The Refugees

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

“Research Paper: Refugee/Diasporic Communities in the US”

In this activity, students will research one diasporic community in the US and write a paper discussing both the causes of migration as well as life in the US for this group.

Nguyen’s collection of stories highlights the challenges facing the Vietnamese refugee community in the US through a variety of different perspectives. For this Activity, you will research another refugee/diasporic community living in the US and write a paper regarding the causes of both their journey and experiences living in the US. Use the following questions to guide both your research and your drafting process:

• Which country/region does this community come from?
• When did this community begin to come to the US? What was the reason for their mass exodus?
• Which part of the US did this group settle in? Why (if applicable)?
• What have been some challenges for this community living in the US?
• Have there been any laws and/or programs to support integration and adaptation for this community? If so, what? Are they effective? Why or why not?

Share your findings with the class, and reflect on the similarities and differences shared by your classmates regarding the different challenges that these communities experience.

Teaching Suggestion: This Activity invites students to consider the sociological effects of refugee communities living in the US. Invite students to incorporate resources from this Teaching Unit—such as the definitions of refugees, the Short Activity on family history, etc.—in their research paper.

Differentiation Suggestion: For a creative approach, this Activity may be refocused to a creative writing exercise where students select a group that has come to the US, research their background, and write a short story in the style of historical fiction that mirrors a journey and/or experience of a person who is a part of this diasporic community. To accommodate students who might struggle with executive function challenges, it could be helpful to have a few communities in mind and resources to help begin the research for those students.