To utilize Internet resources to locate and learn about immigration and its impact on our world.

Transcription

1 Immigration - Part I Internet Lesson Plan Grade level: 4-6 Teacher Activities Goal: To utilize Internet resources to locate and learn about immigration and its impact on our world. Objectives: At the end of the unit, the participant will be able to: Determine reasons behind immigration. Research the immigration experience and compare expectations with the reality of the experience. Create a timeline of events during the potato famine. Create a brochure outlining the Ellis Island experience. Conduct research on his/her own family history in relation to Ellis Island. Create a family tree. Gather information on Angel Island and determine its role in American immigration history. Compile statistics and historical facts related to the Statue of Liberty. Create an informational brochure for immigrants preparing for citizenship. Gather, graph and evaluate "inmigration" and "outmigration" statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau. Duration: Two weeks, with one hour of online time each day. IBM Corporation Page 1

2 Instructional Strategy: Divide the class into pairs or small groups of approximately 3-4 participants each. Provide each group with a two-pocket folder. Distribute the activities in the left pocket of each folder to encourage problem-solving strategies within the group. Have students utilize the right hand pocket of the folder to record their strategies, take notes, and track project completion. Students should store information they have gathered or printed from the Internet in this pocket as well. Also provide additional resources for students relating to immigration, Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. Prerequisite: A short introduction to the Internet with information on access and addresses is required before participants go online. Ensure that students are familiar with the World Wide Web and browser being utilized. Assessment/Evaluation: The activities in this unit will be evaluated on the basis of student participation and performance. Team folders will include information gathered in the process of completing the activities. Encourage cooperative learning, group process, problem-solving, competition and the use of the Internet as these activities are completed. Serve as facilitator and guide throughout the activities. Other Related Activities: Read Watch the Stars Come Out by J.L. Levinson. Read The Keeping Quilt by J.L. Polacco. Research famous immigrants and their contribution(s) to American culture. Write a poem about the reasons for immigration. Determine which belongings you would take if you were about to immigrate to a new world and could only take a limited number of items. Read They Sought a New World by W. Kurlek and M. Englehart. Read Streets of Gold by J. Branson. Test your cooking skills by making some recipes found at the following Web sites: "Great Famine Commemoration" at or "The Ellis Island Immigrant Cookbook" at Explore a series of poems about a poor, rural family during the Great Irish Famine at "Poems about the Great Hunger" at What kind of picture do these poems paint about that time in history? IBM Corporation Page 2

3 Read Sam Ellis's Island by B. Siegel. Read Ellis Island: Gateway to the World by L.E. Fisher. Read Ellis Island Doorway to Freedom by Steven Kroll. Research reasons why immigrants were turned away. Write a report on your family history and discuss the importance of knowing it. Use the Web site "The CIA World Factbook 1998" at to research your ancestors' home land. Use the Web site "How far is it?" at to calculate the distance immigrants had to travel. Make flags of the countries of origin of your ancestor(s). Read Grandfather's Journey by J.L. Say. Write an Angel Island alphabet poem using each of the letters in the words "Angel Island." Research the countries whose people immigrated to Angel Island versus Ellis Island. Compare the two famous islands: Ellis Island and Angel Island. Read The Story of the Statue of Liberty by Betsy & Giulio Maestro. Change the statistics of the statue into metric units. Use modeling clay to create your own replica of the Statue of Liberty. Read I was Dreaming to Come to America by Veronica Lawlor. Research past and current immigration laws. Create a citizenship oath. Read Immigrant Kids by R. Freedman. Discuss why some people describe America as a "salad" instead of a melting pot. Teacher: Visit the "Liberty State Park" Web site at This site is currently seeking schools for reports and programs about the State of Liberty, Ellis Island and other related topics. Consider sharing your class work to possibly be posted on this Web site. Teacher: Have a guest speaker such as a community member who is a naturalized citizen to share his/her experiences. Software Connections: IBM Stories and More: Talking Walls: Angel Island Students can explore Angel Island and the concept of "immigration." Materials Needed by the Teacher: Two-pocket folders Construction paper Markers, colored pencils United States map IBM Corporation Page 3

4 World map Graph paper Optional: Presentation software such as Linkway Live!, SuperLink, HyperStudio or Powerpoint Teacher Notes: America is a nation of immigrants. Almost everyone who currently lives in the United States is here because someone in his/her family immigrated to this country from a foreign land. Although the reasons for immigration vary as greatly as the countries from which people came, America became known as the great melting pot. A land filled with and made strong by diversity. This lesson plan is divided into two parts. Part I features activities which are appropriate for grades 4-6. Part II features activities more appropriate for grades 6-9 as the level of difficulty is increased. Each of the activities is designed to be explorative and interactive in nature. Encourage students to go beyond the boundaries of the activities and explore information that they find interesting in further detail. This immigration unit may also provide you with an excellent opportunity to involve family and community members with a variety of cultural backgrounds. Obvious extension ideas include multiculturalism and respect for diversity. IBM Corporation Page 4

5 Immigration - Part I Student Activities Activity #1: Why immigrate? Put yourself in their shoes. Have you ever considered leaving the country in which you were born and raised? What reasons would cause you to consider such a move? Maybe the promise of a better life, a better job, an education or more freedoms would cause you to leave your home. To many foreigners both past and present, the United States represents a chance at a better life. Take a step back to the early 1900's and explore the Web site "Immigration" at to learn about the reasons behind immigration and the long journey for a better life in the new world. 1. List reasons why people would migrate to a new country. 2. Did their expectations meet reality? Compare the differences as described on this Web site. 3. Where did immigrants arrive between 1871 and 1890? 4. How many arrived at this site? 5. Why was this arrival center replaced by Ellis Island? 6. When did this change occur? 7. Describe what the average immigrant experienced on this island. 8. What "symbols" represent America as being a land of hope and promise? 9. How were immigrants of that time period viewed by American citizens? 10.Has this view of immigrants changed over the years? If so, how and why? Activity #2: Potato Famine As you discovered in Activity #1, one reason for immigration was the Irish Potato Famine in the mid-1800's. During this time many Irish died of starvation, and the survivors began to immigrate to America. IBM Corporation Page 5

6 1. To learn about this historical event, visit the Web site "The Irish Famine, " at 2. Gather information to create a timeline which reflects the events that took place during the potato famine. 3. Further research the potato blight to learn about this historical vegetable. Visit the Web site "Potato Blight" at When did the blight arrive? What is a blight? How does it affect the potato? 4. Bonus activity: Gather statistics on the potato at "Resistant Potato" at Create a diagram and label the parts of the potato. At the bottom of the diagram include miscellaneous potato facts. Activity #3: Exploring Ellis Island The final destination for many immigrants during the late 1800's to the early 1900's was Ellis Island. This processing station represented the end of a long, hard journey and the beginning of a new life for each immigrant who passed through its gates. 1. Learn about this historic site by visiting the following the Web sites: "Explore Ellis Island" at "Ellis Island" at 2. Using the information you gathered on Ellis Island, its history and the experience immigrants encountered, create a brochure on Ellis Island. Your brochure will be used by the National Park Service to encourage tourists to visit, teach history, and honor early immigrants. Use words, graphs, pictures and color in your brochure to attract visitors. (Optional: Produce and publish your brochures using presentation or desktop publishing software.) Activity #4: Digging up roots Most Americans call the United States home because an ancestor or family member immigrated from a foreign country years ago. Some statistics say that as many as 40 percent of all Americans can trace their roots back to Ellis Island. The Ellis Island Immigration Museum is a monument to those people who passed through it showing courage and determination. IBM Corporation Page 6

7 1. Visit the Web site "Wall of Honor" at to locate the surnames (last names) of members in your family. Click on the "Search the Wall" button. Start by searching on your last name. Fill in as much information as you can such as the last name and origin (country) fields. Click on the "Start Search" button. How many names were found? What country were they from? Record some of the information for later reference. 2. Go back and repeat the search for other family names. Search on your mother's maiden name (her last name before she was married) and any other family last names with which you are familiar. Did you find any of these names on the Wall of Honor? If so, which ones? 3. Hopefully this activity has sparked your interest in your family history. Create a family tree which outlines the members of your family. Complete the family tree to be best of your ability. Then take it home and ask family members to fill in the blanks. 4. Do you think any of your ancestors passed through Ellis Island? If so, who? 5. From what countries did your ancestors immigrate? Activity #5: The Forgotten Island When you think of immigration, Ellis Island is probably what comes to mind. But on the western coast of the United States, another island served the same purpose. Although it is less known, it too played an important role in our immigration history. Visit the Web site "Angel Island: Island of Immigration" at to learn about this historical site. 1. Where is Angel Island located? Use your map of the United States to pinpoint the exact location. 2. When did immigrants enter America through this island? How many immigrants entered the country there? 3. Using a world map, determine from what countries were people immigrating and entering the United States through Angel Island instead of Ellis Island. 4. Using the information you've learned in previous activities, describe how the process and procedures the immigrants encountered differed. 5. What has happened to Angel Island? Does it still exist? How is it being used? IBM Corporation Page 7

8 6. Bonus activity: Use on-line and off-line resources to continue researching Angel Island. Using the information you've gathered, create a travel brochure for potential visitors. Use words, pictures, diagrams and maps to get visitors' attention and spark their interest in visiting this historical site. Activity #6: Lady Liberty The Statue of Liberty has welcomed thousands of immigrants into New York City's harbor as they completed the last leg of their journey to the new world. It is recognized as a symbol of freedom for people throughout the United States and the world. The statue was given to the United States by France. Learn more about this symbol and the history behind it by visiting these Web sites: "World Landmarks/Statue of Liberty" at "Statue of Liberty" at 1. Why did France give the United States such a gift? 2. Who designed the statue? 3. What is the significance behind the details of the statue? The book inscription? Broken chains at her feet? 4. How tall is the statue? 5. How much does it weigh? 6. What is it made of? 7. What is the name of the island where it sits? 8. How did the statue get to its final location? 9. Has any work been done on the statue since it was originally placed in New York's harbor? Explain. 10. Bonus activity: Go to the Web site "Shareholder Communications Liberty Cam" at to view a live shot of the Statue of Liberty from a Manhattan office building. Activity #7: Steps of a Citizen Pretend for a moment that you are an immigrant who has come to the United States with your family. You've begun a new life and are very happy. Your family has decided to apply for citizenship and part of the process involves taking and passing a citizenship test asking questions about America. 1. Go to the Web site "Citizenship Interview Questions" at IBM Corporation Page 8

9 2. On a piece of paper, write your answers to the first 25 questions of this test. 3. Once you have recorded your answers, go back to the Web site and check your answers. 4. Calculate your percentage grade. How did you do? Would you have passed and be on your way to becoming a citizen? 5. Thinking again as if you were an immigrant, how did you feel about the test? Do you think the information being asked is important for all citizens? 6. Based on the questions being asked in the citizenship test, create a brochure that provides information for immigrants as they prepare to take this step toward becoming an American. Activity #8: Immigration Facts Immigration played a major role in the development of our country from the beginning. Over the years many changes occurred in the laws and the views of Americans toward immigration. Immigrants are seen by many as a valuable resource that add to the greatness of our country. Some now view immigrants as having a negative impact on our country, so instead of viewing them as a resource, they view them as a drain on our society. No matter what your thoughts may be on immigration, America is still viewed as a land of opportunity. The statistics speak for themselves. 1. Go to the "U.S. Census" Web page at Define what "inmigrants" and "outmigrants" are. Which state had the most inmigrants for 1990? Which state had the least inmigrants for 1990? Which state had the most outmigrants for 1990? Which state had the least outmigrants for 1990? Which state had the most net migration for 1990? Which state had the least net migration for 1990? Which state had the least movers from abroad for 1990? Which state had the most movers from abroad for 1990? 2. Now go to the "U.S. Census" Web page at Gather statistics for a five year period from to on the following: Which region had the most inmigrants? Which region had the least inmigrants? Which region had the most outmigrants? IBM Corporation Page 9

10 Which region had the least outmigrants? Which region had the most net migration? Which region had the least net migration? 3. Graph the data you've gathered for this five year period. Evaluate the results and draw conclusions on trends on inmigration and outmigration in the United States. Can you explain any trends you've discovered regarding migration? IBM Corporation Page 10