We're all immigrants

If you live in the United States, it's highly likely that an ancestor immigrated here. It's even thought that Native Americans came over the Bering Strait by Alaska. What is the immigrant experience? And how can we help make it better?

CONNECT:

• Hear the stories of real kids who have recently immigrated to the United States: http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/immigration/young_immigrants/
• Why have people left their homeland to the U.S.? It is both a push away from their first country and a pull from America.  http://www.emigration.link/ provides a list, facts and information about specific examples of Push and Pull factors of Migration to America by individual country.
• Lots of immigrants entered the U.S. through Ellis Island. Learning about that process at http://www.american-historama.org/1881-1913-maturation-era/ellis-island-immigration-process.htm
• Is American Chinese food really Chinese? Dig into its history at https://www.thrillist.com/eat/nation/chinese-food-history-how-american-chinese-cuisine-is-different-thrillist-nation

CREATE:

• Can you trace your family tree back to the old country? In this BrainPOP movie (https://www.brainpop.com/socialstudies/culture/immigration/), Tim and Moby discuss the movement of people from other countries into the United States. Then make your own family tree: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65IHP28bxYI
• Share poems about immigration (https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/text/immigration-poems-kids). Talk with someone who has had an immigration experience; together you can write your own poems.
• Some of your favorite foods may have been created by immigrants. Watch this video to see if your yummy is mentioned: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXbiDPGSwwU
• Don’t make a pho pas (faux pas) when eating Asian food; here are some tips on manners: https://www.thrillist.com/eat/nation/things-you-re-doing-wrong-while-eating-asian-food-thrillist-nation

CARE:

• Note to parents: Here are tips on starting good conversations with kids about immigration: http://time.com/3665776/immigration-how-to-talk-to-your-kids-about-it
• Sometimes children immigrate to the United States unaccompanied. Here are guidelines for them, which can be a good family discussion: https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/research/guide-children-arriving-border-laws-policies-and-responses
• Immigrant children face many challenges. Read about their experience, and brainstorm ways that you might help an immigrant child: http://www.aboutkidshealth.ca/En/News/NewsAndFeatures/Pages/Helping-immigrant-children-succeed.aspx
• Is LaAmistad in your area? It’s a Latino program to help immigrant families. Learn about it at http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/19/us/iyw-la-amistad/index.html

CAREERS:

There are lots of jobs to help immigrants: from U.S.’s Citizenship and Immigration Services to translators, English teachers, tutors, social workers, lawyers – and being a friend.

https://www.thoughtco.com/immigration-jobs-1951820

http://refugees.org/about/careers/

https://learn.org/articles/How_Can_I_Become_a_TOEFL_Teacher.html

Island Life

“No man is an island,” but there are many islands for humans. And life on islands can be very rich. Bring the family together for these island activities; you won’t be alone in having fun.

CONNECT:

• President Obama is a Hawaiian native, as are several other famous people. Read about them at http://www.atozkidsstuff.com/hawaii.html
• An island can be a good place for criminals because it is hard to escape. Here are ten prison islands that are now tourist attractions: https://weather.com/travel/news/paradise-prison-islands-photos-20140725#/1
• What’s the biggest island in the world? Greenland! Read about its geography, climate, and Northern Lights: http://www.geographia.com/denmark/greenland.html
• Easter Island has long been the subject of curiosity. How and why did its inhabitants carve and transport the massive statues which surround the island? What lessons can we learn from their legacy? Dig out the facts at http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/earth/easterisland.html
• Read about the mermaid of the Orkney Islands: http://www.orkneyjar.com/folklore/finfolk/mermaid.htm

CREATE:

• Create a trivia fact game about islands using facts found at https://www.nps.gov/findapark/index.htm.  Type in “island” in the search bar, and you’ll find over a dozen islland national monuments and parks.
• Have an island party, and make your own snacks; even preschoolers can get cookin’: http://motherhood.modernmom.com/island-party-theme-snacks-children-can-make-themselves-16591.html
• Play a game about Oceania islands: http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/Oceania_GL_click.html
• Enjoy fun Hawaiian luau games: http://www.polynesia.com/luau-games.html#.V4G8VTVF1_Q

CARE:

• Where did your family immigrate from? It’s likely they arrived at Ellis Island or Angel Island Dig into your family history at http://www.libertyellisfoundation.org/genealogy/index.asp and http://www.aiisf.org/
• Did you know that foxes live on islands? Read about this diminutive and increasingly rare native of the Channel Islands. Learn about factors contributing to the decline of the island fox, and find out what you can do to help – at https://www.nps.gov/chis/learn/nature/island-fox.htm
• Did you ever read the book Misty of Chincoteague? The legend is that ponies swam to this island from a Spanish Vessel which had capsized off the coast, around 1600. Find out about these hardy pones, and help maintain them: http://www.mistyofchincoteague.org/

CAREERS:

What kinds of jobs might you have if you live on an island? Fishing, tourism, park ranger, naturalist, marine biologist, transportation.

http://www.nomadicmatt.com/travel-blogs/whats-it-like-to-actually-work-on-a-cruise-ship/

http://www.parkrangeredu.org/

http://www.academicinvest.com/science-careers/forestry-careers/how-to-become-a-park-and-wildlife-naturalist

http://www.fishingindustryjobs.com/fishing-index.asp

http://www.marinecareers.net/