Virtual Field Trip of Ellis Island

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Virtual Field Trip of Ellis Island

• Heather Lawton
• 4th Grade
• Ross Corners Elementary School

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New York State Standards/ Themes and Objectives

• Social Studies Standard 1
• Themes Include Events of American History,
  culture, and time, continuity and change
• Objectives
• 1. Students will learn about the history of
  immigration in America.
• 2. Students will learn about the historical
  value of Ellis Island.

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Background Information

• Ellis Island is located in the upper part of the
  New York Bay, off the coast of New Jersey and
  right next to the Statue of Liberty.
• Ellis Island was a Federal immigration station
  that millions of immigrants from countries around
  the world had to stop at before entering America.
• Between 1892 and 1954 more than 12 Million
  immigrants passed through the doors of Ellis
  Island all with the same hopeto become an
  American.

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The Journey Begins

• The year is 1920 and you and your father sailed
  for two weeks on a ship from Poland to America.
• The boat ride was crowded, cold, wet and
  miserable but you still feel excited because you
  finally see the great Statue of Liberty for
  yourself.

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The Arrival

• Upon arrival to Ellis Island you would enter the
  building on the main floor through the baggage
  room. This is where you would leave any luggage
  and belongings you had brought with you.
• Baggage Room

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Stairs of Separation

• After leaving your luggage you had to walk up
  stairs that led to the Great Hall. At the top of
  these stairs doctors stood and watched you walk
  up these steps. The doctors watched you for signs
  of any illness, disease or insanity. If they felt
  you showed any of these signs a doctor would mark
  you with chalk.
• Stairways to the Great Hall

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Medical Exam

• The next step was a 3 to 5 minute medical exam
  for every immigrant.
• These physicians would check for signs of
  infectious diseases or other conditions and then
  mark them with chalk marks if they needed further
  examinations. They would put an E for eye
  problems, an H for heart, L for lameness, SC for
  scalp, X for mental disease, and so on.
  

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The Great Hall

• The next step was to wait in the great hall for
  your legal inspection, which was filled with
  people. Two thousand or more aliens, people of
  all ages, the majority between the ages of 18 and
  30 occupied it at any one time. A noise of crying
  infants, and languages could be heard echoing
  from all around its fifty-six foot ceilings.
• The Great Hall

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Legal Inspection

• One of the last stops on an immigrants journey
  through Ellis Island would be the legal
  inspection. At your legal inspection you would
  have to prove what country you are from and that
  you would plan to live and work once you get to
  America.

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Journeys End

• After the immigrants were approved for admission
  into the United States they walked down the
  staircase to meet their family and loved ones
  they hadnt seen in years.
• Kissing Post
• Journeys End

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Ellis Island Today

• Today, Ellis Island is a most valued as a
  historic site that thousands of visitors tour
  each year.
• An American Immigrant Wall of Honor on Ellis
  Island commemorates the names of more than
  500,000 immigrants and their families. It's
  located on the north-east corner of the island.
• You can research your own family history on Ellis
  Island at the American Family Immigration History
  Center.

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Questions?
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Fun Follow Up Activity!

• After taking the virtual fieldtrip of Ellis
  Island, go home and talk to your parents about
  your own heritage.
• Make a family tree and write a paragraph on your
  families cultural heritage.

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Resources

• History Channel Exhibits- Ellis Island
• Scholastic Teaching Resources- Virtual Tour of
  Ellis Island