before we even make it out of the car at our destination.

The screen is not the enemy.

And I am, as Captain Jack Sparrow would say, more of a guidelines person than a rigidly follow all the rules kinda person.

Therefore, I am the last one who should be handing you another rigid set of rules — so I won’t. What I will give you is a framework.

But I also know what it looks like when a child is being used by a screen instead of using it. You’ve seen it. The glazed-over eyes. The short fuse when you say it’s time to stop, like a puppy who doesn’t want to give you the ball to fetch again. The forty-five minutes that vanished into some autoplay abyss while the sun was outside just waiting.

So I want to offer you something today. Not a rigid screen-free manifesto. Not a guilt trip. Just a simple framework I’ve started using in our home that has completely changed the conversation.

I call it the Tool vs. Teaser Test.

What Does “Screen-Free” Actually Mean in Real Life?

Let’s clear something up right away, because the phrase “screen-free homeschooling” can send a mom into a spiral of anxiety faster than a surprise co-op cancellation via text, halfway to the building.

Digital intentionality — not digital elimination — is the real goal. In 2026, that distinction matters more than ever. The research on active versus passive screen time is pretty clear: what your child does on a screen matters far more than how long they’re on it.

A child who spends thirty minutes designing a birthday card for her grandmother on a creative platform is building artistic skills, practicing decision-making, and creating something with genuine meaning. A child who spends thirty minutes clicking a repetitive mobile game is… well. Just clicking buttons.

Same device. Completely different experience.

The goal isn’t a screen-free life. It’s a life where you are the boss of the machine — not the other way around.

This is your permission slip, friend. You are allowed to use technology. You are allowed to let your kids use technology. The question worth asking isn’t “how much?” — it’s “to what end?”

The Tool vs. Teaser Framework

I started thinking about this the day my daughter asked to use the computer. I was about to say yes automatically — and then I stopped and thought about why she wanted it. Was she going somewhere intentional, or just… drifting?

That moment gave me the framework. Every screen interaction in our home now falls into one of two categories.

🛠️ It’s a Tool if…

It has a “done” point. You get on, accomplish the task, and get off. The bill is paid. The email is sent. The design is exported. There’s a finish line.
It creates something real. Your child is making a shirt design, writing a story, composing music, or building a presentation. They are producing, not just consuming.
It solves a specific problem. You’re using a plant identification app to figure out what’s growing in the backyard. You’re doing the taxes on Turbotax (which I did yesterday, blarg). There’s a clear reason.
It builds genuine connection. A video call with a grandparent. A shared apologetics podcast listened to with a child. A collaborative project done together. The screen is a bridge to something real, not a destination.
The brain is “on.” The child is engaged, making choices, figuring something out. There’s a spark of curiosity or effort there — you can see it on their face.

🎢 It’s a Teaser if…

The scroll never ends. If there’s no natural stopping point built into the app — autoplay, infinite feed, “just one more level” — it’s designed to hold attention, not serve it.
It’s running from boredom, not toward something. “I’m bored” is a checking out of life and can be a habit! Downtime is where creativity can live! Using a screen to fill every quiet moment short-circuits that beautiful, productive discomfort where ideas happen.
The zombie stare appears. Minimal blinking. Slight mouth-breathing. High irritability when interrupted. If you recognize this, you recognize a Teaser.
The digital world is the destination. Not a tool to get somewhere — just a place to exist, passively, while real life waits outside.

“Are we using this as a tool to create something — or are we just looking for a teaser because we’re bored?”

That question has become something like a household phrase around here. It sounds simple, but it has opened up some genuinely wonderful conversations about purpose, creativity, and what we actually want to do with our time.

Subscribe and download your own Tool or Teaser checklist!

Three Tool-Based Projects to Try This Week

Because I am, above all things, a practical person who knows you need something to actually do with this framework, here are three ideas to get you started. All of them use screens. All of them are solidly in Tool territory.

1. Design Something Real

Let your child design a T-shirt, a birthday card, a poster for their bedroom door, or a logo for an imaginary business. Or make a real business happen! Free creative platforms are incredibly robust these days, and the skills involved — layout, color theory, typography, decision-making — are legitimately educational. I recommend using Canva, where you can design and print all in one program. When the design is done, print it or save it. Done point achieved.

2. The Grandparent Interview

Hand a child a device with a voice memo app and a list of five questions. Send them to call, video chat, or voice-message a grandparent, elderly neighbor, or family friend. Ask about their childhood. Their favorite memory. What the world looked like when they were young. What it was like to wait a week to know what happens next in a favorite show!

This is oral history. This is connection. This is a Tool doing exactly what it should be doing — building a bridge between generations.

3. The Backyard Field Guide

For my Texas mamas especially: take a plant or bird identification app outside. Spend twenty minutes in the backyard identifying what’s actually growing and living there. Look it up. Write it down. Sketch it if you want.

You’ve just covered nature study, research skills, and — depending on how you document it — writing. The screen was a tool. The learning happened in the sunshine.

The Tool vs. Teaser Checklist

Before the screen comes out — for you or for the kids — run through these five questions. You don’t need all five to be “yes” for something to count as a Tool. But they’ll help you feel it out.

Does it have a specific goal? “I’m going to design a shirt for my sister’s birthday” is a goal. “I’m just going to look at YouTube until dinner” is not.
Is it active or passive? Is the child making choices, creating, solving? Or leaning back while the algorithm serves up the next thing?
Is there a “done” point? When the email is sent, the bill is paid, the design is exported — the screen goes away. If there’s no natural end, that’s your signal.
What’s the brain state? Focused and curious, or glazed and irritable? You’ll know the difference the moment you look at their face.
Does it lead to real-world action? “I found a cool bird on this app — let’s go look for it in the backyard!” The digital world should be a bridge, not the destination.

If it hits 3 out of 5 on the Tool side, give yourself a permission slip. If it’s all Teaser — it might be time to close the laptop and go find some real-life pinecones.

If You Want to Go Deeper

I am, at my core, a reader. So when I started thinking seriously about this topic, I went to the books. These three have shaped my thinking more than almost anything else I’ve encountered on screens and kids — and I recommend them wholeheartedly. Not to scare you, but to equip you.

Glow Kids — Nicholas Kardaras

This one is serious and worth every page. Kardaras makes a compelling, research-backed case for why screens affect developing brains differently than we might expect. It’s not alarmist — it’s honest. And honestly, it’s what first made me start asking “tool or teaser?” in the first place.

12 Ways Your Phone Is Changing You — Tony Reinke

Reinke writes from a thoughtful, faith-based perspective and asks questions I hadn’t thought to ask about my own phone habits — not just my kids’. This one is quieter and more reflective than Kardaras, and I found myself underlining almost every other page.

Reset Your Child’s Brain — Victoria L. Dunckley, MD

Dr. Dunckley is a child psychiatrist, and this book is the most practical of the three. If you’ve ever watched your child spiral after too much screen time and wondered what on earth just happened neurologically — this book will explain it clearly and give you an actual plan. Remarkable.

^{Note: These are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. These are books I own, have actually read, and genuinely love.}

The Bottom Line

Picasso once said that art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life. I think about that a lot when I watch my kids create — with paintbrushes, with clay, with a design app, with their voices. The medium matters less than the making.

Screens are not the enemy of a joyful, creative homeschool life. Mindlessness is. Passivity is. The slow drift into consumption without intention is.

But you? You are paying attention. You asked the question. You’re thinking about this! That’s huge!

That’s already half the work.

Now go subscribe to download that free printable checklist in the Resource Library, put it on your fridge, and the next time someone asks for the tablet, you’ll have the question ready. Tool or teaser?

I think you already know the answer. ✨

Tag: free homeschool printables

Host a Project Hail Mary Movie Night: Themed Recipes + Film Study