Below: Final animation created by the Fourth Grade of Cureton Elementary, Alum Rock, San Jose, CA. The entire fourth grade (the classes of Ms. Arlene U. Illa and Ms. Kelsey Rothrock) participated. The below animation reflects a selection of the student work edited to five minutes. Each fourth grade students received a DVD of an unedited movie including all students work. The complete Fourth Grade animation was also showcased at an end of year school assembly. This five minute version has been submitted to NextVista to be posted as educational history content.
Below: Final animation created by Fourth Grade students of Mr. Hu's class. Stevens Creek Elementary, Cupertino, CA.
Below: Final animation created by Third Grade students of Mrs. Weber's class. Stevens Creek Elementary, Cupertino, CA.
Description of populations and geographic areas the program served:
At Horace Cureton Elementary School of Alum Rock, San Jose, 84% of the students are Hispanic and many have agricultural labor roots. This is a Title One school. The family histories of Chinese and Japanese laborers working in San Jose strawberry fields and canneries in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s resonated with the children. Exposure to these immigrant histories enriched students with the ability to see common threads of experience in different cultures. 66 students, the entire Fourth Grade, participated in this project which was conducted as an integrated component of their Social Studies curriculum.
At Stevens Creek Elementary School of Cupertino 63% of the students are Asian and many of these are first and second generation Asian American children of highly educated parents working in technology industries. Learning about past Asian immigrants who came to work in very different conditions increased student appreciation for past immigrant experiences and the ground they paved for future generations.
The start date and duration of the program: The workshop series began in early April and the bulk of the project was conducted from May 17th to June 6th. Sessions ranged from 45 minutes to an hour and a half.