Part II, Lesson 2 (continued) 
Others are living under makeshift agreements set up in instant tent cities, etc., while the military governor, General Riley, tries to oversee everything. Congress, involved in bitter controversy about slavery, abolition, states' rights, tariffs, etc., is too preoccupied to send much direction to General Riley. California is fortunate not to be in a state of anarchy. The majority of the population is submitting to whatever legal system works best for its own area. 

2. Divide the class into groups of four or five students. Give each group a worksheet, the primary source readings and images about one of the following groups: 

  • Native Americans (Resources #2-1 through #2-5)

  • African Americans (Resources #2-6 through #2-10)

  • Chinese (Resources #2-11 through #2-15)

  • Mexicans and Californios (Resources #2-16 through #2-22)

    • Some of the readings are longer than othersif you have more than four groups, assign two groups to work on selections that are longer. (Use poster paper or make an overhead transparency from the included sheet, to help them focus on these questions.) On the basis of what the delegates and the others have been saying, students should gain some insight into how most people felt about the ethnic group that they are "covering" as reporters. Tell them that they should keep the following questions in mind, issues that will be discussed at the State Constitutional Convention: 

  • Should California be a free (non-slave) state or a slave state?

  • Who should be allowed to vote?

  • Who should be allowed to live in this state?

    • They should also look for statements that support the concept of Manifest Destiny. That term will not be used, but people's words and actions often reflect that belief. 

    (In Lesson 4, they will also be asked to consider: Should all Californians have the same rights? They should therefore keep this question in mind, too.) 

    3. Students should read the primary sources, study the images and fill out the worksheets. In studying the images and documents, they may use the "Primary Source Statements By and AboutWorksheet," the "Artwork Inquiry Worksheet" (for analyzing photographs) and the "Written Document Analysis Worksheet" (Worksheets #2-1, #2-2, and #2-3) to guide their thinking. To elicit more critical thinking, teachers can use questions from "Probing Questions: Picture Analysis Guidelines" and "Probing Questions: Written Document Analysis," which accompany each set of images and documents. 
    Part II, Lesson 1 
    Page 19
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