1. Lauren Sandler EDUC 515 The Family Tree Project

2. Type of Learning The Family Tree Project is an exercise in constructivism

3. Why a Family Tree Project? The purpose of this assignment: 1. To help students learn that America is politically, economically, ethnically & culturally a “nation of immigrants” 2. To discover why members of a student’s family came to America and what made them leave their homeland

4. Assignment Details 1. Choose one country your family originally came from (If your family came from more than one country then decide which one country you want to do the project on) 2. Interview a family member who had been born in the country you chose and emigrated to America 3. Create a family tree dating as far back as your ancestors who were American immigrants Include the following into your family tree: A. Names of ancestors B. Date of Birth C. Country they immigrated from D. Photographs if available

5. 4. Create a Power Point presentation on your country & family member of choice Include the following in your presentation: A. The country you are doing the presentation on B. Some informational facts about that country, including: 1. The capital 2. Local cuisine 3. Popular culture (sports, music, television, famous personalities, etc) 4. The history of the country from time period when your family member immigrated to America 4. The political system of the country C. What had made your family member decide to come to America D. How immigrating to America affected the family E. The type of customs, dress, religion & music they brought over from their country of origin

6. Grading of the Project The length of the presentation should be 10 to 15 minutes long The family tree will be worth 40 points Grading for this is as follows: Must be eye-catching (use pictures or drawings) Must be spelled correctly The Power Point presentation will be worth 60 points Grading for this is as follows: The country of origin (5 points) Informational facts about the country (15 points) What made the ancestor come to America (15 points) What the ancestor brought over from their country of origin (15 points) The inclusion of pictures, video or sound clips (10 points)

7. Project Benefits This assignment will benefit you in numerous ways It is a resource that you can use throughout the school year Immigration to America is a major part of U.S. history Students will be able to discover their roots by learning about their family’s past An unknown benefit is that the student would have more pride in their immigration roots and family background

8. Learner-Centered Activity It’s time for you to do a bit of online research on your family’s country of origin Take about 5 minutes to look up the following about your country The capital city The local cuisine Popular culture Then meet with two or three people who have chosen a different country than you to discuss what you have learned about your country of origin

9. Bibliography The Educator’s Reference Desk (http://ericir.syr.edu/cgi-bin/printlessons.cgi/Virtual/Lessons/Social_Studies/US_History/USH0009.html)