Lesson Plan - Student Worksheet - Bibliography/Resources EPISODE 21: Saga of Hope Directed by Juliann Blackmore SYNOPSIS A descendant traces two Icelandic families as their fortunes are made and broken in rural Manitoba at the turn of the century. KEY IDEAS Founding the colony of New Iceland Disappointment and consequences of broken dreams Preservation of ancestral and cultural heritage KEY TERMS New Iceland Self-Governing Ancestry Homestead Literacy OBJECTIVES To learn how the Icelanders came to settle in Canada To appreciate the precariousness of immigrant settlement To understand how ancestral and cultural heritage are preserved STUDENT ACTIVITIES Draw a family tree to trace your ancestry as far back as possible. Piece together information about long-lost or distant ancestors by talking to living relatives. Try to extend the family tree beyond its current branches by doing a genealogical search on the Internet or through an archives located in your family’s place of origin. Write a personal essay/story/saga about your family’s history. Interviewing the elder members of your family would be a good place to start in gathering good stories and important details. Visit your school or local library and find a novel/movie about ethnic identity and ancestral heritage to read/view together as a class. Roots, by Arthur Haley is one suggestion. Locate and visit the focal-point of a cultural community—something similar to the Tergesen store or a more formal organization or association—where you live. Find out what role it plays in preserving ethnic heritage. Have a class show-and-tell where each class member brings in a family heirloom (book, bible, photograph, or any personal object) that has been passed down over generations.