Compare the immigrant population of California today and at the start of the Gold Rush in the 1850s. (The percents
are remarkably similar -- as is the hatred often shown to immigrants.)
Objectives
Students will
analyze the divergent paths of the American people in the West from 1800 to the mid-1800s and the challenges they
faced.
apply algebraic techniques to solve percent mixture problems.
use data samples of a population and describe the characteristics and limitations of the samples.
utilize mathematics (specifically ratios, percentages, and graphing) to analyze aspects of California's Gold Rush
population and diversity, and observe the differences and similarities between California's population during the
Gold Rush and today.
In this lesson, students compare the California of today with California during the time of the Gold Rush. Is California
more diverse today than it was then? The answer might be surprising. For students in grades 5 and up, this lesson
also can be used to teach percent.
Before students enter the classroom, write the following question on a chalkboard, chart, or overhead transparency:
Do you think California is more or less diverse today than it was during the 1850s Gold Rush?
Guide a short discussion in which students answer the question with information from their own experience or knowledge.
If you teach upper elementary students or above, use the overhead projector or a chalkboard for the purpose of reviewing
the process of figuring percentages; have students try several sample problems.
Next, provide on a chalkboard, chart, or transparency the statistics concerning the make-up of California's population
at the time of the 1850s Gold Rush (See below.) Have older students figure the percents.
CALIFORNIA POPULATION (circa 1852)
GROUP
POPULATION
Mexicans/South Americans
53,000
Chinese
25,000
Native Americans
24,000
Africans
3,000
Anglo-Americans/Europeans
155,000
TOTAL
260,000
Ask students if they see any information they could use to figure out how diverse California was at the time of
the Gold Rush. Arrange students into small groups (2 to 4 students to a group). Give them time to figure out what
percent of the population each group of people represented and to create a bar graph illustrating the breakdown of
the population. As students figure the percents, circulate throughout the classroom to offer assistance. The percents
(rounded off) are as follows:
Initiate a discussion about factors that might be affected by this population diversity and whether or not those
factors might be good for the state. Ask: Do you think a diverse population helps improve the treatment of all
people?
You might invite students to share information they know about the people who came to the state during
the Gold Rush period. If students are unaware of the way members of that diverse population were treated, you might
share the following Web pages; they will provide background information about the mistreatment of non-European races
during that time;
Discuss with students the following question: Do you think immigrant people were treated fairly during the Gold
Rush?
Next, provide the following statistics for the population of the state of California in the year 2000. Have
older students figure the percents.
CALIFORNIA POPULATION (2000)
GROUP
POPULATION
Latino
10,967,000
Asian
3,649,000
African-American
2,182,000
Anglo-Americans/Europeans
15,817,000
Other
1,258,000
TOTAL
33,873,000
Give students time to figure what percent of the population each group of people represented and to create a bar
graph illustrating the breakdown of the population. As students figure the percents, circulate throughout the classroom
to offer assistance. The percents (rounded off) are as follows:
GROUP
PERCENT OF POPULATION
Latino
32%
Asian
11%
African-American
6%
Anglo-Americans/Europeans
47%
Other
4%
Talk about how much California's population has changed from the 1850s to today. After hearing students' thoughts,
you might create pie charts to compare the two sets of results.
Assessment
Conclude the lesson by inviting students to summarize what they have learned. Among the findings they might mention
is that diverse communities often demonstrate a high degree of intolerance for immigrants -- both in the past and in
the present.
Submitted By
Roselyn Wang, University of the Pacific in Stockton, California
Gold Rush California and Its Diverse
Population