Are you one of the 100 million Americans whose ancestors passed through the doors of Ellis Island? Learn about the historic entry point for immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries with an informative reading passage. After...

Young historians step into the shoes of immigrants coming to Ellis Island. A simulation creates an experience in which participants visit several rooms, go through an interview process, and receive a stamp in their passport—either making...

Everyone comes from somewhere. An interdisciplinary lesson on Elvira Woodruff's The Orphan of Ellis Island includes discussion starter and writing prompts for the novel, as well as a graphic organizer to help learners begin their own...

Fourth graders explore family histories. In this social studies instructional activity, 4th graders identify the countries from which their ancestors came and locate them on a map. Students discuss the role that Ellis Island played in...

Young historians travel back to the past to explore immigration in the United States. Scholars match images of immigrants to Angel and Ellis Island. The activity also includes a worksheet and a short group discussion to understand...

An interactive tour permits young scholars to follow the path of immigrants as they arrive in the United States and are processed at Ellis Island Immigration Station. Packed with photos, videos, and charts, the resource gives texture to...

Through this set of three lessons about Ellis Island, class members will learn about why immigrants came to the United States, find out about the difficulties that went along with coming to America, become familiar with the immigration...

In this writing prompt worksheet, students read the questions and story starter about Ellis Island. There are provided lines for the story which the students will write.

Family and friendship are two very important themes of the historical fiction novel The Orphan of Ellis Island by Elvira Woodruff. From video clips and writing prompts to reader's theater and family interviews, this resource provides...

Fifth graders study the immigration station on Ellis Island. Through several activities, they see that immigrants who arrived at Ellis Island came to America from different countries, mostly those in Europe, for a variety of reasons.

Students examine what it was like to enter the U.S. as an immigrant. They conduct Internet research, develop a concept map, list the ways children occupied their time while at Ellis Island, and create a diorama.

Elvira Woodruff's The Orphan of Ellis Island: A Time Travel Adventure is the core text in a interdisciplinary unit study of immigration at the turn of the century.

Students visit Ellis Island Immigration Museum (as a field trip or a virtual visit) and pretend to be Italian immigrants to the United States. They write a journal entry detailing their first week in the United States. They interview an...

Students create a multimedia presentation comparing the experiences of immigrants who arrived at New York's Ellis Island with the experiences of those who arrived at California's Angel Island.

Students explore immigrant experience at Ellis Island, New York, at the turn of the century, and answer questions that challenge them to use thinking skills from various levels of Bloom's taxonomy.

We are all immigrants to this country and the study of immigration can help learners connect to history in a personal way. Students will listen to audio clips from the Ellis Island web site, discuss the treatment of immigrants in the...

In an engaging simulation, class members imagine immigrating to the United States in the late nineteenth century and arriving at Ellis Island. They then write creative journal entries about their experience and chart their journeys.

Fourth graders research Ellis Island and Angel Island. In this library media lesson, 4th graders use resources from the library to locate facts about Ellis Island and Angel Island. Students construct a Venn diagram to compare and...

Students examine the purpose of Ellis Island. In this immigration lesson, students explore the operation of Ellis Island as they participate in a simulation that requires them to organize and handle immigrants coming into the United...

In this reading comprehension worksheet about the history of Ellis Island, students are given a 7-paragraph essay to read and 5 follow-up multiple-choice questions to answer.

Eighth graders explore the Ellis Island immigration processing station. In this immigration lesson, 8th graders research Ellis Island using the selected websites and create scrapbooks that contain pictures, clippings, and scraps that...

Students discover what it was like for immigrants coming to Ellis Island. In this immigration lesson, students go to a scholastic website about immigration and complete a related worksheet.  They see the different tests given there.

The Buttonhook by Mary Jo Salter is the focus of a unit that explores the immigration experience to Ellis Island. First, scholars bring in an artifact that represents their heritage. A group-exercise allows them to share and discuss...

Fourth graders investigate the concept of and reasons for immigration. They report on an immigrant group that moved to Illinois since 1700.