Bringing History Alive
Instructor’s Manual
Lesson 1: Immigrating to New Lands
Duration: One Class (60 minutes)
Objective
The students will understand the following:
1. Immigration and its impact on people’s lives
2. Immigration in the past and today
3. Intermixing and interaction of different cultures and races as a result of immigration
4. Difficulties faced by immigrants in the 18th century
Materials
- A copy of the educational graphic novelGold Mine! The California Gold Rush Story for every student.
- Notebook and Pencil.
- Copy of the workbook (pages x-y) for every student.
Procedure
The lesson plans will comprise of:
1.A set of interactive and interesting activities
- The workbook
- A specified time limit for every activity
- Clear instructions for the students
- Background for the teacher mentioning clearly the output of every activity
Evaluation
The idea of these lesson plans is to make students learn history of U.S in such a manner that they enjoy learning it and do not find the process burdensome or boring. The evaluation will be done on the basis of their participation in every activity. The workbook will be taken from them after the end of the class and individual rating will be done on the basis of participation level. In case of discussions in the class, the teacher can identify the participation of different students and make a note of it in his/her evaluation sheet for every student. The evaluation sheet is given at the end of the workbook which is to be duly filled and signed by the teacher at the bottom.
Extension
Extension here refers to any home assignment or activity given at the end of the class. This assignment can be a research activity, or writing and presentation work related to the topic discussed in the class.
Activity 1 – Test your Knowledge (15 minutes)
Background
At the end of this activity, the students will be able to define immigration and related terms.
Instructions to the students
“Read the questions on page 1 of your workbooks carefully and answer each one of them in one or two lines. If you don’t understand a question, raise your hand and I’ll explain it to you. If don’t know the answer to a particular question, leave it. We will discuss it later. You have fifteen minutes to finish this task.”
Activity 2 – To Allow Immigration or Not (25 minutes)
Background
At the end of this activity, the students will learn to present an argument in an effective manner. They will get to practice their debating skills in the class.
Instructions to the students
Turn to page 8 of the educational graphic novel “Gold Mine! The California Gold Rush Story” and read the views of Mr. Sutter and General Vallejo. Decide whether you are in favor of Mr. Sutter or Vallejo. I’ll write the names of students who are in favor of Mr. Sutter and General Vallejoon the board. The ones who are in favor of Mr. Sutter will form Team A and those who are in favor of General Vallejo will form Team B. You will get ten minutes to discuss and make points with your team members to support you points. Five minutes will be given to each team for presentation of their arguments.You can write your points on page 2 of your workbooks.
Activity 3 – Compare and Contrast (25 minutes)
Background
At the end of this writing activity, the students will learn about the immigration process in detail, including the difficulties encountered while immigrating in the past and the smooth transition in the whole process today.
Instructions to students
“Make pairs. One of you will list all the hurdles that came across Alice and Charlie in their immigration to California. And the other will list the modes and methods of transportation employed by them. Exchange your notebooks and read each other’s work. Now think together to compare and contrast immigration process in the 18th century and today. The clues for comparison are given on page 3 of your workbooks. Write a short paragraph for your comparison on the basis of the discussion with your partner. You have 25 minutes to complete this activity. Make all the three lists on page 4 and 5 of your workbooks.
Activity 4 – Home Assignment
Background
The students will learn to research on the topic concerned through different sources and to give presentations in the class.
Instructions to the students
“You will research through internet, library or any other source, 2 famous personalities who immigrated to America, their character sketch, what they are famous for and what you like the most about them. You will get the work in next class for discussion.”
Resources
This site offers a wealth of knowledge about the gold mine story, the people involved in it, natives of California, the routes taken for reaching California, and much more.
The California Chronicle Society offers valuable information about the historical past of California, with a museum store, exhibition, collection and publication section. CHS maintains, preserves, and shares an unparalleled collection of photographs, letters, diaries, manuscripts, business records, fine art, newspapers, and books.
It has links to various aspects of gold rush story, like, the journey through land, sea, Sutter’s life, career, about Sacramento, and road map to the past.
This site again provides information about the gold rush and things related to it that are worth reading or learning.
Books worth reading on Gold Rush
"The World Rushed In",by J. S. Holliday (The definitive book on the California Gold Rush)
"The Great Platte River Road",by Merrill Mattes (Definitive work on the first half of the Oregon-California Trail)
"The Plains Across", by John Unruh (Widely-praised, work on the overland journey)
"The Overland Migrations", by the National Park Service (Brief and readable, with helpful maps and illustrations)
"The California Trail; Yesterday and Today", by William Hill (Concise and interesting, Many excellent pictures)
References
Bringing History Alive
Student’s Workbook
Activity 1 – Test your Knowledge (15 minutes)
1. What do you understand by immigration and why do people immigrate?2. What the difference is between immigrate and emigrate?
3. Which country would you like to immigrate to and why?
4. How would you help an immigrant in your neighborhood?
5. How do different cultures and races interact as a result of immigration?
6. How does immigration affect people’s lives?
Activity 2 – To Allow Immigration or Not (20 minutes)
Points to support your views
1.2.
3.
4.
5.
Activity 3 – Compare and Contrast (25 minutes)
Hints for comparison
Was immigration easier in the past?
How did people immigrate in the 18th century?
What major changes have taken place in the immigration process today?
What trends in immigration do you see in the past and today?
List all the hurdles that came across Alice and Charlie in their immigration to California
List the modes and methods of immigration employed by Alice and Charlie
Paragraph comparing immigration in the 18th century and today
18th Century / TodayCopyright by Gossamer Books LLC (
Contact for more information.