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The 21st Century Community Schoolhouse One
of the greatest journeys that have influenced every one of our lives, is the
journey our ancestors or our own immediate family made from their native
countries to the United States, whether voluntarily or not; whether 300 years
ago or 3 years ago. Each of
us, our family histories, has a journey; a story to tell:
The story of the Coming
To America. For
this end-of term integrated project, you will work together in teams of 10 or 11
and focus in on the journey and experiences of a specific immigrant group.
Each
project team will be assigned a group of immigrants (Italian, Chinese, Irish,
Cambodian, Caribbean, etc.) and a particular time frame of immigration.
After completing the assigned readings (The Myth of the Melting Pot series from The Washington Post,
and excerpts from In A New Land: An
Anthology of Immigrant Literature), participating in class discussions, and reviewing
information related to the assigned immigrant theme or experience, each team
will be expected to complete three different parts of the project as outlined
below: q
Part I:
The Journal Team
members will each take on the identity of a family member or relation that has
gone through the immigration process. The
journal will expose the reasons for the immigration, chronicle the journey, and
reveal the experiences the family has once they are settled in the U.S.A. The journal will be bound and presented in an authentic
manner. (See instructions) q
Part II:
The Map The team, as
a whole, will create two sets of maps. The
first will be for the purpose of tracing the path of travel to America from the
country of origin. The other map
set will have two purposes. The
first is to illustrate the geography of America and the country of origin. The
second purpose will be to give a symbolic representation of the factors that
pushed the immigrants from their homeland and those that pulled them to the
United States. (See instructions) q
Part III:
The Individual/Team Outcomes 1 Part I: The
Journal For this section of the Coming to America end-of-term project, your group will be expected to present a journal, which contains journal entries from each member of the family on the topics given. Each group member will need to select a character for themselves from following cast of characters. Give your assigned character a family name that reflects the culture, and complete their journal entries as if you were that individual character. Cast of Characters
1. Father – 29 years old and head of the family; was a farmer and is now leading the family to a new place. 2. Mother – 27 years old; responsible for all meals and tending to family; pregnant with 4th child. 3. Grandpa – 52 years old and very well respected by all; his rough life of providing for a family of 10 has left him tired and with a developing case of arthritis. 4. Grandma – 51 years old and the hardest worker in the family; everything must be taken before Grandma before it is decided. She was against leaving the homeland. 5. Oldest Son – 9 years old and just learning the responsibilities of chores and looking after younger siblings. 6. Oldest Daughter – 7 years old; as a little girl she developed pneumonia and has had frail health all through her young life. 7. Uncle – 33 years old; Father’s older brother. He will do anything to help the family after they helped him through the death of his wife. Leaves behind a family of 5 who are staying with another relative and waiting for money to be sent so they can come to the new place as well. 8. Aunt – 42 years old; Mother’s sister. She is a single lady who has never been married; lost her hearing in an accident 20 years ago. 9. Baby – 15 months old. Is a happy baby content to watch all members of her family; occasionally crawls into trouble; very adventuresome. 10. Cousin – 18 year-old male. He is a hard worker but gets himself in trouble from time to time because of his hot temper. 11. Helpful Stranger Picked Up Along The Way – This man was trying to get to this new land and had some difficulty with transportation. This family helped him out. He later found the baby after she crawled away and was thought to be lost. 2 All journal entries should be from the view of the character you select. All characters are literate and will have their own opinions…except…the baby, who can think her thoughts onto paper. The Writing
Each character will need to complete a journal entry for each of the topics listed under the different phases of the journey. Each journal topic must have the specific outlined criteria met. Section I: Before the Journey A. Family Background q Describe the members of the family and their roles within the family q Describe the way of life in your homeland B.
Push/Pull Factors q Push Factors: what forced you to move? (political pressure, religious intolerance, economic reasons, war, forced removal, etc.) q Pull Factors: what drew you to America? (political freedom, religious tolerance, economic opportunity, safety, jobs, family reunification, etc.) C. Headline News of the Time q Describe the major events in your country, in America, and in the world that influence your decision to immigrate to America. (You will need to do some research on the historical events of the time period.) D. Budget & Wages q Include an entry describing wages the family had coming into support the household in the country of origin. Did the family have enough money to survive? If not, why? Were jobs hard to get? What sacrifices did the family have to make? Section II: The JourneyA.
Budget q Include entries that explain how much money you had to start the journey and how you divided up the money for the expenses of the journey. Include the costs along the way (i.e. ship passage or other means of transportation, supplies, food, etc) and what money you would have left over when you arrive in the United States. Make sure costs and budget accurately reflect the particular time in history of your immigrant group. B.
Rate of Travel q
Include entries with descriptions of what distances were covered
each day. State this information as
a unit rate (unit of distance per unit of time) C.
Travel Experiences q
3 q Describe the living conditions and hardships encountered during the journey. Include health issues and diseases that you may have been exposed to or brought with you, how ill were treated, nutrition, unfriendly people, and survival rate of those who immigrated with you. D. Headline News of the Time q Describe the major world events occurring during your journey which had an impact on your journey. These should be headline news events of the countries you travel through, or your country of origin, or within the United States and reflect the times and the influence on your journey. (You will need to do some research on the historical events of the time period.) Section III: End of the Journey & the Aftermath A.
Reception & Arrival in the United States and to Place of Settlement q Describe your feelings and experiences when you first landed in America. How were you treated (were you welcomed, resented, ignored, discriminated against, etc?) How did you feel? What did you notice the most? q Include entries that describe the final leg of the journey form the port of entry to the final place of settlement. o Describe the location where your family settles down. Was it rural or urban? o What was the food and shelter was like? o What were the health conditions like? Did you encounter any new diseases? o How were you were received by your neighbors (i.e.- were they resentful, helpful, friendly, racist, etc.?) o How easy was it to get work? What type of work was available? o How easy was it to get an education? B.
Headline News of the Time q Describe the major events occurring in the United States at the time of your arrival that would have an impact on your reception and acceptance into the country along with you and your family’s well-being. (You will need to do some research on the historical events of the time period.) C. Cultural Interactions q Include entries which describe what other cultures were found your new neighborhood. How did your culture interact with the other cultures? Did you and your family begin to follow aspects of others cultures? Did others in your community take on aspects of your culture? D.
Reflection q Describe how your attitude towards the United States of America changed from when you started your immigration journey, to a year later after having settled in the U.S. What things influenced the changes in attitude? 4 The Final Product
When all part so the journal are completed by each of the members of the team, bind the journal together in a creative and authentic way. Consider what materials would go into the making and binding of the journal, as well as any enhancements (decorations, drawings, photos, etc.) your team would like to include. Part II:
The Map The team, as a whole, will create two sets of maps. The first will be for the purpose of tracing the path of travel to America from the country of origin. The other map set will have two purposes. The first is to illustrate the geography of America and the country of origin. The second purpose will be to give a symbolic representation of the factors that pushed the immigrants from their homeland and those that pulled them to the United States. All the maps should be true to the time period. This means that the map should look as it would if it had been published during the time period when your group immigrated. Beware of the changing face of the world atlas through time. The following is a list of characteristics that should be found on both sets of maps:
o An explanation of the map’s scale o
A description of any color-coding used on the map to denote
topographical or geographical features. Example:
water is blue. Map One – Path of Immigrant Travel
The first map should highlight the path of travel taken to this country by the person/family of the immigration wave that your group is studying. The map should contain the entire travel route from their home in country of origin to a destination in America. The following is a list of characteristics that should be found this map:
5 Map Two – Push/Pull Factors
The second map is really a pair of maps that contain the majority of the geographical characteristics of the country of origin and the United States. Also included on each map is a symbolic representation of the push and pull factors that have led to the immigration of your group. Example of general ideas for your maps: 6 Part III:
The Each team will need to divide the following list of nine different outcomes among the team members. Some outcomes can have up to 2 people working on them. Others will need to be done individually by one of the group members. Each outcome will need to relate to the immigration group the team is focusing in on. The outcomes to choose from are as follows: 1.
Wall Mural
1 or 2 people/team To
be painted in the center hall demonstrating the concept
of Coming To America. (see
instruction sheet online) 2. Musical Selection and Review
1
person/team
Selection and written
reflection of a song that represents
the experience of Coming to America.
(see
instruction sheet online)
3. Persuasive Speech
2
people/team
Two students will present the pros
and cons of a controversial issue
dealing with immigration. (see instruction sheet online) 4. Newspaper Editorial
1 person/team
The writing of a an editorial
that describes your personal perspective
of the “American Melting Pot” (see instruction sheet online) 5. Essay
1 person/team
The writing of a complete 5 -
paragraph essay on the topic: “What
it means to be an American.” (see instruction sheet online) 6.
Famous Immigrant Life Story
1 person/team Write a report on the life story of a famous American immigrant who made a contribution to our society or culture.
(see
instruction sheet online)
7. Cultural
Cookbook
1 person/team Create a cookbook
that highlights some of the recipes of the foods that
have been brought to America from the
country of origin. (see instruction
sheet online)
8. Write
a Song or Piece of Music
1 person/team Write a song that reflects the times, the story, the
experiences or the emotions of the cultural group which came to
America. (see
instruction sheet online) 9. Write a Poem
1 person/team Write
a poem that reflects the times, the story, the experiences
or the thoughts and emotions of those who emigrated from 7 Part IV:
The Celebration 8 |
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contact: school@communityschoolhouse.org |
The
21st Century