Materials

• Computer with Internet access
• Map of the United States

Instructional Activities

1. Review content from previous session, as needed.
   
   
2. Display the chart on immigrant contributions from session 5. Display the following prompt on the board or overhead:
   
   Immigrants to the United States provided valuable services that helped the country to grow. For example,
   •  Chinese immigrants helped build the Transcontinental Railroad
   •  immigrants became textile and steel mills workers in the Northeast
   •  immigrants helped the clothing industry in New York
   •  Slav, Italian, and Polish immigrants worked in the coalmines.
   These immigrants often worked for very low pay in dangerous jobs.
   
   Have the students describe some of the working conditions of immigrants in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The following Web sites may be of assistance:
   •  <http://americanhistory.about.com/library/weekly/aa120101a.htm>
   •  <http://www.kentlaw.edu/ilhs/lowell.html> 
   •  <http://www.courses.rochester.edu/santora/women_labor_movement/rochester_images>
   •  <http://www.amphilsoc.org/library/exhibits/wallace/immigrants.htm>
   •  <http://www.libertystatepark.com/immigran.htm>
   
   
3. Many immigrants arrived in the United States through Ellis Island. Ask students to locate Ellis Island on a United States map and to describe the situation immigrants encountered upon arrival on Ellis Island. The following Web sites may be of assistance:
   •  <http://www.i-channel.com/education/ellis/>
   •  <http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/list/070_immi.html> (provides photos of immigrants)
   
   
4. Immigrants began to assimilate into the American “melting pot.” Public schools played a vital role in this process. Immigrants to America often faced hardships and hostility. Discuss reasons immigrants may have faced these hardships and hostility. Ensure students understand the term assimilate. Discuss what “melting pot” means. The following Web sites may be of assistance:
   •  <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/meltingpot/meltingpot.htm>
   •  <http://www.nhc.rtp.nc.us/tserve/nineteen/nkeyinfo/judaism.htm>
   
   
5. The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, the Immigration Restriction Act of 1921, and the Natural Origins Act of 1924 limited immigration for decades. Discuss why Congress would pass these laws. The following Web site may be of assistance:
   •  <http://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?doc=47>
   
   
6. Encourage students to share ideas of obstacles recent immigrants may have encountered. Ask students to share ideas on how immigrant problems today should be addressed.
   
   
7. Assign a teacher-selected reading, worksheet, or other reinforcement activity, using available resources.