Focusing on the means used by the Incas to send messages over long distances, the lesson introduces students to the Inca Empire, which extended from northern Ecuador to central Chile and from the Andes to the west coast of South America between 1200 and 1535 CE.
The Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan was the hub of a rich civilization that dominated the region of modern-day Mexico at the time the Spanish forces arrived. In this lesson, students will learn about the history and culture of the Aztecs and discover why their civilization came to an abrupt end.
American author Pearl S. Buck spent most of her life in China. She returned to America in 1934, "an immigrant among immigrants…in my native land." In this lesson, students will explore American attitudes toward immigration in the 1930s through Pearl S. Buck's essay, "On Discovering America." They will explore the meaning of the term "American" in this context and look at how the media portrayed immigrants.
The treaty of peace ending the Spanish-American War resulted in the United States obtaining the Philippine Islands from Spain. Despite intense political opposition to the acquisition of the islands, the U.S. Senate ratified the treaty. The political impact of anti-imperialist arguments, the difficult experience of suppressing native Filipino resistance, and the lack of attractive opportunities for further territorial expansion, all effectively stalled the American imperialist/expansionist movement.
En este plan de clase los estudiantes explorarán algunos de los contrastes a los que Esperanza se enfrenta cuando debe abandonar su cómoda vida como hija consentida de terrateniente poderoso, siempre rodeada de familia y de sirvientes, para convertirse en una sirvienta junto con los demás obreros agrícolas emigrantes. Este plan de clase también estudiará el trasfondo de la historia, considerando su marco histórico, social y cultural para descubrir los grandes contrastes y contradicciones que Esperanza descubre al llegar a los Estados Unidos. Y, finalmente, este plan de clase invitará a los estudiantes a prestar atención a algunos de los cambios a los que Esperanza se tiene que enfrentar para convertirse, tras ser una niña privilegiada y mimada, en una jovencita responsable y emprendedora.
