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 Ellis
Island WebQuest
Introduction
Most people in
America today are from families that came from somewhere else.
The United States is a nation of immigrants and the
immigration process is part of their heritage.
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Imagine:
How you
would feel if you decided to leave your homeland forever?
What your impressions would be, after such a long voyage, upon
your
arrival in America?
What you would have to do to get through
the immigration process on Ellis Island? |
Discuss these questions with your
partner, your group or your class
before beginning the activity.
|
 Task:
In
the following WebQuest, you will adopt one of two roles: the role of a new
immigrant, or the role of an immigration officer.
Your goal is to write a page from
your diary about this experience. |
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Discuss these questions with your
partner,
then write down your answers before going on the internet.
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Role 1:
I’m an immigrant.
I come from . . .
I left my native
country because . . .
I traveled alone /
with . . .
I feel . . .
In my new country,
I want / don't want . . . |
Role 2:
I’m an immigration
officer.
My job is to . . .
Every day, I have
to . . .
I enjoy /don't
enjoy my job because . . .
I think that
immigrants are . . .
I think that
immigrants should . . . |
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Process: |
| 1 - First, complete
the role information on
your worksheet (or in the "introduction"
and "task" sections above) before
visiting any of the sites.
2 - Next, do
these vocabulary exercises, and take notes for later.
3 - Then, explore this
virtual
field trip to Ellis Island. Use your worksheet to help you.
4
-
Last, you must write a diary about your experience, using some of the
vocabulary and historical details you have learned. Use
this diary template to help you write.
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Additional
Resources:
Use these sites if you feel you need more information for
your diary, or to continue the activity by looking deeper into the history
of American immigrants.
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Reasons why people came to America:
-
Thirteen reasons why
- Why Germans left
home
- Tracing Norwegian
immigrants
On Ellis Island:
-
Virtual Field Trip
- Welcome to the Virtual Ellis
Island Tour
-
A timeline about
immigration
- The
History Channel's Ellis Island experience
On the immigration process:
-
American Memory Detective (Library of Congress)
- American Family Immigration History
Center
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On living conditions for immigrants:
-
Living
Conditions for Immigrants
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Lower East Side Tenement Museum
On US immigration policy:
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The
National Quarantine, Originally published in Harper's Weekly, 26 August 1893
-
A Historical Look at
U.S. Immigration Policy
-
Overview of INS history
Six portraits
of Americans researching their family roots through Ellis Island:
- Family
Histories, from the American Family Immigration History Center at Ellis
Island |
Conclusion:
As a result of completing this quest, you should have a better
understanding of what the immigrants coming from Europe experienced going
through Ellis Island, together with a broader knowledge of this immigration
station.
This will increase your ability to understand some of the socioeconomic
and cultural aspects of the development of America, as well as the feelings
of uprooted communities around the world.
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Evaluation:
This evaluation rubric can help you understand what you
need to do to complete the activity successfully.
| Criteria: |
0 points |
2 points |
4 points |
Your score: |
| Idea phase: before going
on the internet |
No preparation work. |
Quickly noted a few ideas
before going to the internet. |
Carefully completed all
questions in the introduction and task sections before going on the
internet. |
|
| Vocabulary phase |
No vocabulary work. |
Used vocabulary exercises
and noted some words for later use. |
Completed all vocabulary
exercises and noted all new or important words or expressions. Used many
of these words in later work. |
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| Online phase |
Just clicked and watched. |
Worked through the website
step by step. Noted a few words or places for later use. |
Both partners participated
fully and effectively. Your notes include summaries or explanations in
your own words. |
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| Diary preparation phase |
Little real preparation. |
Made a few notes for each
section of the Diary Template. |
Carefully prepared each
section of the Diary Template and wrote out a first draft before
checking grammar and vocabulary for the final composition. |
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| Final writing phase |
Careless final work: your
composition looks like a few lines of notes more than a carefully
prepared composition. |
Average final work: your
composition is interesting, but there are problems with grammar,
vocabulary or the logical development of ideas. |
Excellent final work: your
composition shows that you have worked on every step of the project, and
carefully checked your grammar and vocabulary before handing it in to
your teacher. |
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