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“We become not a melting pot but a beautiful mosaic. Different people, different beliefs, different yearnings, different hopes, different dreams.”
President Jimmy Carter
During the 19th century, a great wave of European and Asian people immigrated to America. In 1816, the Irish population in America was 6,000. By the end of 1854, the Irish population jumped to nearly 2,000,000. The German population grew from 10,000 in 1832 to over 200,000 in 1854. During the same time period, over 25,000 Chinese moved to California. The flood of immigrants during the 19th century changed the face of our nation and contributed to the diversity of our country. The story of the people who came to America tells the story of American history.
Imagine that one day, while you are exploring your family's attic, you find an old diary. It appears to be over 100 years old! In reading it, you realize this diary belonged to someone who immigrated to America in the 19th century. It is filled with information about this person's life, family, native land, journey to America, and experience upon arriving.
What would this diary reveal about the immigrant who wrote it?
How did European and Asian immigration between 1800 and 1860 contribute to regional diversity in the United States of America? |
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| Task and Product
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Pretend you are the immigrant who wrote the diary. Research either the Irish, German, or Chinese immigration to America between 1800-1860. Use your imagination and the information you find to write ten entries into your diary or create a video diary. Each of your entries should be two or three paragraphs long.
Your entries should include information about:
- your family.
- your native land and culture (customs, language, food, religion).
- your reasons for leaving your native land.
- why you want to go to America.
- your experiences on ship (length of journey and conditions on board).
- what you found when you got to America.
- where you settled.
Your diary will help others understand your life and the times in which you lived.
A well-written and detailed diary can be a valuable source of information about the life of the person who wrote the diary, as well as the historical time and place in which that person lived. Click on the links below to read excerpts from diaries written from different time-periods of American history.
The Journal of Mrs. Mary Ringo
Diary Entries
Diary of Rutherford Birchard Hayes
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Questions
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Essential Question:
How did European and Asian immigration between 1800 and 1860 contribute to regional diversity in the United States of America?
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Subsidiary Questions:
- Why did you want to leave your native land and come to America?
- Which parts of your native culture (food, music, dress, language, religion, holidays) did you bring to America with you?
- How did you come to America, and who came with you?
- Where did you live, and how did you earn a living there?
- How did American people treat you when you arrived?
- How did it feel to live in a different country ?
- What do you miss most about your native land?
Use this graphic organizer to create your own subsidiary questions.
Use this notes chart to record the questions you will answering in your research.
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Gather and Sort
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Use a variety of resources for gathering information about immigrants from Ireland, Germany, or China who came to America between 1800 and 1860.
* Research Note: America has a long history of immigration. As you search for your information, be very careful to notice the dates. Make sure the information you record is for the time period 1800-1860.
Sort your research findings using the same notes chart on which you recorded your research questions.
If you prefer to take notes using lined paper or note cards, write each numbered subsidiary question at the top of a separate sheet of notebook paper or note card.
Be sure to avoid plagiarism and remember to cite your references. Check a research guide for details about the proper citation of sources. For MLA guidelines and examples, click here. |
Organize
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 Analyze your research notes to determine if you have enough information to create a detailed and well-written diary.
- Have you taken sufficient notes to answer all of your questions in detail?
- Can you throw away material which is not useful, is repetitive, or does not answer your questions?
- Do you need to rearrange the information in different categories?
- Can you condense or combine the information?
- Do you need to develop new questions to adequately cover your topic?
Synthesize your findings by writing a first draft of ten diary entries. Each entry should be two-three paragraphs long and should include details that answer all of your subsidiary questions and the Key Features of a Diary.
Use this Writing Frame to draft your entries.
In the draft of your diary, check for the following:
- Do you have enough supporting ideas and details to answer all of your subsidiary questions?
- Do you have sufficient facts and details to inform an audience about your experience as an immigrant in the 19th century?
- Do you have an understanding of the immigration experience specific to the ethnic group you are studying?
- Which facts are the most compelling and would have the greatest impact on your audience?
- What new insights have emerged about your topic?
- What information will you include to enhance your classmates' understanding of the immigration experience?
- Do you have your information arranged chronologically as diary entries?
- Would it be helpful to include illustrations in your diary entries?
Evaluate your research product for quality and completeness.
- Do a self-assessment of your diary by completing the Writing a Diary Rubric.
- Have a peer (classmate) use the same rubric to evaluate your product draft and provide feedback (comments, criticism, suggestions).
- Revise or edit your draft materials as needed based on your self-assessment and peer assessment.
- Create the final draft of your diary.
- Help your group combine all individual diary entries into one group presentation.
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Conclusion
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Presentation:
After you complete your diary, meet with other students in three ethnic groups (an Irish group, a German group, and a Chinese group). Your group will organize a presentation to tell the story of your immigration experience. You may dress in costume and present your stories to your classmates at a "This is our Story" session. Each student in your group will tell one part of the whole story. Include an introduction of your group and information from each group member's diary. Students in the audience will record important details on a presentation notes chart as the groups speak.
Reflection:
Use the information on your presentation notes chart to write a brief constructed response answering the essential question, "How did the European and Asian immigration between 1800-1860 contribute to regional diversity in America?"
Extension Activity:
Engage in a class discussion about how the contributions of 19th century immigrants are affecting our lives today. What aspects of the German, Irish, and Chinese cultures have become a part of the American culture? What aspects are uniquely separate?
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