Immigration & Ellis Island

Lesson #7
Treatment After Ellis Island
50 Minutes
JulieAnn Hatala

Unit Plan Goal Statement: Throughout the two-week unit plan titled “Immigration and Ellis
Island,” students will develop an understanding of the topic within the fourth grade curriculum
supported by the Pennsylvania CCSS and the NCSS themes. Students will gain an understanding
of the history of immigration through Ellis Island, how it impacted American history, and how
immigrants were impacted by different policies and perceived by native born citizens. Lastly,
students will be able to relate past immigration to current immigration. Because the issue of
immigration is globally occurring and changing the development of our world, it is extremely
beneficial for students to have knowledge of the histories and issues of immigration in order to
best understand the role and impact of immigration on America's current events.

Lesson Plan Goal Statement: This lesson contributes to the overall goal of the unit plan by
giving students a well-rounded understanding of the struggles immigrants faced. It also provides
a foundation for students to understand that immigrants in our country today still face
discrimination.

Lesson Preparation
I.   Learning Objectives
a.   Students will work in groups to state how forms of media discriminate against
immigrants.
b.   Students will work in groups to create a form of media that is inclusive as
opposed to discriminatory.

II.   Standards by Discipline & Content Themes

a.   PA Standards
i.   Standard - 5.3.C.H: Evaluate the role of mass media in setting public agenda and
influencing political life.
ii.   Standard - 8.3.4.A: Differentiate common characteristics of the social, political,
cultural and economic groups in United States history.
b.   NCSS Themes
i.   Individuals, Groups, and Institutions
1.   NCSS.1.5.d ...assist learners in identifying and analyzing examples
of tensions between expressions of individuality and efforts used to
promote social conformity by groups and institutions
ii.   Civics Ideals and Practices
1.   NCSS.1.10.d ...provide opportunities for learners to practice forms
of civic discussion and participation consistent with the ideals of
citizens in a democratic republic
2.   NCSS.1.10.j ...create opportunities for learner participation in
activities to strengthen the common good, based upon careful
evaluation of possible options for citizen action
 III.   Academic Language
a.   Academic Vocabulary
i.   Irish: People who came to the United States from Ireland
ii.   Italian: People who came to the United States from Italy
iii.   Polish: People who came to the United States from Poland
iv.   Discrimination: unfair treatment of a person or a group of people
b.   Concepts
i.   Discrimination
ii.   Hardships of Immigration
c.   Skills
i.   Decision Making: Students will decide on how to create new images and
texts when given examples of discrimination.
ii.   Group Discussion: Students will discuss with each other how to rewrite
examples of discrimination.
iii.   Presenting Information: Students will present their ideas to their
classmates.

IV.   Technology, Materials, Resources

a.   A bowl of candy
b.   PowerPoint (attached)
c.   Smart Board
d.   Six worksheets (two copies of each, attached)
e.   2 chalkboards or whiteboards
f.   Chalk or white board markers
g.   Paper and pencils

Instructional Delivery
V.   Anticipatory Set
a.   Teacher (T) holds a bowl of candy and says, “Today, I have candy to give to the
class. You have a piece if you have brown hair.” T waits a minute and observes
the facial expressions of the students. T says, “Students who do not have brown
hair, can you tell me how this makes you feel?” T calls on 3-4 students for
responses. T says, “I understand why this would make you feel this way. We have
been discussing immigration this week. Many immigrants came to the United
States to build a better life, but when they arrived life here was not what they
expected. Many immigrants had trouble finding jobs and places to live. They were
treated unfairly because of where they came from. Many of them probably felt the
same way you felt when I said only people with brown hair could have candy.
Today, we will look at the ways some of the different groups who came through
Ellis Island were treated unfairly.”

VI.   Instructional Activities

a.   T pulls up PowerPoint (attached) and show slide two. T says, “The three groups
of people we will discuss today are the Irish, Italian, and Polish. Irish people
 came to the United States from Ireland. Italian people came to the United States
from Italy. Polish people came to the United States from Poland.”
b.   T moves to slide 2. T says, “Immigrants who came to the United States were often
discriminated against because of where they came from. Discrimination is the
unfair treatment of a person or group of people. Discrimination stops people from
doing things other people are allowed to do. For example, when I said only
people with brown hair can have candy, I stopped the people without brown hair
from getting candy based on their appearance.”
c.   T moves to Slide 3, “The discrimination immigrants faced made it very difficult
for them to get jobs and places to live. Often, they worked hard and dangerous
jobs for very little pay. They often lived in very cramped apartments.”
d.   T moves to slide 4, “The media also fueled discrimination against immigrants.
Media in the early 1900s looked very different than it was today. Instead of
getting information from watching the news on TV and reading Facebook posts,
people read newspapers to know what was happening in the world. In the
newspapers, immigrants were made fun of and described in hurtful ways. We will
look at some of the examples of the way immigrants were talked about in the
media. These newspapers had a great effect on the way people in the United
States treated immigrants. The newspaper articles encouraged more
discrimination against immigrants.”
e.   T breaks the class into six groups. Groups 1 and 2 are given the Irish worksheet
(attached). Groups 3 and 4 will be given the Italian worksheet (attached). Groups
5 and 6 will be given the Polish worksheet (attached).
f.   T says, “Each group has a different example of discrimination against
immigrants. The Irish groups have an add that was in the newspaper. It is similar
to a modern parent posting on Facebook asking for a babysitter. The add
discriminates against Irish people because it says ‘No Irish need apply,’ which
means no one who is Irish would be able to get the job. The Italian groups have a
list of adjectives many newspapers used to describe Italians coming to America.
These words were hurtful and wrong. The Polish groups have a picture of graffiti
written on the wall about Polish people. Luckily, today there are laws in place to
protect people against discrimination. It is illegal to deny someone housing or a
job today based on where they come from.”
g.   T says, “Your job today is to rewrite these different examples of discrimination to
show these immigrants are welcome in the United States. Irish groups, you will
write an add that encourages anyone to apply. Italian groups, you will write a
newspaper article about Italian immigrants coming to America that welcomes
them. Polish groups, you will draw a mural on the chalkboards that express
excitement about Polish immigrants coming to our country. Your goal is to show
that the United States of America is a place where everyone can come to be free!”
h.   T moves to slide 6. T says, “When you are done working, each group will present
to the class. You will need to present your example of discrimination, what you
did to change it, and answer the questions on the board. You may begin working!
You have 20 minutes to work.”
i.   T walks through the room and listens to the discussions of each group. T offers
encouragement and explanations when necessary.
 VII.   Closure
a.   After the students are done working, T will ask the students to quiet down.
b.   T asks each group to present, keeping slide 6 up on the board. T writes notes on
each groups’ presentations.
c.   After each presentation, T will ask students, “How would you feel if you were an
immigrant looking at this? How would you feel if you were the neighbor or friend
of an immigrant and you saw this?” T will wait for student responses between
each question. T will say, “The media had and has a great effect on the way
people in our country think and feel. When these hurtful things were written in the
newspapers and on walls, it made some people who were born in the United
States believe immigrants were a problem. It also made immigrants feel
unwelcome, and often times afraid, to live here. The projects you made today are
a much better representation of America. The words you wrote and the murals
you created would make immigrants feel welcome and safe in the United States.”
d.   After all presentations are done, T says, “Great job everyone! You have truly
turned these discriminatory acts into articles, murals, and ads that reflect our
American values of including everyone.

Meeting All Learners

VIII.   Differentiation
a.   The PowerPoint that follows the lecture at the beginning of the lesson includes
visuals. Also, most of the text on the PowerPoint is what the teacher will say
verbatim. Therefore, it targets both audio and visual learners. Students will also
benefit from group work. They will be able to learn from and help each other.

IX.   Accommodations
a.   Students with visual impairments will be given preferential seating in the front of
the room, and the PowerPoint will be printed out for them. Students with attention
deficits will also be given preferential seating.

X.   Modifications
a.   If a student were nonverbal, the first objective for this lesson would be modified.
Instead of stating how the forms of media discriminate against people, the student
would be asked to write a few sentences explaining.

Meeting Objectives
XI.   Assessments
a.   Formative
i.   Objective 1: T will listen to the students’ discussions as they work.
b.   Summative
i.   Objective 2: T will observe each groups’ presentations, making sure they
answer each of the questions. Each presentation will be assessed to ensure
it is welcoming to the immigrants.
 Teacher Content Notes
Irish
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/08/insider/1854-no-irish-need-apply.html

•   It was not uncommon for the Irish to be shunned from job adds.
•   These adds appeared in the newspapers, but business often had signs saying “No Irish
Need Apply” in their windows.

Italians
https://www.pri.org/stories/2015-11-26/brief-history-america-s-hostility-previous-generation-
mediterranean-migrants

•   In the 1880s, large numbers of Italian immigrants started coming to the United States.
•   About 80% were from Sicily or an impoverished area in south Italy.
•   Only 50% were literate, and roughly 30% were women.
•   Most of the men were coming for work. They aspired to earn enough money to go home
and be able to purchase a farm.
•   In the media, immigrants were called ignorant, insular, superstitious, lazy, prone to crime,
ignorant of the law, ignorant of democracy and prone to righting wrongs with personal
vendettas and acts of violence.
•   One popular book published in 1907 stated baldly that “immigrants from eastern and
southern Europe are storming the Nordic ramparts of the United States and mongrelizing
the good old American stock."
•   Research has shown there was no real basis for these prejudices. Italians were as
productive as other workers, and arrest records do not show more arrests of Italians than
any other groups.
•   Italians faced discrimination in housing and employment opportunities, as well as police
brutality.

Polish
http://www2.needham.k12.ma.us/nhs/cur/kane98/kane_p3_immig/Poland/Polish.html
•   The majority Polish immigrants were Roman Catholics.
•   They tended to stick together in large groups of Polish settlers. For the most part the
Poles clustered in tight groups in the cities.
•   They continued with their religion, setting up huge churches that were greatly attended.
The church was the center of the community where the Polish discussed current issues,
 both having to do with religion and otherwise. Polish churches helped the Polish people
keep their identity.
•   Poles without special skills were forced to work in the unsanitary and unsafe industrial
factories.
•   Polish families did little about education, a luxury at the time, which helped account for
their reputation. Very few Poles went to college, or received high paying jobs. They took
jobs other Americans didn’t.
•   Poles gradually assimilated into the American society.
•   Like all other ethnic groups that immigrated to the United States, the Poles were
stereotyped. When Poles entered America they were seen as filthy, drunks, and rowdy.
•   Stereotyping was often seen in TV, books, and in 1980 when during a presidential
campaign Ronald Regan told a Polish joke.
Irish Groups
 Italian Groups
Stupid
Lazy
Dirty
Violent
Polish Groups