Elizabeth Riker

Shakerag Elementary
July 24, 2015
Napoleon Dynamite the Gifted Introvert
Napoleon Dynamite is a film about a young man trying to survive the
hardships of high school. Along the way he forms a friendship with a new student
named Pedro and develops a crush on a girl named Deb. As the movie progresses,
the themes of being gifted are projected by being comfortable in your own skin,
introverted, being a great friend.
Napoleon is gifted. Napoleon lives in a small country town where the citizens are
under-educated; therefore, he outshines his community with the following
examples:
1. Napoleon was working on a farm and asked the farmer if chickens had
talons. The farmer did not understand the questions due to the vocabulary
word talon. Therefore, Napoleon is noted for being smart.
2. A farmer paid Napoleon $6 in change and Napoleon quickly realized that
he was paid $1 per hour for his work. He was not happy about the amount
of money that he received for his labor.
3. Napoleon competed in a milk drinking competition. He identified that the
cow had gotten into an onion patch. The judges were impressed by his
skill.
Napoleon does not care what other people think of him and is comfortable
in his own skin.
1. He went to a consignment shop and picked out a 1970s brown suit to wear
to the prom. He thought he was very stylish and proud of his purchase despite what
others thought of his apparel. The music quickly changes to swanky music when
Napoleon is wearing his suit. This is another indication that Napoleon thought he
looked great. However, Trish is embarrassed to be with Napoleon. She looks
miserable when Napoleon picks her up to attend the dance. Once at prom, Trish
ditches her date to go with her friends.
2. When at the grocery store, Uncle Rico tells Napoleon that he needs to pick
up some diapers in front of the most popular girl in school. He is not embarrassed
over these words.
Napoleon is introverted.
1. He knocked on his prom dates door, after a few seconds, he ran the opposite
direction of her house before anyone answered.
2. Napoleon eased his nerves at the school dance by using the restroom to blow
his nose, dry his face off, and chew a wad of gum.
3. Napoleon ran off the stage when he was done with his performance for the
vote for Pedro skit.

Napoleon is a great friend.

1. Napoleon stuck up for his friend Pedro during the elections.
2. A popular boy asked Napoleon if he was going to vote for Summer. Napoleon
said no, threw the button that said Vote for Summer and took off running so
the classmate would not beat him up.
3. Pedro shaved his hair off and Napoleon helped Pedro pick out a wig.
4. A classmate was being bullied and Napoleon approached the victim and
asked him if he was ok.
5. Napoleon tells Pedro to Listen to your heart, thats what I do before Pedros
speech to the school. He helps his friend by performing a dance, which
received a standing ovation.
I thought this movie was comical and would recommend it to high school
students particularly in the gifted program. Teenagers would enjoy watching
Napoleon Dynamite since the movie is based off of events that occur in high school
such as first jobs, prom, class elections, bullying, etc.
10 Discussion Questions:
1. Uncle Rico wishes that he could relive his high school glory days playing
football and even purchases a time machine. What will you miss the most
about high school?
2. Do you think the movie is a comedy? Do you think some people will say it
wasnt?
3. What did you think of Napoleon the first time you saw him waiting for the
school bus? Are first impressions of a person accurate?
4. Napoleon was the only male in the synchronized hand dance team and was
made fun of by the other students. Do you think Napoleon thought of himself
as a nerd?
5. Would you vote for Pedro or summer? Why?
6. How would Napoleon fit into your school?
7. In the movie, Napoleon always wore boots. Do you think Napoleon cared what
other people thought of him?
8. Napoleon said, Girls only want guys that have skills and was worried that
he didnt have anyone to ask the prom. Do you agree with his statement that
being able to do certain activities are an attractive quality in a person?
9. Napoleon told his grandma that the first day of school was the worst day of
his life. How can you compare Napoleons school experience to your own?
10.Would you be Napoleons friend in school? Why or why not?
Follow-up Activity: After watching parts of Napoleon Dynamite and discussing the
questions above, the high school students will have noticed that Napoleon is
comfortable in his own skin. Therefore, the students will present to the class what
makes he/ she unique. For example, he/ she could write about taking Irish dance
lessons, knowing the Chinese language, playing the violin, etc. The children will be
given creative measures to present, they could create a Prezi, iBook, write an essay,
create a poster, or another pre-approved method. In conclusion, this activity will
enable the children to build confidence in themselves.

Implementation:
Day 1 (50 min): Watch 2 ten minute clips of Napoleon Dynamite & engage in
discussion questions
Day 2 (50 min): Explain follow-up activity to children (about 10 minutes) and give
them the rest of the class period to work on their projects.
Day 3 (50 min): Student led presentations