Discuss how they will conduct oral histories of family members to examine their cultural and ethnic heritage from the perspective of immigration. As a whole group, brainstorm a list of questions that students will use as a guide in their interviews. Talk with students about how they might choose which relative or relatives to interview. They may end up interviewing a family member who immigrated to this country. If no living family member immigrated, students should talk with parents, and grandparents to find out what their ancestors' experiences were.
Students conduct their interviews and write up their findings.
Below are some sample questions that you might use with your students to guide their oral history interviews. Students may be interviewing family members who immigrated, or they may interview family members to find out what they know of their ancestors' and why and when they immigrated. These questions have been designed to work with people who themselves immigrated. They can be easily reworded to work in the latter case.