| Program | Activity | Program Overview | Learning Standards |
| Confino K-3 | My Name is Yoon | The activity is based on the book My Name is Yoon. Students will learn about the story of a fictional girl, Yoon, who emigrates from Korea to the United States. They will discuss the challenges she faced and who helped her overcome them. They will compare her story to the story of immigrants they know, and talk about what they can do to help people who are struggling to adjust to life in the United States. | NY State Learning Standards: Elementary SS Standard One, 1, 2 SS Standard Three, 1 |
| Confino 4-7 | Moving In | Students are placed in a scenario as recently arrived immigrants who have to make decisions about where to live in present day New York City. This activity presents a modern day example of how these decisions are shaped by and impact socio-economic status and cultural identity. | NY State Learning Standards: Intermediate SS Standard 4: 1C MAT Standard 3: 1D |
| Confino 8-12 | What Does it mean to be "American"? | In this activity, students explore their pre-conceived notions about what it means to be "American." They learn that ideas about what it means to be an American have changed over time, and that all definitions of "American" include some people and exclude others. They explore the significance of the "American" identity for new immigrants, and come up with a definition of "American" that is inclusive rather than exclusive. | NY State Learning Standards: Commencement SS Standard 1: 1A SS Standard 2: 1A, 1B |
| Getting By K-3 | My Very Own Room | The activity is based on the book My Very Own Room. Students will hear the story of a fictional Mexican-American girl who, tired of sharing a room with her five little brothers, decides to enlist the help of her family- and other support networks- to turn a storage closet into her very own room. They will learn about the challenges of getting by on a limited income, and discuss the support networks that are/should be available to new immigrant families who are struggling to get by. | NY State Learning Standards Elementary Standard 4: 1A, 1B, 1C |
| Getting By 4-7 | Wants and Needs | Students are asked to consider which of their needs/wants are important enough to them that they would that would migrate from one country to another in order to have them met. They also articulate and examine their own opinions about whether there are certain needs/wants that are so important that all people living in the United States should have them met and, if so, whose responsibility it should be to meet those needs/wants. | NY State Learning Standards: Intermediate SS Standard 4: 1C SS Standard 5: 1A |
| Getting By 8-12 | Rights and Responsibilities | Students are asked to articulate and examine their opinions about whether there are certain needs/wants that are so important that all people living in the United States should have them met, regardless of their immigration status, and, if so, whose responsibility it should be to meet those needs/wants. | NY State Learning Standards: Commencement Standard 4, 1C, 1F Standard 5, 1A |
| Piecing It Together K-3 | Where are our clothes made? | Students learn that many of the clothes that are sold in the United States are made in other countries, and that one main reason for this is that garment workers are paid less in those countries than they are in the United States. | NY State Learning Standards: Elementary Standard 4: 1B, 1C, 1E Standard 5: 1B |
| Piecing It Together 4-7 | Chain of Production | Students learn about the complexities of the contemporary garment industry by listening to an audio recording of several key garment industry stakeholders sharing their diverse perspectives about the state of the industry today. They also review a visual aid about the garment industry chain of production and discuss how the perspectives people have about the garment industry may be related to their relationship to the chain of production. | NY State Learning Standards: Elementary: Standard 4: 1B, 1C, 1E Standard 5: 1B Intermediate: Standard 4: 1C, 1D, 1E Standard 5: 1A, 1C |
| Piecing It Together 8-12 | Documenting Injustice | The students will discuss the definition of a "sweatshop" and examine how and why perceptions of what constitutes a sweatshop have changed over time. Students will learn about the evolution of working conditions in garment factories, and discuss how reformers past and present have documented these conditions in an effort to improve them.
In the Museum tour, students will learn about the evolution of the garment industry in New York City from 1880 to the present. In activity, students will examine Jacob Riis photos and discuss how they were used to galvanize the public around the issue of sweatshops in the 1880s and 1890s. They will then discuss why garment factories have moved overseas and learn about the conditions that exist in many of those garment factories by watching an excerpt from the film "Bangladesh: An Appeal for Solidarity." Students will compare the photos of Jacob Riis to the film and discuss the role that documenting injustice can play as a tool for galvanizing the public. |
NY State Learning Standards: Commencement SS Standard One, 1A SS Standard Two, 1D, 1E SS Standard Three, 1C, 1D SS Standard Four, 1C, 1D, 1G SS Standard Five, 1A, 1C |