Immigration Nation: SnapThought Prompts for My BrainPOP

Have your students signed up for individual accounts? If you have a school-wide subscription to BrainPOP, students will be able to use our SnapThought ® tool to play Immigration Nation.

The SnapThought tool allows students to capture meaningful moments in their game play with opportunities for brief written reflection. To use the tool, start by making sure students are logged into My BrainPOP with their own individual accounts. Once students are logged in, the SnapThought tool will appear below any games that offer this capability.

During game play, students can click the SnapThought tool up to five times. A thumbnail, or “snapshot” is generated and stored on the bottom left of the screen.  At any point in the game, students can click their snapshot(s), type a brief reflection, which may be a response to an open-ended prompt, and save or submit to the teacher’s account for you to review and respond to.

You can use the SnapThought tool to facilitate discussion around game play and strategies, or have students submit their snapshots to you for assessment or accountability. Here are a few ideas and prompts for using the SnapThought tool in Immigration Nation.

• Before you start playing, take a snapshot of NY harbor. What do you already know about immigration to the U.S.? Write what you know, along with a question you have about immigration.
• Click a boat to read a potential immigrant’s story. Take a snapshot before you decide what to do. Will you accept or deny this person’s request to live in the U.S.? Explain your thought process.
• After accepting an immigrant, take a snapshot. Which harbor did you send him/her to and why?
• After rejecting a person’s request to immigrate, take a snapshot. Why did you reject him/her?
• Once you’ve opened all five harbors, take a snapshot. What’s one new fact you learned about immigration from playing this game?