Ethnic Studies · Week 7 · Histories and Movements in California
Chinese Workers and Exclusion
Studying Chinese workers who built the transcontinental railroad and the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 through primary sources, and honoring the persistence of communities who challenged exclusion in court.
- Students will
- Students describe the role of Chinese workers on the transcontinental railroad, explain the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 using primary sources, and analyze how communities challenged exclusion in court.
- SEL skill
- Describe how a law affected a community from that community's perspective
- What it looks like
- Students practice empathy and perspective-taking while studying how law treated a community and how it responded.
- Content focus
- Chinese workers and exclusion
- Format
- Collaborative analysis
Social awareness
Social awareness means understanding how other people see things and feeling empathy for them, including people whose backgrounds differ from yours. More social awareness activities
What you get
A teacher guide with what to say, step by step, plus student pages and a supports page for students with diverse learning needs, including those with IEPs. Print or Project it, or assign it in Google Forms and Google Docs for Google Classroom. Your first 10 activities are free.
Standards
- ESMC.History and Movement: California Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum theme, History and Movement
- ESMC.Systems of Power: California Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum theme, Systems of Power
- CA HSS Analysis Skill: HI1 Show the connections between particular historical events and larger social, economic, and political trends. (Historical Interpretation)
- C3 Framework (national): D2.His.1.9-12 Evaluate how historical events were shaped by the unique circumstances of time and place and by broader historical contexts.
- Literacy in history: RH.9-10.3 Analyze a series of events and determine whether earlier events caused later ones.
More social awareness activities for Ethnic Studies
- The Meaning of a Name Social awarenessExploring how names carry family history and culture and practicing pronouncing and honoring classmates' names with care.
- First Peoples of the Desert Social awarenessLearning Cahuilla history and present day tribal sovereignty through sources created by Cahuilla people, and practicing listening to a community describe itself in its own words.
- Voices of the Bracero Program Social awarenessComparing government records with bracero oral histories from 1942 to 1964 and listening for experiences that official documents leave out.
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RoseThread Connect activities are drafted with the help of AI and shaped by educators. Students never have to share anything personal. Our five SEL skills are informed by CASEL's SEL Framework; RoseThread Learning is not affiliated with or endorsed by CASEL.