Asian Immigration
Lesson Plans | Primary
Sources | Landmark Cases
Lesson Plans:
Moving
Words: Asian Immigration - Four lesson plans on Asian Immigration.
Moving
Words: Asian Immigration (PDF Document)- The Chinese are the first
immigrants to suffer discriminatory restrictions based on their ethnicity
or race. The Japanese soon follow with less overt exclusions but equally
daunting. This unit explores the connections between immigration,
restriction and discrimination abundant in the United States after
the Civil War and Reconstruction.
Teaching
the Chinese Immigrant's Story - Angel Island (1910-1940) - Objective:
To teach kids the importance of understanding and appreciating one's
history and family immigration experiences. By constructing these
narratives one can look at others without judging them by their appearance,
language or ethnic differences.
Reading
for Information: Chinese Emigration - In this activity, students
read for information on the topic of Chinese emigration and answer
comprehension questions from the reading. As a challenge activity,
students conduct an interview with someone who has immigrated to the
United States.
Locke
and Walnut Grove: Havens for Early Asian Immigrants in California
- The lesson could be used in units on immigration or on multiculturalism
in America. The lesson also could be used to enhance the study of
Asian American history.
Locke
and Walnut Grove: Havens for Early Asian Immigrants in California
(PDF Document) - Lesson plans about the exploration of Vietnamese
and Chinese traditions and the migration experience.
Primary Source Documents:
Primary
Source Set: Japanese American Internment During World War II -
This Primary Source Set includes images, newspaper articles, and government
documents to help teach about Japanese American Internment during
World War II.
Asian History - From the University of Washington, a mixed collection
of primary and secondary sources. Helps to tie in the culture with
the migration and assimilation.
Mark
Twain's Observations about Chinese Americans in California - In
the following excerpt, Samuel Langhorne Clemens, better known as the
author Mark Twain, describes Chinese immigrants in California. The
excerpt below is taken from his book, Roughing It, originally published
in 1872. What was Twain's major point about people opposing Chinese
immigration? Do you think Twain agreed or disagreed with the opponents
of Chinese immigration?
The
Chinese in California - Included are photographs, original art,
cartoons and other illustrations; letters, excerpts from diaries,
business records, and legal documents; as well as pamphlets, broadsides,
speeches, sheet music, and other printed matter. These documents describe
the experiences of Chinese immigrants in California, including the
nature of inter-ethnic tensions.
Landmark Supreme Court Decisions:
Lau
v. Nichols - The failure of the San Francisco school system to
provide English language instruction to approximately 1,800 students
of Chinese ancestry who do not speak English, or to provide them with
other adequate instructional procedures.
