Source: Frontier House
Examine challenges faced by pioneers in the 19th century during westward expansion. Analyze a song recounting a couple's journey to their new home on the frontier, and compose additional verses.
Grade Level: 3-5, 6-8
Subjects: Reading & Language Arts, Social Studies, The Arts
Topics: Literature: Literary Terms. Immigration. United States History: 1850-1877. Music.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Point of View
Explore the forces that influence human migration, particularly along the U.S./Mexican border. Investigate the life of an illegal Mexican immigrant after he arrives in the United States.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Cultural Studies: Latino American/Chicano Studies. Immigration.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Big Apple History
Explore conditions that led to disease in immigrant ghettos of the past and public health measures taken. Research a recent epidemic in one's own school, and consider public health measures that may stop this from happening again.
Grade Level: 3-5, 6-8
Subjects: Health & Fitness, Social Studies
Topics: Public/World Health. Immigration. United States History: 1890-1930.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: American Experience
Compare two editorials written during the Civil Rights Movement era to identify viewpoints and personal agendas. Consider the problem of illegal immigration in the United States from various points of view.
Grade Level: 6-8
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Civics: Current Events/Issues. Immigration. United States History: 1945-early 1970s.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Frontier House
Identify the purpose, rules and repercussions of the Homestead Act. Describe how the concept of the American frontier changed throughout the 19th century, and describe the day-to-day lives of homesteaders.
Grade Level: 3-5, 6-8
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Immigration. United States History: 1850-1877.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Destination America
Explore issues such as persecution and fear that cause some people to leave their own countries and seek refuge in the United States. Participate in a mock trial that is part of the process of applying for asylum.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Immigration. Sociology.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Destination America
Investigate foreign-born artists who came to America and the impact they had on American society as well as how immigration affected their art.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Immigration. Sociology.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Destination America
Investigate the conditions and difficulties facing immigrants who sought religious freedom in the U.S. throughout history. Explore the issues facing members of one religious group and create a letter that might have been written by one of them.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Immigration. Religion.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: NewsHour Extra
Learn about current legislation related to immigration reform, and create a role play that illustrates a specific point of view on immigration. Compose a letter to your Senator describing your views about immigration reform.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Civics: Current Events/Issues. Immigration.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: KQED: My American Girls: A Dominican Story
Explore issues surrounding immigration, assimilation and maintenance of cultural identity. Discuss why people immigrate to another country and design an idealized version of an immigration center that provides support for newcomers.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Civics: United States Government. Immigration.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: KQED: My American Girls: A Dominican Story
Examine school, work and family conflicts in the lives of American and immigrant students. Role-play solutions to school conflicts based on a series of vignettes.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Health & Fitness, Social Studies
Topics: Conflict Resolution. Family Life. Anthropology/Cultures. Immigration.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Big Apple History
Examine how immigrants are changed by America and how America is changed by immigrants. Interview an immigrant family or conduct a survey of one's own community to further explore the subject.
Grade Level: 3-5, 6-8
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Civics: Community & Citizenship. Immigration.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: KQED: My American Girls: A Dominican Story
Discuss contemporary immigrant life in the United States, create a talk show that addresses the themes and issues of the immigrant experience and conduct research on how Latinos are portrayed in the media.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Cultural Studies: Latino American/Chicano Studies. Immigration. Media Studies.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: They Made America
Consider why so many immigrants in the 19th century became American innovators, investigate ways various innovators weathered setbacks and hard times and describe the motives behind three innovators who affected the role of women.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Economics. Immigration. Womens Studies.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Big Apple History
Explore immigration in the past and present, and examine the poem, "New Colossus," by Emma Lazarus. Compare this poem to poetry of today, and use information gained to write a new "welcome to America."
Grade Level: 3-5, 6-8
Subjects: Reading & Language Arts, Social Studies
Topics: Literature: Literary Terms. Writing: Composition. Immigration.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Independent Lens
Explore and discuss the financial factors that impede and propel immigrants' career achievements in America. Examine immigrant status in the U.S. labor force, and create mock federal policy to support immigrants' career mobility.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Careers. Immigration.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Independent Lens
Examine and evaluate the contributions immigrants have made to the U.S. Research one of these immigrants and assess how knowledge of immigrant contributions influences one's own personal perspective.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Immigration. Sociology.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Independent Lens
Examine oral history sources relating to immigration to the U.S., and identify shared immigrant experiences. Learn how to conduct an oral history interview to gather first-hand stories about immigrant experiences.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Reading & Language Arts, Social Studies
Topics: Literature: American. Storytelling. Immigration.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Independent Lens
Recognize ways immigrant cultures are adapted to American culture, and define ways American culture adopts elements of other cultures. Explore one's own family culture and immigrant origins.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Immigration. Sociology.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Independent Lens
Examine conditions that force refugees to come to the U.S., and research and discuss facts regarding American refugees. Describe the refugee experience of one Nigerian based on the actual story of the exodus from her country.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Civics: United States Government. Immigration.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Independent Lens
Discover life as an immigrant in America in the late 19th or early 20th century. Study immigration facts, research what life was like for an immigrant at this time and role-play a fictitious immigrant family member.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Immigration. United States History: 1890-1930.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Independent Lens
Analyze U.S. Census data regarding immigrant demographics, and compare and contrast data to find changes over time. Apply mathematical skills to arrive at conclusions regarding historic and current trends and patterns.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Math, Social Studies
Topics: Data Analysis/Probability. Statistics. Immigration.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Independent Lens
Experience school life as an outsider by listening to a lesson in a second language and reflecting on emotions felt. Analyze a poem about immigration, and learn to empathize with new immigrants who encounter alienation.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Health & Fitness, Social Studies
Topics: Mental/Emotional Health. Social Skills. Immigration.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Ken Burns American Stories
Define liberty and understand how a concept can be embodied or personified in a statue. Study the poem "The New Colossus" by Emma Lazarus in which the Statue of Liberty "speaks" to us.
Grade Level: 3-5, 6-8
Subjects: Reading & Language Arts, Social Studies, The Arts
Topics: Reading: Books & Stories. Literature: American. Immigration. United States History: 1870-1900. Visual Arts.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Freedom: A History of US
Examine the circumstances and conditions that led settlers to move west beyond the colonies. Study the life of Daniel Boone and the role he played in this westward expansion.
Grade Level: 3-5, 6-8
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Immigration. United States History: 1754-1820s.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Freedom: A History of US
Examine the anti-immigrant sentiment and prejudice that led in 1882 to the Chinese Exclusion Act. Discuss the growth of such anti-immigrant organizations as the the Know-Nothing Party, the Ku Klux Klan and the Workingmen's Party.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Immigration. United States History: 1870-1900.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: Big Apple History
Learn if a local community had waves of immigration over the years. Examine names and dates on local headstones to find evidence of the various immigrant nationalities that lived in the community.
Grade Level: 3-5, 6-8
Subjects: Social Studies
Topics: Civics: Community & Citizenship. Immigration.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
Source: NOVA
Explore the links among population growth, immigration, environment and support of the elderly in America. Conduct a role play and explore the options available to tackle problems caused by deomgraphic trends.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Subjects: Science & Tech, Social Studies
Topics: Ecology. Geography. Immigration.
Resource Type: Lesson Plan
