Migration and the First World War

Introduction:

This lesson is about migration during the First World War. It provides students with information about where, why and when people migrated. It allows students the opportunity to compare migration trends around the War with today.

Learning outcomes:

• To develop students’ ability to listen for gist and specific information
• To provide practice at listening to a lecture extract and taking notes

Age and level: 

B2

Time: 

Approximately 70 minutes

Materials:

Download the lesson plan, student worksheet, PowerPoint and audio file below. 

Warmer: Geography quiz (10 mins)

• Explain that the lesson is about some of the countries and people that were affected by the First World War. 
• If you have a computer and data projector in your classroom, show slide 2 of the PowerPoint file ‘Migration and the First World War slides’. Ask students what they know about the countries. Ask students if they know where each country is. Point out Ukraine, Serbia and Belgium. Hand out the worksheet. Ask students to work in pairs or small groups and match the country to the location on the map. 
• Check students’ answers. Ask students to come out and point to the location on the map. 
• Show slide 3, and the answers will appear one by one (this takes about 10 seconds).

Task 1: Reading and discussion (10 mins)

• Show slide 4 and/or ask students to look at Task 1 on their worksheet. 
• Elicit comments as to who the people are and anything the students know about them. 
• Ask students what the three men have in common. Ask them if they can think of anyone else that left their country due to war.
• Answers: 
• Task 1a) Lenin, Poirot, King Constantine I of Greece
• Task 1b) 1 c; 2 a; 3 b
• Task 1c) They were all refugees from their home countries during the First World War.

Task 2: Vocabulary: people, movement and war (10 mins)

• Ask students to match the words to the meaning. Students can work in pairs or use a dictionary if necessary. Check the answers and drill pronunciation. 
• Show slides 7 and 8 to demonstrate the meanings of invade and refugee. 
• Ask concept questions to check the meaning, e.g: 

1. If I go on holiday to another country, does that make me a refugee?... Why not? 
2. Does conscription exist in this country? … Is that a good thing, do you think? 
3. Can you tell me the name of a famous spy from films? 
4. What’s the difference between immigration and emigration? 

• Answers to Task 2 1.b, 2.c, 3.a, 4.f, 5.e, 6.d

Task 3: Thinking about migration (5 mins)

• If you think students will have plenty of ideas of their own, get them to discuss the questions in small groups. Otherwise, you could do this activity in open class. 
• Ask students to look at the list of countries from the maps in the Warmer and discuss the questions. (The majority of fighting was on the Western Front – Belgium, France and Germany. No actual battles took place in Britain, New Zealand, Canada, Australia or South Africa. There was fighting in Russia, Poland and Serbia but not on the same scale as the Western Front. Switzerland was neutral and neither attacked any other country nor got attacked itself.) Explain that they are going to listen and find out.

Task 4: Listening to a history lecture (15 mins)

• Ask students to look at the maps. 
• Ask them to listen to the lecture and decide which map shows the movement of people during the First World War and after the war. 
• Play the lecture extract (‘Migration and the First World War lecture extract for Task 4’). 
• Feedback on their answers. 
• Ask students to read the table and fill in any information they remember from the first listening. Elicit what the answers for Britons might be to ensure understanding of the task. Ask students to listen again and complete the table. Ask students to check their answers in pairs before providing feedback. Let students listen again (or read the audioscript if you wish).
• Answers:
• Task 4a) (i) during the war: first map (ii) after the war: second map
• Task 4b) the completed table can be found in the lesson plan pdf below

Task 5: Discussion (20 mins)

• Show slide 7 (the discussion questions). Ask students to discuss each question in pairs or small groups. Facilitate whole class discussion on the topics. 

Extension activities

• Class debate: Split the class into two groups, one pro- and the other anti-immigration into their country. Give them time to prepare, then facilitate debate between both groups. 
• Discursive essay: Ask students to write a discursive essay on the positives and negatives of immigration/emigration.