What Was the Great Migration?
WHY DO PEOPLE MOVE?
UNIT 1, MYSTERY 4
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GRADE
WHY DO PEOPLE MOVE?
UNIT 1, MYSTERY 4
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Instructions
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GRADE
The Private i History Detectives Team and I are wondering what the Great Migration was.
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Hi! We are the Private i History Detectives Team, and we need your help today.
What was the Great Migration?
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TODAY’S MYSTERY
What do you think the Great Migration was?
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BRAINSTORM
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Great
Migration
relocate
discrimination
Before we begin, let’s learn some vocabulary.
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Great Migration
a time in the early 1900s when a large number of African Americans moved from the South to the North to find new jobs and better living conditions
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www.iCivics.org
relocate
to move to a new place
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discrimination
when someone is treated unfairly because of a part of their identity
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My friend’s family had to relocate when her mom got a new job.
During the Great Migration, millions of African Americans moved from the rural South to northern cities.
Great Migration
relocate
The discrimination some people face is unkind and ugly.
discrimination
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Let’s hear them used in sentences.
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People move for many reasons and in different ways.
From country to country
From state to state
From home to home
Push and Pull Factor Cards
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What pushed African Americans out of the South? What pulled them north?
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In the early 1900s, many African Americans moved to the northern United States from the South.
World War I created new jobs in northern and midwestern cities.
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Once a few family members made the journey north, other family members followed.
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Why did African Americans migrate north?
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TURN
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TALK
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Push Factors
Pull Factors
What push and pull factors did we hear for the Great Migration?
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Listen to “This is the Rope: A Story From the Great Migration.”
Pick out the push and pull factors you hear.
As you listen, hold up the cards you hear in her story.
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WATCH
As you listen, hold up the cards you hear in her story.
Why do you think the rope was so special to Beatrice’s family?
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TURN
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TALK
What pulled Bea’s family to relocate from South Carolina to the northern city of New York?
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Beatrice’s grandparents bought a house of their own.
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What pull factor connects to this clue?
Beatrice’s mother went off to college.
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What pull factor connects to this clue?
Beatrice’s family held a family reunion.
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What pull factor connects to this clue?
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Push Factors
Pull Factors
What push and pull factors did we hear from Beatrice’s story?
Let’s look at some pictures for clues!
Historians look at pictures from the past to help their investigations.
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Mystery Clue:
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African American children in Chicago, Illinois
What do you see?
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African American children in Chicago, Illinois
What does the description say?
Chicago, Illinois. Ida B. Wells Housing Project. The community center is used as a kindergarten by the public school system. April 1942. Library of Congress.
Can you think of one pull factor that brought children like the ones in the photo to the North and Midwest?
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BRAINSTORM
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What do you see?
What does the description say?
An African American family leaving Florida, 1940. Courtesy of Getty Images MPI / Stringer.
What do you think is pulling this family North? What clues did the photo and description give?
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BRAINSTORM
Handout 1
Circle the clues in the photograph and in the description.
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Great job, Historians! Let’s answer our mystery question.
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What was the Great Migration?
Use what you’ve learned to answer today’s mystery question.
TODAY’S MYSTERY
Handout 2
Answer the mystery question.
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See you next time, Historians!
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Great work!
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Extension
What was the Great Migration?
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TODAY’S MYSTERY
Let’s look at some letters and descriptions for clues!
Historians often look at letters from the past to help their investigations.
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Mystery Clue:
What information do you think a letter can give?
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TURN
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TALK
Letter: (Modified)
Date: March 11, 1917, from Texas
Dear Sirs: I am a boy, aged 15 years old, and I am talented for an artist. I am in search of someone who will support my talent. Can an African American boy be an artist and earn the same money as a White man up there? I will send you some of my art samples.
People bring skills that they have learned and experiences with them when they move.
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What skill is the boy bringing with him?
Handout 3
Circle 1 strength and 1 push or pull factor from the letter.
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Letter: (Modified)
Date: May 29, 1917
Gentlemen: I very much want to change my location, and I am writing to know whether you can find a well-paying opening for me somewhere in the North. I am 42 years old, married, with a wife and four children, and a public school teacher and printer. I will accept any kind of work on a tobacco farm or in a factory that pays enough to live on. I am a hard worker and will try to succeed in any job I receive.
People bring skills that they have learned and experiences with them when they move.
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What skill is this person brining?
Handout 3
Circle 1 strength and 1 push or pull factor from the letter.
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Letter to the Chicago Defender Newspaper:
(Modified) Date: May 19, 1917, from Alabama
Dear Sir: I am a reader of the Chicago Defender. I am writing to see if you will please get me a job. And sir, I can wash dishes, iron, do nursing work, and work in grocery stores. I am a 17-year-old girl and in the 8th grade at Knox Academy School. I did not have enough money. I had to stop school. Sir, I will thank you with all of my heart.
People bring skills that they have learned and experiences with them when they move.
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What skill is this person brining?
Handout 3
Circle 1 strength and 1 push or pull factor from the letter.
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Credits
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Private i History Detectives is a product of iCivics.