Loading...Faces of America
Special Collection
What made America? What makes us? These two questions are at the heart of the PBS series Faces of America with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. The lesson plans and media resources based on the series address a wide range of topics including historic waves of immigration, anti-immigrant sentiment, family genealogy, and state-of-the-art genetic research. Through this collection, students will gain a broader perspective of America’s immigrant history (both past and present) and learn what it really means to be an American.
Funding for Faces of America on VITAL is provided by The Coca-Cola Company.
Faces of America on PBS was made possible through the corporate support of The Coca-Cola Company and Johnson & Johnson. Additional funding was provided by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York, The Atlantic Philanthropies, and The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. Additional support is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and PBS.
| RESOURCE | GRADE LEVEL | MEDIA TYPE |
|---|---|---|
All in the FamilyThis video from the series Faces of America details the process of documenting family history and tracing lineage back through maternal and paternal lines. |
9-12 |
Video |
A Cold Reception: Anti-Immigrant Sentiment in the United StatesIn this lesson, students explore the hostile reception immigrants have often received from anti-immigrant “nativists” in an America not always eager to accept them and the change they represent. |
7-9 |
Lesson Plan |
A Colony of AliensIn this video segment from Faces of America, learn about Benjamin Franklin’s objection to German immigrants in colonial Pennsylvania. |
7-12 |
Video |
Exploring the PastThis hands-on, media-enhanced lesson, based on the series Faces of America, will challenge students to gather clues about the past through photographs, drawings and other primary source materials. |
2-4 |
Lesson Plan |
Frenetic GeneticsStudents learn about the types of genetic information contained in the human genome – physical traits, behaviors, and propensity for diseases, in this video from Faces of America. |
9-12 |
Video |
I Dream of GenomeThis lesson, based on the series Faces of America, explores the various types of genetic information contained in the human genome. |
9-12 |
Lesson Plan |
Journey from JamaicaPoet Elizabeth Alexander learns how her grandfather came to the US from Jamaica in this video from Faces of America. |
2-12 |
Video |
Ma Family HistoryThis video from Faces of America explores Yo-Yo Ma's family history and how it was preserved. |
2-12 |
Video |
Migration SensationsThis video segment from Faces of America details the process of human migration through haplogroups and shows the haplogroups of some of the series’ guests. |
9-12 |
Video |
Opportunity Beckoned in the New WorldThis video from the series Faces of America details the immigration of Stephen Colbert’s German ancestors to Pennsylvania in the early 1700s. |
4-12 |
Video |
A Piece of the PieThis video from the series Faces of America covers what DNA can tell us about our ethnic identities that regular genealogy might not. |
9-12 |
Video |
Pioneers of the American WestChef Mario Batali learns about his ancestors who left Italy for the American West in this video from Faces of America. |
4-12 |
Video |
Tenant FarmersLearn about the difficult living conditions faced by Stephen Colbert’s Irish ancestors in this video from Faces of America. |
4-12 |
Video |
They're Coming to America: Immigrants Past and PresentIn this lesson, students will explore the history of America, a nation of immigrants. |
5-7 |
Lesson Plan |
To Hawaii from JapanThis video from Faces of America reveals the circumstances that led Kristi Yamaguchi’s grandfather to move from Japan to Hawaii. |
4-12 |
Video |
A Very Sad Period in Irish HistoryStudents learn about the effects of the Irish Potato Famine in this video segment from Faces of America. |
4-12 |
Video |
Who’s White?In this segment from Faces of America, Her Majesty Queen Noor learns of her Syrian ancestors’ legal claim that for naturalization purposes they should be considered white rather than Asian. |
7-12 |
Video |
Yamaguchi PhotosIn this video segment from Faces of America, Kristi Yamaguchi learns about her father’s parents through family photographs.
|
2-12 |
Video |
