The Great Migration: Ancestry and Identity

Active learning helps students grasp the layered relationship between past and present when studying Great Migration literature. By handling artifacts, comparing sources, and creating memory archives, students move beyond abstract ideas to tangible evidence of how ancestry shapes identity.

• 9th Grade
• English Language Arts
• 4 activities
• 20 min–40 min

Learning Objectives

1. Analyze how literary devices, such as symbolism and imagery, are used to represent the concept of 'ancestry' in Great Migration narratives.
2. Compare and contrast the ways characters maintain connections to their Southern heritage while adapting to Northern environments.
3. Explain the role of inherited memory and oral history in shaping character identity and preserving the legacy of the Great Migration.
4. Evaluate the significance of specific cultural elements (e.g., food, music, dialect) as markers of Southern ancestry within Northern settings.
5. Synthesize information from primary and secondary sources to articulate the multifaceted impact of the Great Migration on individual and collective identity.

Think-Pair-Share

⏱ 20 min·Pairs

Think-Pair-Share: Objects of Ancestry

Students write about one object, food, phrase, or tradition in their own family that connects them to a place their family used to live. Pairs share and identify: what does this object preserve that couldn't be preserved any other way? Whole-class discussion links personal memory to how Great Migration characters hold onto Southern identity in Northern settings.

Prepare & details

How is the concept of 'ancestry' handled in these narratives?

Facilitation Tip: During Think-Pair-Share, provide guiding questions on the board to keep pairs focused on the materiality of objects and their emotional resonance.

Setup: Standard classroom seating; students turn to a neighbor

Materials: Discussion prompt (projected or printed), Optional: recording sheet for pairs

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Inquiry Circle

⏱ 40 min·Small Groups

Inquiry Circle: Memory vs. History

Groups receive a passage of family oral history from a Great Migration text alongside a brief historical account of the same events. They identify three differences: what the oral history includes that the historical account omits, what the historical account includes that the oral history omits, and what each form of record is designed to do. Groups present one key difference.

Prepare & details

Analyze how characters maintain connections to their Southern roots while building new lives in the North.

Facilitation Tip: For Memory vs. History, assign each group one primary document and one oral account so they must reconcile differences in purpose and perspective.

Setup: Groups at tables with access to source materials

Materials: Source material collection, Inquiry cycle worksheet, Question generation protocol, Findings presentation template

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Self-Awareness

Gallery Walk

⏱ 35 min·Small Groups

Gallery Walk: Roots in Northern Soil

Post six short passages from Great Migration narratives where characters reference their Southern roots while living in Northern cities. Students annotate each with: what does the character preserve? What have they lost? What is their emotional relationship to the Southern past, longing, ambivalence, or relief at distance? Post-walk debrief builds toward a class definition of 'inherited identity.'

Prepare & details

Explain the significance of memory and oral history in preserving the legacy of the Great Migration.

Facilitation Tip: In the Gallery Walk, ask students to annotate posters with sticky notes that name the tradition or memory and explain its significance to the character.

Setup: Wall space or tables arranged around room perimeter

Materials: Large paper/poster boards, Markers, Sticky notes for feedback

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Create
• Relationship Skills
• Social Awareness

Document Mystery

⏱ 30 min·Individual

Individual Writing: The Character's Memory Archive

Students choose one character from a Great Migration text and write a one-paragraph 'memory inventory', a list of everything the character carries from the South (people, places, practices, emotions) with one sentence explaining why each item matters to the character's identity. Students then circle the two most important items and write a claim connecting them to the text's larger theme.

Prepare & details

How is the concept of 'ancestry' handled in these narratives?

Facilitation Tip: During The Character's Memory Archive, remind writers to use sensory details like smells, textures, or sounds to bring memories to life.

Setup: Groups at tables with document sets

Materials: Document packet (5-8 sources), Analysis worksheet, Theory-building template

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Management
• Decision-Making

Teaching This Topic

Teachers should foreground the unreliability of memory as a strength, not a flaw. Avoid presenting oral history as a secondary source to written records; instead, treat both as deliberate constructions. Research shows students grasp the concept of 'rememory' more deeply when they physically interact with artifacts or texts, so prioritize activities that require close, multisensory engagement with the material.

What to Expect

Students will recognize how memory and oral history function as living archives in texts, rather than static facts. They will articulate specific examples of cultural transmission and explain their significance within the narrative.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

During Think-Pair-Share: Objects of Ancestry, watch for students who assume only physical objects count as ancestral ties.

What to Teach Instead

Use the Think-Pair-Share protocol to redirect students to the list of non-material traditions in the prompt, such as speech patterns or religious practices, and ask them to share examples from their own lives.

Common Misconception

During Collaborative Investigation: Memory vs. History, watch for students who dismiss oral history as less factual than written records.

What to Teach Instead

In the investigation, have students map each source type on a Venn diagram and label the kinds of truths each preserves, then present their findings to challenge assumptions.

Assessment Ideas

Discussion Prompt

After Think-Pair-Share: Objects of Ancestry, facilitate a class discussion using the prompt: 'How do characters in the texts we've read demonstrate a connection to their Southern roots? Provide specific examples of traditions, memories, or objects that serve as anchors to their past.' Encourage students to reference textual evidence.

Quick Check

During Collaborative Investigation: Memory vs. History, provide students with a short excerpt from a Great Migration narrative. Ask them to identify one instance where a character's actions or thoughts reveal a connection to their Southern ancestry and explain its significance in 2-3 sentences.

Exit Ticket

After Gallery Walk: Roots in Northern Soil, on an index card ask students to write down one question they have about how memory or oral history helps preserve the legacy of the Great Migration. Collect these to gauge understanding and inform future lessons.

Extensions & Scaffolding

• Challenge: Ask students to research a family recipe or religious practice and trace its origins to a specific region in the South, then present a short report connecting it to a Great Migration narrative.
• Scaffolding: Provide sentence stems for the memory archive writing task, such as 'This object reminds me of... because...' or 'The smell of... takes me back to...'.
• Deeper exploration: Invite students to interview a family member about a Southern tradition and compare their findings to the literary examples studied in class.

Key Vocabulary

Great Migration	The mass movement of approximately six million African Americans from the rural Southern United States to the urban Northeast, Midwest, and West between 1916 and 1970.
Ancestry	One's family or ethnic background; the origin and history of one's family.
Inherited Memory	The concept that historical trauma, experiences, and cultural knowledge can be passed down through generations, influencing present-day identity and behavior.
Oral History	A method of research that involves the collection and study of historical information as told by people, often through interviews and storytelling.
Cultural Retention	The practice of maintaining and preserving cultural traditions, beliefs, and practices, especially when moving to a new environment.