Welcoming New U.S. Citizens: Naturalization Ceremony at Rogers High School

Spokane Public Schools: Welcoming New U.S. Citizens: Naturalization Ceremony at Rogers High School 

Rogers High School proudly hosted a naturalization ceremony on March 28, welcoming over 50 new U.S. citizens. Presided over by Judge James A. Goeke of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington, this powerful event was filled with emotion, hope, and celebration.

Anniversary of Brown v. the Board of Education

Today is the anniversary of the ruling in the Supreme Court case, Brown v. the Board of Education (1954). The decision, written by Supreme Court Chief Justice Earl Warren, said that “separate educational facilities are inherently unequal." This decision made the racial segregation of schools against the law in every US state.

VOA Learning English: US Supreme Court Decision: Brown v. Board of Education

COABE: Legislative Center (advocacy for Adult Education)

Colorin Colorado: Landmark Court Rulings Regarding English Language Learners (page)

National Archives:   (page, original docs)

National Trust for Historic Preservation: "These Children Do Speak English:" Language and the Fight Against School Segregation (page)

NEA Today: Revisiting Brown v. Board of Education – 70 Years Later (page)

TESOL: Advocacy Center (all English Language Learners)

US Courts: History - Brown v. Board of Education Re-enactment (lesson plan, activity)

VOA Learning English: Brown v. Board of Education Helps Launch Civil Rights Movement (2018 article, video, audio, quiz)

VOA Learning English: 70 Years after Brown Decision, School Segregation Getting Worse (2024 article, audio, quiz)

POP QUIZ:

USCIS 100:12.  What is the “rule of law”?

USCIS 100:38.  What is the highest court in the United States? 

USCIS 100:39.  How many justices are on the Supreme Court?   

USCIS 100:40.  Who is the Chief Justice of the United States now?

USCIS 100:42.   Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the states.  What is one power of the states? 

Balance of Powers, Part 4

Center for Civic Education: How Congress Shares Power: Balance of Powers, Part 4

The Framers of the Constitution wanted to limit the power of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of the national government. So, they made each of them share some of its primary responsibilities and accompanying powers with one or more of the other branches. Listen for more!

60-Second Civics, Episode 5367, May 13, 2025 (a rebroadcast of Episode 4672: July 21, 2022)

Subscribe and take the Daily Civics Quiz at http://civiced.org/60-second-civics

Learn more:

• si: Preparing for the Oath
• USCIS: The Executive Branch BL | IL
• USCIS: The Legislative Branch BL | IL
• USCIS: The Judicial Branch BL | IL
• uscitizenpod: The Supreme Court of the United States
• VOA Learning English: America's Presidents
• VOA Learning English: The U.S. Congress
• VOA Learning English: The U.S. Supreme Court

The little-known history of birthright citizenship

Washington Post: The little-known history of birthright citizenship

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral arguments Thursday about birthright citizenship. Today we explore the history of this constitutional right and meet the man who has become an unlikely spokesman for saving it.

Norman Wong and Birthright Citizenship

Norman Wong is an American. He is 75 years old and lives near San Francisco. His great-grandfather was Wong Kim Ark. Wong Kim Ark was born in the U.S. in the 1800s. His parents were from China. But the U.S. government did not want to let him come back after he visited China.

Wong Kim Ark went to court. The case went to the Supreme Court in 1898. The court said he was a U.S. citizen because he was born in the U.S. This helped create the law of “birthright citizenship.”

What is birthright citizenship?

If you are born in the U.S., you are a citizen — no matter where your parents are from.

Now, President Trump wants to change this rule. He signed an order to stop birthright citizenship for children born to people who are in the U.S. illegally or on short-term visas. Many people and states disagreed. They went to court.

The case is now going to the Supreme Court. Norman Wong is speaking out to protect his great-grandfather’s legacy and to support birthright citizenship for future generations.

Sources and further reading:

VOX: Why the US has birthright citizenship

Garrett Epps’s law review article about the citizenship clause of the 14th Amendment has everything you’ll ever need to know about the history of birthright citizenship in the US article The Library of Congress has a great map showing which countries of the world offer unconditional birthright citizenship like the US map The 1861 map of the US we use a few times in the piece is itself a strikingly rich document that I could stare at forever 1861 map

Some other original documents we use in the piece: Trump’s executive order on birthright citizenship EO 14106 The Ipsos poll containing the question about support for ending birthright citizenship for children of undocumented immigrants: IPSOS Survey The Dred Scott decision article

President Andrew Johnson’s letter vetoing the 1866 Civil Rights Act article Congress’s debates over the 14th Amendment (we quoted from page 498) debate The 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act article The Wong Kim Ark decision article Vox.com is a news website that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Check out http://www.vox.com.

Also see:

Center for Civic Education: Birthright Citizenship part 5 of the Citizenship at the Founding playlist

Rep Ted Lieu: Birthright citizenship is as American as apple pie.

VOA Learning English: News Words: Executive Order | Birthright Citizenship

VOA News: What is birthright citizenship?

2024-2025 MAE Citizenship Class 29

NY Historical: Supreme Court // The Citizenship Project [E11]

This is the thirteenth class of our semester.  

• Future Citizenship: The Senate; House of Representatives; Judicial Branch (83-94; Unit 4:5 168-169
• Marriage and Children / Immigration Fraud plus Quiz 13: Civic Groups
• Claudia Rios Castro: A Quick Interview Based on the N-400r plus 10qs about the Branches of Gov’t Part 1 pdf

Learn more:

• USCIS: The Legislative Branch BL | IL
• USCIS: The Judicial Branch BL | IL
• uscitizenpod: The Supreme Court of the United States
• VOA Learning English: The U.S. Congress
• VOA Learning English: The U.S. Supreme Court

Balance of Powers, Part 3

Center for Civic Education: How to Prevent Tyranny: Balance of Powers, Part 3

The Framers of the Constitution were concerned about two things: first, the emergence of a tyrannical executive in the presidency and second, a tyranny of a majority in Congress. Learn how they designed a system of government to address these concerns in this episode! 

60-Second Civics, Episode 5366, May 12, 2025 (a rebroadcast of Episode 4671: July 20, 2022)

Subscribe and take the Daily Civics Quiz at http://civiced.org/60-second-civics

Learn more:

• si: Preparing for the Oath
• USCIS: The Executive Branch BL | IL
• USCIS: The Legislative Branch BL | IL
• USCIS: The Judicial Branch BL | IL
• uscitizenpod: The Supreme Court of the United States
• VOA Learning English: America's Presidents
• VOA Learning English: The U.S. Congress
• VOA Learning English: The U.S. Supreme Court

Balance of Powers, Part 2

Center for Civic Education: Congress as the Predominant Branch: Balance of Powers, Part 2

Which branch of the federal government has the most power? We explore the intentions of the Framers for how power was to be distributed among the branches in today’s episode!  

60-Second Civics, Episode 5365, May 9, 2025 (Episode 4670: July 19, 2022)

Subscribe and take the Daily Civics Quiz at http://civiced.org/60-second-civics

Learn more:

• si: Preparing for the Oath
• USCIS: The Executive Branch BL | IL
• USCIS: The Legislative Branch BL | IL
• USCIS: The Judicial Branch BL | IL
• uscitizenpod: The Supreme Court of the United States
• VOA Learning English: America's Presidents
• VOA Learning English: The U.S. Congress
• VOA Learning English: The U.S. Supreme Court

Happy Mother's Day!

uscitizenpod: Three Citizenship Questions for Mother's Day (video)

Ann Reeves Jarvis was a peace activist who took care of wounded soldiers on both sides of the American Civil War. After the war, she hosted Mother's Day Friendship picnics for the women on both sides of the war.  She also created Mother's Day Work Clubs to address public health issues.

After Ann Reeves Jarvis died, her daughter, Anna Jarvis, wanted to honor her mother by continuing the work that her mother had started.  Anna Jarvis started a petition to set aside one day every year to honor all mothers.  She said that a mother is "the person who has done more for you than anyone in the world."

In 1908, Anna Jarvis sent a petition to Congress to make Mother's Day a national holiday. Although Congress rejected the petition, many states and cities adopted the idea.  In 1914, Woodrow Wilson  signed a proclamation designating Mother's Day, held on the second Sunday in May, as a national holiday to honor mothers.

Name one problem that led to the Civil War.

• civil rights
• first amendment rights
• states’ rights
• women's rights

What are two ways that Americans can participate in their democracy?

• join a camping group
• join a civic group
• join a comedy group
• join a community group

Name two national U.S. holidays.

• Memorial Day
• Mother's Day
• Valentine's Day
• Veterans Day

Source: Wikipedia
Image Source: USPS Mother of America Stamp

Balance of Powers, Part 1

Center for Civic Education: “A Constitutional World Turned Upside Down”: Balance of Powers, Part 1

Today we begin a special series of podcasts to examine the question of whether power in the federal government is appropriately balanced between Congress and the executive and judicial branches. We will also learn how power has shifted from Congress to the executive and judicial branches of government and consider the implications of this shift. 

60-Second Civics, Episode 5364, May 8, 2025 (Episode 4669: July 18, 2022)

Subscribe and take the Daily Civics Quiz at http://civiced.org/60-second-civics

Learn more:

• si: Preparing for the Oath
• USCIS: The Executive Branch BL | IL
• USCIS: The Legislative Branch BL | IL
• USCIS: The Judicial Branch BL | IL
• uscitizenpod: The Supreme Court of the United States
• VOA Learning English: America's Presidents
• VOA Learning English: The U.S. Congress
• VOA Learning English: The U.S. Supreme Court

The Barbara Bush Stamp

As an ESL/Citizenship teacher, I deeply appreciate the efforts of the Barbara Bush Foundation on behalf of adult learners and their families.

 

 

AP: Melania Trump unveil US postage stamp of Barbara Bush 

In the White House’s East Room, first lady Melania Trump and members of the Bush family gathered to unveil a U.S postage stamp bearing the portrait of former first lady Barbara Bush.

REAL ID

California DMV:  How to get your Get your Real ID.

REAL ID Playlist (multiple languages)

Check your state's Department of Motor Vehicles website or YouTube channel.

Also see: 

TESOL: ESL Task-Based Lesson Plan: Flying

TESOLCREATIONS: Learn to Read an ID Card | Beginner ESL Lesson

TSA: TSA Begins REAL ID Full Enforcement on May 7

REAL ID: A Google AI-generated Lesson Plan (5/8/2025) (Google Doc with links)

An ESL lesson plan that focuses on "Real ID" would likely involve teaching students about the concept of identification documents, specifically focusing on "Real ID" requirements and how to obtain one. The lesson could cover topics like what a Real ID is, its purpose, and how to apply for one, using visuals like a picture of a driver's license or other accepted forms of identification.

2024-2025 MAE Citizenship Class 28

Share America: The President's Cabinet

This is the twelfth class of our semester.  

• Future Citizenship: President; VP & Speaker of the House; Cabinet (71-82); Unit 4:3-4 164-167
• Origin / Groups and Organizations plus Quiz 14: History Groups
• A Quick Interview Based on the N-400r plus 10qs about the Branches of Gov’t Part 2 pdf

Learn more:

• TED-ed: How is power divided in the United States government? - Belinda Stutzman
• USCIS: The Executive Branch BL | IL

A U.S. Citizenship Quiz for Cinco de Mayo

Cinco de Mayo is a celebration held on May 5. The date commemorates the Mexican Army's surprise victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. In the late 1980's, California schools and cities in California started to celebrate Cinco de Mayo as an expression of our state's Mexican-American heritage. However, some people confuse Cinco de Mayo with Mexico's Independence Day.

Mexico's Independence Day is celebrated on September 16 and is similar to America's Independence Day on July 4th. Cinco de Mayo is closer to our Patriot's Day, which is celebrated in the New England states  during mid-April. Patriot's Day commemorates the Battles of Lexington and Concord, the first battles of the American Revolutionary War. For more that 100 years, the city of Boston has celebrated Patriot's Day by hosting the Boston Marathon, the world's largest marathon.

But let's get back to Cinco de Mayo. Today I have selected five topics to showcase Mexican-American heritage: The constitution and the Bill of rights. the Legislative Branch, the Executive Branch, The Judicial Branch, and Geography and Holidays. I will read the questions, and Mexican-American students from our ESL3 class will read the answers. 

Listen to the podcast, then download the pdf from our website, uscitizenpod.com, and take the quiz: 

• Five for Cinco de Mayo pdf

Five more resources:

• Citizenship Interview Quiz with Antonio Vazquez Gonzalez pdf
• Lino habla de su entrevista de Ciudadanía video
• Maria Isabel Covarrubas talks about her Citizenship Interview video
• Mezclar y Combinar Entrevistas y Exámencitos de Ciudadanía pdf
• Yésica Sánchez: A Quick Interview Based on the N-400r plus 10qs about Voting and Elections pdf

CCAE 2025: Using AI Tools in Citizenship Preparation and Civics Education

Using AI Tools in Citizenship Preparation and Civics Education | pdf

2025 CCAE State, Fresno CA

Jennifer Gagliardi

jgagliardi@musd.org

May 2, 2025

Teaching U.S. Citizenship Preparation 2025

bit.ly/uscit-padlet

CCAE 2025: Auditioning for Band USA: Citizenship Prep ROCKS!

CCAE 2025: Auditioning for Band USA: Citizenship Prep ROCKS! | pdf

2025 CCAE State, Fresno

May 2, 2025

Jennifer Gagliardi

jgagliardi@scoe.net

Teaching U.S. Citizenship Prep 2025

bit.ly/uscit-padlet

Also see watch these two webinars from CATESOL Refugee Concerns Interest Group

4/25/2025 KYR Teaching Tools for the Classroom (RC-IG) google slides | webinar recording

2/28/2025 Top Immigration Resources for ESL Teachers (RC-IG)

CCAE 2025: Incorporating Digital Literacy in an Adult Citizenship Curriculum

CCAE 2025: Incorporating Digital Literacy  in an Adult Citizenship Curriculum | pdf

CCAE State Conference, Fresno

May 2, 2025 

JENNIFER GAGLIARDI

OTAN SME

jgagliardi@scoe.net

Based on original presentation by 

SHAWN CHAKRABARTI

U.S. Citizenship Resources for Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month

 

VOA News: A Year of Chinese Migrants and Tensions for Chinese in US 

While geopolitical tensions between Beijing and Washington were high this year, Chinese students and migrants are still coming to the United States, with more crossing the border than ever before. VOA’s Elizabeth Lee has more on what the environment in the U.S. was like in 2023.

Stop AAPI Hate: If you have experienced a racist act, or witnessed a racist act, please take five minutes to fill out our safe and confidential reporting form, available in 15 languages.

 
state.gov: Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month

Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies: Asian Pacific American Heritage Month (APAHM)

AsianPacificHeritage.gov: May is Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month
May is Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month – a celebration of Asians and Pacific Islanders in the United States. A rather broad term, Asian-Pacific encompasses all of the Asian continent and the Pacific islands of Melanesia (New Guinea, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji and the Solomon Islands), Micronesia (Marianas, Guam, Wake Island, Palau, Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Nauru and the Federated States of Micronesia) and Polynesia (New Zealand, Hawaiian Islands, Rotuma, Midway Islands, Samoa, American Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, Cook Islands, French Polynesia and Easter Island).

American English @ State: Asian Pacific Heritage Month  (pdf)

Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders Vote 
APIAVote is a national nonpartisan organization that works with partners to mobilize Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in electoral and civic participation.  Check resources and voting rights videos pages and visit the the APIAVote YouTube channel.

DOD: Steven Calvery - National Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month
Steven Calvery, Director of the Pentagon Force Protection Agency, reflects on his career, family and culture.  For more on the Department of Defense, visit: defense.gov

CCSF: Best, OK, and Worst Citizenship Interview Strategies
50+ videos of mock interviews and interview strategies.

Census: Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month: May 2025

Facts and figures about Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders based on the 2020 Census.  

goodreads: Celebrate Asian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month with 189 New Books

Add to this list a couple of graphic novels: "Rise: A Pop History of Asian America from the Nineties to Now" by Jeff Yang, Philip Wang, et al; "The Best We Could Do: An Illustrated Memoir" by Thi Bui; and "American Born Chinese" by Gene Luen Yang 

iCivics: AAPI Heritage Month: Lesson Plans and Resources for the Classroom

Mini-lessons about three Supreme Court cases: United States v. Wong Kim Ark; Korematsu v. United States; Lau v. Nichols.  Plus a video about Rep. Patsy Mink (HW)

janmdotorg: I Want the Wide American Earth: An Asian Pacific American Story (video)
Video produced by JANM's 2013 Getty Multicultural Undergraduate Interns, and the Watase Media Arts Center, to promote the Smithsonian's traveling exhibition, "I Want The Wide American Earth: An Asian Pacific American Story." 

KQED: Asian Pacific American Heritage Month playlist
Asian Pacific Americans celebrate their heritage in the San Francisco Bay Area.

LOC: South Pacific Islands Archive
The South Pacific Islands Web Archive covers the following twenty islands/countries: American Samoa, Cook Islands, Fiji, French Polynesia, Guam, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Nauru, New Caledonia, Niue, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.

LOC: Samoan Culture (video)
Rep. Aumua Amata, American Samoa's third Member of Congress and the first woman elected to the House American Samoa, discussed Samoan culture and history. Also generations of Samoan culture were illustrated by items found in a variety of Library

NPR: May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month!

NPR Programming this month highlighting Asian American and Pacific Islander stories and people,

PBS Voices: A People's History of Asian America
A series of thoughtful visual essays and explainers, hosted by Emmy award-winning journalist, Dolly Li, and Asian studies scholar and professor, Adrian De Leon.

Stop AAPI Hate

Resources to address anti-Asian racism plus a tool to report hate crimes in multiple languages.

VOANews: Growing Asian-American Community Could Influence US Elections (video)
The growing number of Asian-American voters in the United States doesn’t necessarily translate into political clout in U.S. elections. Many who are eligible to vote sit on the sidelines. One organization wants to remove some barriers it says are in the way of getting Asian-Americans to vote. Search the VOANews YouTube channel for more AAPI videos.

USCIS

Arabic USCIS resources | citizenship resources

• Welcome to the United States: A Guide for New Immigrants in Arabic 

Chinese USCIS resources | citizenship resources

• Welcome to the United States: A Guide for New Immigrants in Chinese-traditional
• Welcome to the United States: A Guide for New Immigrants in Chinese-simplified
• Cantonese Public Engagement Event 2015(video) 
• 关于入籍常见的问题—美国公民及移民服务局制作 (video)
• 如何成为美国公民—美国公民及移民服务局制作 (video) 
• 童年入境暂缓遣返手续常见的问题—美国公民及移民服务局制作 (video) 
• 童年入境暂缓遣返手续—美国公民及移民服务局制作 (video)

Korean USCIS resources | citizenship resources

• Welcome to the United States: A Guide for New Immigrants in Korean

Hindi USCIS resources | citizenship resources

Indonesian USCIS resources | citizenship resources

Nepali USCIS resources | citizenship resources

Punjabi USCIS resources | citizenship resources

Tagalog USCIS resources | citizenship resources

Urdu USCIS resources | citizenship resources

• Welcome to the United States: A Guide for New Immigrants in Urdu 

Vietnamese USCIS resources | citizenship resources

• Welcome to the United States: A Guide for New Immigrants in Vietnamese

Other Multilingual Citizenship Resources

CLINIC: Translation of Civics Questions and Answers for the Naturalization Test

Thirty plus 100 civics questions from community organizations

HIAS: Citizenship Prep Materials

Study guides for the U.S. citizenship test are available in six languages: Arabic, Nepali, Serbo-Croatian/Bosnian, Somali, Spanish, Vietnamese

ILRC: Annotated N-400 Translations in  Other Languages

This is an outstanding collection translations of the N-400 by the The Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC) and its partners.

uscitizenpod: Citizenship Resources by Countries

Mock interviews and quizzes and videos

uscitizenpod YouTube Channel

Mock interviews videos.  Special playlists include Lunar New Year Citizens and Desi-Americans

NPS.gov

Asian American and Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander Heritage Month 2022
Every May during Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month and throughout the year, the National Park Service and our partners share those histories and the continuing culture thriving in parks and communities today.
A Brief Glimpse: Asian American Pacific Islander National Historic Landmarks Theme Study [PDF 2.6 MB]
A Brief Glimpse: Asian American Pacific Islander National Historic Landmark Theme Study -  This is the introductory essay of Finding a Path Forward: Asian American/Pacific Islander National Historic Landmarks Theme Study.  
Asian Reflections on the American Landscape: Identifying and Interpreting Asian Heritage [PDF 196 KB] examines Asian cultural heritage found in the American built environment and its interpretation within NPS cultural resources programs.
Find Your Place: Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders [PDF 2.1 MB]
This 18-page booklet examines the enduring and influential presence of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders—from the earliest settlement of the country to the economic development of the West to the desegregation of public schools in the 20th century and political influence in the 21st. A core essay traces their impact on the American landscape, followed by the stories of seven signature places commemorating the legacy. A concluding section illustrates how this heritage is preserved today, transcending “bricks and mortar” preservation to include a celebration of collective experience.

Historic Preservation from the Ground Up: The Harada House [PDF 3.9 MB] uses a house in Riverside, California as a case study in how a community can participate in local preservation. The Harada House has become a landmark in the fight for Asian American civil rights. Despite its significance, the road to its preservation was a long and contentious one.

Check back for updates!