Americans in Cities

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Overview

Learning Area: Humanities and Social Sciences (HASS)
Subject: Geography
Year Level: Year 8
Curriculum Link (Australian Curriculum - Version 9.0):

• Geographical Knowledge and Understanding:
  • “The causes and consequences of urbanisation in Australia and other countries, and the challenges and opportunities it creates for communities and environments” (AC9HG8K06)

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Lesson Duration

Total Time: 90 minutes
Class Size: 26 students

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Learning Intentions

By the end of this lesson, students will:

• Understand why a significant portion of Americans live in cities.
• Explore how New York City exemplifies urbanisation and megacity features.
• Analyse push and pull factors driving urban living in the USA.
• Connect concepts of urbanisation to Australia's own urban development trends.

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Success Criteria

Students will:

• Provide explanations for why Americans are attracted to city living.
• Describe key features that qualify New York City as a megacity.
• Compare urbanisation trends between the United States and Australia.
• Engage thoughtfully with discussions, activities, and written reflection.

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Materials Needed

• Projector or smartboard
• Student activity sheets (provided by teacher)
• Large printed maps of the United States and New York City
• Post-it notes
• Devices with internet access (for pairs – if permitted)
• Whiteboard and markers
• Access to printable New York City subway maps

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Lesson Sequence

Introduction (0–15 minutes)

Entry Question:
Write on the board: “Why do people choose to live in cities?”

➔ Students brainstorm individually for 2 minutes. ➔ Quickfire answers around the room. ➔ Teacher records common themes in three columns: Jobs, Lifestyle, Services.

Hook:
Show a short, high-energy video montage of life in New York City — skyline, subway, diverse crowds, Central Park, Broadway.

Mini-Discussion:

• Did anything about NYC surprise you?
• How would you describe the 'energy' of a place like New York compared to, say, Adelaide or Brisbane?

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Teacher Input & Modelling (15–35 minutes)

Mini-Lecture with Visual Aids:

• Urbanisation in America:

  • 82% of Americans live in urban areas — why?
  • Key reasons: economic opportunities, education, entertainment, migration patterns, post-Industrial Revolution shifts.

• Why New York?

  • Port city origins.
  • Immigration gateway (Ellis Island — historical connection).
  • Global economic hub — finance, media, arts.

Notes/Sketches: Provide students with fill-in-the-blank guided notes and ask them to sketch a simple map highlighting New York’s boroughs.

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Investigation Activity (35–65 minutes)

Group Activity: Urban Push-Pull Factors

➔ Divide students into groups of 4–5.

Each group receives:

• A set of shuffle cards (provided by teacher) describing various 'push factors' from rural areas (e.g., limited healthcare, fewer jobs) and 'pull factors' for cities (e.g., better careers, cultural diversity).

Instructions:

• Sort cards into PUSH or PULL categories.
• Create a 'Push-Pull Tree' diagram on butchers paper with examples from both America and, for contrast, Australia (e.g., why Sydney grows).

Come Together Brief:
Each group has a spokesperson summarise their tree to the class in 1 minute.

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Deep Dive: Mapping NYC (65–80 minutes)

Urban Mapping Task:

Using printed maps of New York City and a subway map:

• Students identify and label:
  • Key landmarks (Times Square, Central Park, Brooklyn Bridge, Statue of Liberty)
  • Dense population areas
  • Historically significant immigrant areas (e.g., Ellis Island, Chinatown, Harlem)

Challenge: Layer in different economic functions (finance, residential, tourism) using coloured markers.

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Reflection and Wrap Up (80–90 minutes)

Exit Ticket:
Students write 3–4 sentences answering:

"What one thing surprised you the most about urban living in New York City compared to where you live in Australia?"

Collect exit tickets as they leave or have students share with a partner first if time allows.

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Assessment Strategies

• Observation of engagement in group discussions and mapping.
• Collection of 'Push-Pull Tree' diagrams.
• Informal assessment of Exit Tickets for understanding and depth.

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Differentiation

• For high achievers: Challenge them to predict future trends in American or Australian urbanisation (e.g., megacity emergence in Australia?).
• For students needing support: Provide sentence starters and scaffolded mapping sheets with key locations already pinpointed.

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Opportunities for Cross-Curricular Links

• English: Analysing persuasive language used in media advertising American cities.
• History: Explore migration patterns of the 19th and 20th centuries.
• Economics and Business: Study how economic forces drive urbanisation.

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Additional Teacher Tips

✨ Encourage comparisons: Students love making links to their own cities — leverage this!
✨ Bring the energy: NYC is 'the city that never sleeps' — model this vibrancy in your teaching style for this lesson!
✨ Make it visual: The more imagery, maps, and real-life examples, the stronger the engagement.

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Final Thought

"The city seen from the Queensboro Bridge is always the city seen for the first time, in its first wild promise of all the mystery and the beauty in the world." — F. Scott Fitzgerald

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Would you like a printable handout / poster version of this to accompany the lesson? 🎒📚
(Just ask — I can create it too!)