We're Not from Here

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. What is immigration? Using the United States as a framework, what do you know about the immigration process? What are the different ways someone can immigrate to the United States? What difficulties might immigrants to the United States face even after they’ve obtained legal status?

Teaching Suggestion: Keeping sensitivity in mind for students who may have family members who are immigrants or who are immigrants themselves, you may want to lead the discussion by referring to history or social studies curricula that students have covered. The first question in this series draws on students’ current knowledge; the more specific questions may be beyond their understanding, and it may be beneficial to offer these and other resources to help them answer.

• This entry from Britannica Kids offers general information on immigration and some historical context.
• For more advanced readers, this article from the American Immigration Council offers a broad glimpse at the United States immigration process.
• This article from the New York Immigrant Action Fund details some of the struggles immigrants face adjusting to a new place.