Curated OER
U.S. Possessions
Ninth graders research the United States acquisition of the Philippines and their fight for independence. They locate the Philippines on a map and brainstorm how its geography has benefits. They access the Internet and complete a student...
Curated OER
Religion and Immigration
Students read a poll on Islam and discuss the results. In this religion and immigration lesson plan, students complete a chart comparing and contrasting how religious diversity affects unity in a country. Students read several news...
Curated OER
Statue of Liberty: Liberty Enlightening the World
Students explore reasons that people immigrate to the United States. For this Statue of Liberty lesson, students read a handout regarding immigration, analyze the poem, "The New Colossus," and complete the provided worksheet activities.
Curated OER
Classroom Guide for Coming to America
Students discuss the pre-reading focus questions. In this reading lesson, students discuss and explore the book cover and title. Students predict what they will learn from this book. Additionally, students read to find out what life is...
Curated OER
The Great American Melting Pot
Students scan a family photo into a computer and write a narrative about their family's immigration to to the United States. They parrticipate in one-to-one conferences with a teacher regarding drafts of their writing. They analyze and...
Curated OER
Children Leaving Cuba
First graders explore migration from Cuba to the United States. They explain reasons why people migrate to different places. Through guest speakers and discussion groups, 1st graders compare and contrast the experiences of Cuban families...
Curated OER
Immigration Myths
Students discuss myths and stereotypes about different immigrant groups. In this immigration myths and tolerance lesson, students work through six workstations in which they hypothesize where a particular myth originated and why,...
Curated OER
Port of Entry
Young scholars research patterns of immigration throughout American history. The focus is on the process of how immigrants came through Ellis Island. Students reflect upon the topic to develop critical thinking skills.
Curated OER
Links to the Past
Learners use documents from California As I Saw It: First Person Narratives, 1849-1900 , in American Memory to create a script depicting the motivations, expectations, fears, and realizations of immigrants who settled California between...
Curated OER
Immigration Push and Pull Factors
Eighth graders examine significant ideas, beliefs, and themes; organize patterns and events; and analyze how individuals and societies have changed over time in Maryland, the United States, and the world.
Curated OER
Using Oral History to Understand Immigrant History
Students use oral history to comprehend how life chaned for men, women, and childern when they immigrated to the United States. Students conduct interviews with immigrants in an attempt to interpret hardships, lifestyles, careers, and...
Curated OER
Us & Them: Immigration and the Construction of Race
Students examine the topic of immigration as a race issue. Using recent immigration policy, they analyze the role of race and racism. In groups, they outline their reasoning on the board and discuss. They use the text of the Chinese...
Curated OER
Chinese, Japanese, & Korean Immigration to the U. S.
Students study immigration of people from Southeast Asian countries to the United States. Pupils create maps and geographically illustrate the immigration. Using the internet, students research an assigned topic. They write an essay...
Curated OER
The Embodied Presidency
Tenth graders compare and contrast the immigration reform policies of Presidents Reagan and Bush. For this immigration lesson, 10th graders examine primary documents related to each president's policy for immigration reform. Students...
NPR
Chinese American Women Lesson Plan
The National Women's History Museum provides a plan designed to accompany their online CyberExhibit, Chinese American Women; a History of Resilience and Resistance. After examining a series of primary and secondary source documents,...
Annenberg Foundation
Global America
It's not really a small world after all! The 21st lesson of a 22-part series on American history researches the impact of globalization on the United States. Using photographic and written references materials, as well as video sources,...
DocsTeach
The SS Quanza and European War Refugees
World War II not only resulted in major loss of life, but it also displaced thousands of people. An eye-opening activity uses primary documents to explore the refugee crisis during World War II. Scholars compare the event to modern-day...
US House of Representatives
Exclusion and Empire, 1898–1941
Often forgotten and written off as the model minority, Americans with heritage in Asia and the Pacific Islands have played an essential role in American history, including Congress. Budding historians reclaim history by researching the...
Smithsonian Institution
Racism and Removal: Japanese Incarceration During World War II
During World War II people saw how far the government's control would go, but it was at the expense of its citizens. The resource brings the conditions of Japanese American internment camps to light using primary documents. Scholars...
Curated OER
An Untold Triumph
High schoolers examine and analyze the history and experience of Filipinos in Hawaii and California. They identify the contributions of Filipino Americans to the US war effort in World War II, and analyze the many causes that led to...
Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation
Conditions in China: Why Might One Leave Home Forever?
Primary source texts provide scholars with the background information they need to understand why Chinese peasant farmers were driven to emigrate. After underlining keywords, phrases, and/or lines in the texts, individuals craft a...
Anti-Defamation League
What Is the Dream Act and Who Are the Dreamers?
The DREAM Act (Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act) is the focus of a lesson that asks high schoolers to investigate the act's provisions and read statements by individuals who support and oppose the act. They then...
News Literacy Project
News Goggles: Lionel Ramos, Oklahoma Watch
Given all the recent criticism of the news media and coverage, it's crucial that young people are given the tools they need to evaluate what they see, hear, and read about current events. A video interview from "News Goggles" introduces...
PBS
Latinos at the Ballot Box
Latinx people have had a profound effect on voting patterns, going back to the 1950s. Using video clips from the PBS series "Latino Americans," scholars work to assemble a timeline of the interesting history. Then, pupils consider the...