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Refugees: Real People, Real Stories, Real Life

Unit of 3 Lessons
Grade Levels: 
6
7
8
Subjects: 
Language Arts
Philanthropy
Social Studies
Media / Technology
Keywords: 
Analyze/Interpret
Civil Society
Constructing Meaning
Cultures
Economics
Group Discussions
Human Rights
June
Needs Assessment
Refugees
Relief
Response to Text/Others
Rights/Responsibilities
Viewpoint
Wants/Needs
Common Good
Empathy
Global Issues
Nonprofit
Reflection
Responsibility
Rules
Understanding/Interpretation
Compare/Contrast
Cooperative Groups
Diverse Communities
Service
Issue Area: 
Global
Focus Question 

What is a world citizen's responsibility to protect and advocate for refugees? 

 

Photo Credit:  Saharawi Refugees at Sunset by United Nations Photo is licensed under CC by 2.0

Unit Overview 

Using video media, posters, advertisements, and essays, students explore and reflect upon the experiences of refugees across the world. Students learn who is a refugee, why and how people become refugees and what their lives are like before and after becoming refugees. They investigate needs of refugees and design a service project to address a need.
 

Service Experience 
Have some students contact local groups that work with refugees to find out what their needs are. These students can report back to the group so they can decide what they can do to help. This may include a fundraiser, a collection drive for needed items (blankets, clothes, toiletries, shoes, boots, etc.), or an advocacy campaign to raise awareness of the need for acceptance and empathy for people who have lost their homes and everything familiar.
Lessons in This Unit 
The Life of a Refugee
Unit: 
Refugees: Real People, Real Stories, Real Life
Lesson 1 of 3
Grades: 
6
7
8

Through pictures, provocative questions, group discussion, and video, students explore what a refugee is, what his or her life is like, and how people can help them feel welcome and get the tools they need to survive in a new home.

Subjects 
Language Arts
Philanthropy
Social Studies
Refugee Rights
Unit: 
Refugees: Real People, Real Stories, Real Life
Lesson 2 of 3
Grades: 
6
7
8

Students build an understanding and empathy for the life of a refugee. They examine the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and identify rights that are denied to refugees. They connect rights and responsibilities as they determine the value to the common good of protecting rights of refugees.

Subjects 
Language Arts
Media / Technology
Philanthropy
Social Studies
Perspectives of a Refugee
Unit: 
Refugees: Real People, Real Stories, Real Life
Lesson 3 of 3
Grades: 
6
7
8

Students reflect on how it must feel to quickly pack up and leave home with little warning and few possessions and then come to an unfamiliar new community. They read the stories of five refugees from four different countires and gain empathy and an understanding of their needs and struggles. Students assess the needs of refugees through a local nonprofit and plan a service project to address one of those needs.

Subjects 
Language Arts
Philanthropy
Social Studies