Perspectives of the West: Reasons for Migration

Michelle Wyatt

In this unit entitled Perspectives of the West: Reasons for Migration, students will focus on the following guiding questions: Who traveled west, and why did diverse people travel west? How have various groups interacted? Finally, is there a common theme of the people who traveled westward? In conjunction with our common core standards, students will demonstrate via writing and speaking, their understanding of the history of the west from about 1820 until around 1880. Students will read and interpret informational text about various cultural groups pertaining to western migration. The intention of this unit is to help students to gain an understanding of who the people in the west were, why they migrated, and why although the west was seen as the perfect opportunity for many, there was hardship that many had to endure. This unit is a differentiated unit which employs Learning Focused, CRISS and AVID strategies, culminating in a mini research module in which students will have the opportunity to study the cultural groups that they find interesting.