The Leavers

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

What does it mean to be an immigrant? Why might a person want to immigrate to the United States? Why might they not want to? What are some common tropes or themes relating to immigration narratives in United States’ media?

Teaching Suggestion: These questions can be used to activate prior knowledge and prepare for the activity to follow.

• This Britannica article on immigration may supplement discussion or aid in defining key terms.

Short Activity

Read the attached resources, then locate a news or other media story related to the topic of immigration. Create a visual that analyzes and evaluates this story based on how much it adheres to current immigration narrative trends and/or represents a nuanced depiction of immigrant experiences. Share with your classmates.  

Teaching Suggestion: Because The Leavers relates to the topic of immigrant experiences but subverts many dominant narratives related to immigration, students may benefit from identifying and revisiting this activity throughout the unit. Visuals may include posters, slideshows, or annotations.

• This article from Vox examines the prevalence of media tropes that reduce the complexity of immigrant experiences in the United States to a handful of one-dimensional narratives.