TV Smarts

Some broadcast and cable programs contain material included in the public school curriculum and on standardized examinations. Here are home-viewing tips:

* Today--”Hollywood Homeroom: Producing Classroom Videos With Hollywood Magic” (KLCS 10-11 a.m. repeats Saturday, 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.) Premiere of an instructional series about how teachers and students can use video cameras and recorders to make curriculum-based videos. Works made in Los Angeles Unified School District classrooms will be showcased. Also, “Viven para odiar” (“Living With Hate”) (KVEA 6:30-7 p.m. in Spanish) Includes a special feature on how white supremacists recruit children via the Internet and literature.

* Friday--”Healthy Start” (LIFE 7-8 p.m.) Highlights the importance of prospective mothers’ having healthy lifestyle habits before a baby is born. Also, “Rome: Open City” (TCM 11:15 p.m.-1:15 a.m.) Classic movie about Italian workers fighting German occupation troops in Rome in 1945 memorably encapsulates the main issues of 20th century European history. Available on video.

* Saturday--”Boycott” (HBO 9-1 p.m., repeats Tuesday 9 p.m.) Dramatizes 1955 events in Montgomery, Ala., when Rosa Parks refused to surrender her seat in a whites-only section of a public bus, commencing a yearlong bus-rider boycott that galvanized the civil rights movement led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. An interactive Web site is available at https://www.hbo.com/boycott. Also, “Body Secrets: Hormone Hell” (DISC 9-11 p.m.) Explains how humans are affected by hormones during stress, sleep, jet lag, PMS, menopause and puberty.

* Sunday--”History on Book TV” (C-SPAN2 5-6 p.m.) Features historian David Dary discussing his book “The Santa Fe Trail: Its History, Legends and Lore,” about the people who built the trail and opened commerce with Spanish America. Also, “Life With Judy Garland” (KABC 9-11 p.m.) Miniseries based on Lorna Luft’s book, “Me and My Shadows: A Family Memoir,” about her singer-actress mother and a warning about how drugs and alcohol can erode one’s artistic edge. Judy Davis, Victor Garber, Marsha Mason and Tamy Blanchard star. Part 2 airs Monday 9-11 p.m.

* Monday--”Stinkers” (DISC 7-8 p.m.) Surveys animals that emit smells to signal one another, mark migration routes and defend themselves against attack. It also rates 10 of these species according to which is the most malodorous.

* Tuesday--”State of the Union” (KABC 9-10 p.m.) News special about President George W. Bush’s address to the nation. Also, “The Merchants of Cool” (KCET 9-10 p.m.) Documentary on how $138 billion is spent by teens yearly and corporate America’s techniques for researching and expanding that market-sector.

* Wednesday--”Close-Up: Civil Rights Heroes” (A&E; 8-9 p.m.) Profiles civil rights activists from various walks of life--education, politics, sports and the arts--whose efforts have kept alive the dream of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

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Compiled by Richard Kahlenberg in consultation with Crystal J. Gips, dean of the School of Education, College of St. Rose, Albany, N.Y. Columns available at https://www.calendarlive.com/go/tvsmarts.