Curriculum / ELA / 5th Grade / Unit 4: Sí Se Puede: The Migrant Workers' Movement / Lesson 23

Sí Se Puede: The Migrant Workers' Movement

Lesson 23

ELA

Unit 4

5th Grade

Lesson 23 of 25

Readings and Materials

Assessment Text: “A Brief History of American Farm Labor” by Smithsonian Magazine, adapted by Newsela staff — 930L

These assessments accompany this unit to help gauge student understanding of key unit content and skills.

Content Assessment

The Content Assessment pushes students to synthesize unit content knowledge or unit essential questions in writing. The Content Assessment should be used as the primary assessment because it shows mastery of unit content knowledge and standards. This assessment should take approximately one class period.

Cold Read Assessment

The Cold Read Assessment tests students' ability to comprehend a "cold" or unfamiliar passage and answer standards-based questions. The Cold Read Assessment can be given in addition to the Content Assessment as a pulse point for what students can read and analyze independently, a skill often required for standardized testing. This assessment should take approximately one class period.

Lesson 22

Lesson 24

Lesson Map

Explain why the study of Cesar Chavez and the farm workers movement is important.

César Chávez pp. 11–15

Standards

RI.5.3

Describe what life was like in Yuma and on the grape farm, particularly how the Chavez family was treated in each location.

La Causa pp. 1–10

Standards

RI.5.3

Defend if from a young age, Dolores was able to connect with farm workers.

La Causa pp. 11–18

Standards

RI.5.3

Write a paragraph explaining why Dolores was able to connect with farm workers.

La Causa

Standards

L.5.1.aRI.5.3W.5.2W.5.2.aW.5.2.bW.5.2.cW.5.9.b

Explain the impact the National Labor Relations Act had on farm workers and if it was positive or negative.

“Farm Labor Organizing” pp. 8–10

Standards

RI.5.6

Describe the conditions for farm workers in California by paraphrasing and summarizing details from print and digital sources.

“Chicano” — 00:00 - 5:56
“Bitter Harvest”

Standards

RI.5.6SL.5.1SL.5.2

Defend if farm workers’ human rights are being protected.

“Declaration of Human Rights” pp. 23–25

Standards

L.5.1.aRI.5.3SL.5.1W.5.2W.5.2.aW.5.2.bW.5.2.cW.5.9.b

Determine the main idea of the chapter “Viva La Causa”.

La Causa pp. 19–28
“Farm Worker Movement” — 0:00-6:10

Standards

RI.5.2RI.5.3

2 days

Describe three or four of the strategies that Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta used in order to organize a strong movement and union.

“A Union...” — Chapters 1 and 2

Standards

RI.5.2SL.5.1SL.5.2SL.5.4SL.5.5SL.5.6W.5.8

Explain why Cesar was hesitant to join the Filipinos and how the final decision was made to join their strike.

La Causa pp. 29–36

Standards

RI.5.2RI.5.3

Explain what role Filipino-Americans and Larry Itliong played in the farm worker labor movement.

“Delano Manongs” — 00:00 - 19:00

Standards

RI.5.2SL.5.2W.5.8

2 days

Describe the characteristics of an influential leader.

All unit texts

Standards

L.5.1.aL.5.1.dL.5.2.aL.5.3.aRI.5.3W.5.2.aW.5.2.bW.5.2.cW.5.9.b

Analyze the impact Cesar Chavez’s push for nonviolence had on Dolores and what might have been different if Dolores had used violence.

La Causa pp. 37–47
“Rules for Pickets”

Standards

RI.5.3

Defend if the strike was successful or not.

La Causa pp. 48–58

Standards

RI.5.2RI.5.3SL.5.1

Describe the values that were at the heart of the farm workers movement and how those values influenced their actions.

“Boycott Instructions”
“Chicano” — 6:15 - 22:33

Standards

SL.5.2SL.5.4

Explain how Cesar Chavez used flyers to help educate the public to participate in the boycott.

Boycott Flyers — Flyers 01-10

Standards

RI.5.3

Discussion & Writing

2 days

Analyze the pros and cons of using strikes and boycotts as forms of nonviolent protest.

All unit texts

Standards

L.5.1.aRI.5.3SL.5.1SL.5.6W.5.2.aW.5.2.bW.5.2.cW.5.9.b

Defend if the farm workers’ actions are finally moving things in the right direction.

La Causa pp. 59–70

Standards

RI.5.2RI.5.3

Summarize what happened on the march to Sacramento and if it was effective.

La Causa pp. 71–81

Standards

RI.5.2RI.5.3

Describe times when courage, unity, and hope were shown by the farm workers.

“Farm Worker Movement” — 9:10 - 16:20
“Chicano” — 22:00 - 31:15

Standards

SL.5.2SL.5.4

Describe how the farm workers movement left a lasting legacy of change.

“Chicano” — 31:20 - end

Standards

SL.5.2SL.5.4W.5.8W.5.9.b

Discussion & Writing

2 days

Analyze how the core values of courage, unity, and hope fueled the farm workers movement and justify which value was the most important by stating a claim and drawing on information from multiple print and digital sources to examine a topic.

All unit texts

Standards

L.5.1.aRI.5.3SL.5.1W.5.2.aW.5.2.bW.5.2.c

Gauge student understanding of unit content and skills with one of Fishtank's unit assessments.

“A Brief History...” — 930L

Informative Writing

5 days

Conduct a short research project that uses several sources to build knowledge of different aspects of a topic.

Informational Writing Rubric (G5)

Standards

L.5.1.bL.5.1.dW.5.2W.5.2.aW.5.2.bW.5.2.cW.5.7W.5.8

Informative Writing

4 days

Write a newspaper article from the perspective of a reporter detailing an important event in the Migrant Farmworkers' movement using details from the core text.

La Causa
Informational Writing Rubric (G5)
Two-Paragraph Outline — (Use outline depending on students needs)
Three Paragraph Outline — (Use outline depending on students needs)
Migrant Farmworkers' Note-Taker

Standards

L.5.2W.5.2W.5.2.aW.5.2.bW.5.5W.5.8

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