People in Communities

People make up communities. We share our culture and beliefs.

Vocabulary

Remember words are thoughts.

These are the words/thoughts that you will need to understand in order to learn this new S.S. Unit.

culture

The way a group of people lives (pages 27-29)

Custom

A way of doing things

A custom that we have is that

When people meet they shake hands.

tradition

A custom or belief that happens over a long period of time

A tradition in America is that many families have a turkey dinner on Thanksgiving.

holiday

A special day for remembering an important person or event

opportunity

A chance for something better to happen

Opportunity is one reason people move from one community to another

symbol

An object that represents something else

These are all symbols of our freedom in the United States of America

citizen

An official member of a community

immigrant

A person who moves from one country to another to live

Ancestors

Relatives who lived long ago.

Your great, great, great, grandma

Ethnic group

A group of people who share the same culture

Where does our culture come from? Our culture in this country is a blend of

many people’s cultures. When immigrants came to this country they brought with them the culture of their home countries. These cultures have blended and changed to come up with the many cultures we have in our country today.

Who were the immigrants and why did they come here? The immigrants who moved to this country were

our ancestors. They moved here for new opportunities.

Many immigrants arrived in New York City. One of the first sights they saw in New York Harbor was the Statue of Liberty. The Statue of Liberty became known as a symbol of freedom to people coming to this country to start a new life.

Customs, beliefs, and traditions

As immigrants moved into the country they generally moved into neighborhoods with their own ethnic group. Holding on to their culture, beliefs, and traditions from their “home” countries was very important.

Over the years these ethnic groups have mixed and their cultures blended, creating new customs, beliefs, and traditions.

Have you ever hear America called the “Melting Pot”? How about a “tossed salad”.

Holidays

Your religion or cultural background may determine which holidays you celebrate.

As Americans, there are certain holidays we all celebrate.

Celebrations in our nation

Memorial Day Veteran’s Day Martin Luther King Day Independence Day (America’s Birthday) Thanksgiving

Memorial Day

Memorial Day is celebrated the last Monday in May

Memorial Day is set aside to remember soldiers that have died in battle protecting our freedoms.

Veteran’s Day

Honors all the men and women who have served in the armed forces. November 11th.

Thanksgiving

November holiday set aside to give thanks for all of the good things that have happened during the past year.

Pilgrims celebrated the first Thanksgiving to celebrate a good harvest after hard winter and to thank the Native Americans who had welcomed them and helped them to survive.

Independence Day The Fourth of July. The day we celebrate America’s Birthday. The fourth of July is the day that America

signed the Declaration of Independence. This was the document that told

England that we wanted to be free to be our own nation.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day On Martin Luther King Jr. Day

we celebrate Martin Luther King

Jr.’s life and the work he did to end segregation to try to make sure all Americans were treated fairly.