Name:

Date:

American Studies

Unit 2: American Dream

 

  1. History Essay (Essay and Journal): A three page history project where the first two pages examines/ analyzes the history and realities of the American Dream to a specific group of people (e.g. white males, women, Native Americans, African Americans, Mexican immigrants, European immigrants, etc.).  What problems did they face? How did they handle these problems over time? What were the successes and failures of the group in assimilating? Did they achieve the American Dream? The ideas reflected should demonstrate some level of research. There will be a sign-up sheet to ensure that a variety of groups are covered.

 

The third page should be a journal entry of about 300 words or more, written in the form of historical fiction from the perspective of a specific person in the group written about. For most groups this should be the thoughts and feelings of an immigrant coming to America, discussing his or her vision of the American Dream and reasons for coming here. If the group studied is Native Americans, it should be a person’s feelings, frustrations, and thoughts on the American Dream. The journal must reflect research on the conditions of another country at a specific time, including three specific examples of conditions causing them to leave (or in the case of Native American, conditions in this country at a specific time and specific examples causing their reactions).

 

For the journal, printouts or copies of sources with relevant information highlighted, must be attached.

 

_____ Ideas and Development - Essay

30                           ___1. minimum of 500-600 words (about two pages).

___2. clear, concise thesis statement

___3. clear focus on the history and realities of the American Dream for one specific group of Americans

___4. analyzed the group’s experience over time

___5. specific details to explain thoughts.

___6. abundant supports as evidence for the thesis, with clear, specific details and examples.

___7. accurate details.

_____ Research - Essay

15                           ___1. two sources (no more than one from textbook.)

                                ___2. bibliography, using proper form.

                                ___3. properly cite anything requiring footnotes or endnotes.

                                ___4. avoid plagiarism through revising, restating.

 

_____ Organization and Conventions - Essay

15                           ___1. clear introduction, use engaging lead, summarize the issue, include the thesis (underline the thesis).

                                ___2. paragraphing helped the reader follow the argument/analysis.

___3. clear conclusion, restate the main points, clearly answer the thesis, connect issue to self or world, hook back to the lead.

___4. proper spelling, punctuation, and sentence structure.                      

___5. typed essay, double spaced, one inch margins, 12pt standard font.

 

_____ Journal Entry

30                                         ___1. journal is at least 300 words, historical fiction

___2. typed essay, double spaced, one inch margins, 12pt standard font.

___3. described feelings, thoughts, and vision of the American Dream from the perspective of an immigrant form a group coming to America, including his/her reasons for coming here (or from the perspective of a Native American after the arrival of Europeans).

___4. journal reflects the conditions of another country at a specific time, including three specific examples of conditions causing the character to leave.

___5. stayed true to the character

___6. proper use of grammatical conventions

___7. attached printouts or copies of sources, with relevant information highlighted

 

_____  Total  (minimum of 45 needed to pass this portion of the unit project).

90