During this unit of study, middle school students will investigate, using primary sources, the life of migrant workers in their communities.  After finding resources, the students will record an mock “interview” between a migrant worker and a reporter that answers the questions: 1. Why did you come?  2. What did you find and experience? 3. How is your life now?

Course

a. Use and interpret documents and other relevant primary and secondary sources pertaining to United States history from multiple perspectives (DOK 1-4) 

b. Analyze evidence from multiple sources including those with conflicting accounts about specific events in United States history (DOK 1-3) 

WIDA Standards K-12 for reading, writing, speaking, and listening

Five 60-minute class periods to analyze primary sources, gather information, and focus on guiding questions: 1.  Why did you come? 2. What did you find and experience? 3. How is your life now?

Two more 60-minute class periods to write and create the interview with partners

Two 60-minute periods to record the interview

One 60-minute period to share interviews with the class (assessment)

• Primary sources from BCLHP and/or your own community.
• Graphic organizers for collecting information from primary sources, such as this one:  https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/ec/27/71/ec2771e844a397a1628a531619d2e582–social-studies-classroom-history-classroom.jpg  Remember to focus/direct your students to infer answers for the three guiding questions:  1.  Why did you come?  2. What did you find and experience? 3.  How is your life now?
• WOPAQ/KTFD–an approach to analyze photographs created by Kent Willmann, CU.  https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1L7xkOc_0fM6Wu9QvrKQQVwjYBax81nNAaqYPsKyECo0/edit#slide=id.p5
• Google Docs to write their questions and answers
• Garage Band or another online recording session to conduct their interviews online.

2.  Photographs focused on migrant workers such as this:  http://bocolatinohistory.colorado.edu/photograph/adam-alive-viviendo-taken-at-migrant-farm-east-of-longmont-off-highway-119

3.  Interviews focused on migrant workers such as this:  http://bocolatinohistory.colorado.edu/document/migrants-search-for-jobs-el-aguila-interview-with-tivi-gauna-p-2 

1.  Students are introduced to one primary source, a photograph of a migrant worker or migrant family member, introduced by the teacher.  Students will WOPAQ and KTFD (see above) the picture to gather information about the photograph. Teacher will model this for the students and gradually release responsibility, roughly 30 minutes if the students have used this procedure before.  If it’s new to the students, more time will be needed to train the students in this method.  
2. Next, students (paired) will be given several different photographs from their own community recording migrant worker life in their community.  Students may choose, or the teacher may direct specific photographs for each group. 
3. Students will WOPAQ and KTFD on their own and use a graphic organizer to record their answers.  Students will be asked to infer using the 3 guiding questions: 1. Why did you come? 2. What did you find and experience? 3.  How is your life now? These questions may or may not be answered with the photograph alone. If questions go unanswered, students will need to know they can fill in the information in coming days using different primary sources.

Days 2/3:  

1. Students are introduced to another primary source, ideally a newspaper article chronicling some aspect of migrant life in their community.  See above from BCLHP. Teacher will model for students how to fill out the graphic organizer, properly cite the article, and answer the three guiding questions for this unit of study.  
2. Teacher will distribute local newspaper articles to the student pairs and have them follow the same procedure as number 1.  
3. Using a graphic organizer, students will gather information from the article (properly cited if necessary) that answers the three guiding questions: 1.  Why did you come? 2. What did you find and experience? 3. How is your life now?  

**This may take an additional class period based on your students’ abilities and familiarity with primary sources.

Days 4/5:

1. Teacher introduces a third primary source, ideally an interview or a “live” interview with a guest speaker.  Students will either listen to an interview, read an interview, or take notes while the guest speaker address the life of their migrant experience or a relative’s experience.
2. Teacher will model (if listening to an interview or reading an interview) via a graphic organizer and using the 3 guiding questions for the unit.
3. Once again, teacher will release the student to explore an interview based primary source to gather information and answer the questions:  1. Why did you come? 2. What did you find and experience? 3. How is your life now?.

*** This may take an additional class, as well.

Days 6/7:  

1.  With a teacher provided model, students will work with their partner to create a written Q and A interview.  One student will be the migrant worker (fictional or real); one student will be the interviewer. Working together, students will create interview questions and interview answers, using the voice of a migrant worker, and the 3 guiding questions:  1. Why did you come? 2. What did you find and experience? 3. How is your life now? AND the primary sources. Interviews should be written first, via Google Docs or teacher chosen online format.  

Days 8/9:  

Once the interview is written with teacher approval, students can use any online format to record their interview.  This can be only audio or audio and visual. Students can be encouraged to dress up (if using video).  

Day 10: 

Students share their performance assessments with the teacher and the class.  

Students can earn these badges for this lesson