Lesson Plan: The Job No One Wanted

Essential Questions

• How have immigrants contributed to the development of the United States?
• Why do some heroes get recognition while others are forgotten?

Literature Connection

• Graphic nonfiction: The Building of the Transcontinental Railroad (Graphic History) by Nathan Olson

Preview Text Features (15 minutes)

Guide students to locate the article. Preview the text features by asking the following questions:

• Read the article’s title and subtitle (the text beneath the title). Look at the illustration. Why do you think no one wanted the job of working on the transcontinental railroad? From the illustration, we can tell that the work was dangerous. Dangers might have included being carried in baskets up mountains, working near high cliffs, and being injured by falling rocks.
• Look at the map and read its caption. What is the map’s purpose? The purpose of the map is to show the route of the first transcontinental railroad in the U.S. It also shows which sections of the railroad were built by each company.
• Look at the photos labeled “Forgotten No More” and read their captions. How are the two photos related to each other? The photo on the left shows a ceremony that marked the end of the railroad project in 1869. No Chinese workers were invited to the ceremony. The photo on the right shows an event in which relatives of the Chinese workers gathered in the same place 150 years later to remember their ancestors.

Preview Vocabulary (10 minutes)

• Point out the vocabulary box. Read the words (dangled, fuses, transcontinental, mangled, hazard, revealed) aloud and discuss their definitions.
• Play the Vocabulary Slideshow.

Make a Plan for Reading

Before students start to read, walk them through a reading plan:

• Set a purpose for reading by telling students that they will find text evidence in “The Job No One Wanted” that supports important ideas about how Chinese workers built the transcontinental railroad and why their sacrifices have been overlooked.
• Point out the Pause and Think boxes. Tell students they can check their understanding of what they’ve read by answering these questions.
• Tell students that as they finish each section, they should think about how the text features on the page (e.g., photos, captions, and section headings) relate to what they’ve just read.

Guide students to read the article. Once they understand it well, discuss the following close-reading and critical-thinking questions.

Close-Reading Questions (20 minutes)

• Reread the last line of the article’s opening section. It says that many Americans thought the railroad project couldn’t be done. Why was that? (inference) The project was huge. It involved cutting tunnels through mountains. And because the work was very difficult and  dangerous, workers weren’t staying on the job for long. 
• What challenges did railroad workers face in building the transcontinental railroad? In what ways was the job tougher on Chinese workers than on others? (compare and contrast) Workers dangled from ropes, dug holes in the mountains, blew up rocks, and had to live on the tracks for months at a time. Additionally, Chinese workers faced racism. They had to sleep in tents while White workers slept in train cars. They also earned less than White workers: only about $31 a month.
• In what ways, positive and negative, did the transcontinental railroad change people’s lives? (cause and effect) The transcontinental railroad reduced travel time from one coast of the country to the other. The trip, which used to take up to six months, now took only a week. As a result, people traveled more than before. Businesses boomed because they could ship goods across the country. For Native Americans, however, the railway meant disaster. It ran through their lands, causing Native Americans to be pushed onto reservations.
• Consider Russell Low’s quote at the end of the article: “These are American stories. They’re stories that belong to all of us.” What do you think he meant by this? (interpreting text) He meant that the sacrifices of the Chinese workers who built the transcontinental railroad are an important part of our country’s history. He uses the word American to emphasize that the workers helped make America what it is today. He says their stories “belong to all of us” because we’ve all been touched by their achievements, and we’re all responsible for acknowledging their bravery and honoring their memories.

Critical-Thinking Question (10 minutes)

• If you could travel back in time and talk with James Strobridge, the head of construction for the Central Pacific Railroad, what would you say to him about how his company should treat its workers? (critical thinking) Sample answer: The job was dangerous, so Strobridge should have done all that was possible to keep workers safe. Perhaps there were ways he could have protected his workers, even if it meant that the project would take longer or cost more money. He also should have treated White workers and Chinese workers equally. Practices like paying Chinese workers less and having them sleep in tents were unacceptable.

• Have students work in pairs to complete the Spotlight Skill Workout: Text Evidence activity. As a class, discuss students’ answers and the Think About It! question.
• Have students work independently to complete our Central Idea and Details Skill Builder, available in higher- and lower-level versions. (Click here to view all your Skill Builders for this article.)
• Writing prompt: The article states that the Chinese workers who built the transcontinental railroad left behind no diaries or letters. But what if they had? Imagine that you’re one of the workers. Using details from the article and your own imagination, write a short journal entry about a day on the job. What have you been doing? How are you feeling? Are you upset about getting paid so little? Afraid of getting hurt? Glad to have any job at all?