Overview
Monuments in the Vietnamese Diaspora (Secondary)
Author: Duyên Tống
Grades: 7-8
Suggested Amount of Time: 50 - 60 Minutes
Area of Study: Vietnamese Resettlement and Community Building
Compelling Question
What is Vietnamese America?
Lesson Questions
- How do Vietnamese refugees build a unique cultural identity in their new community?
- How do Vietnamese refugees use monuments to remember that identity?
- What are the challenges that are faced in building that identity?
Lesson Objective
Students will be able to describe the narratives and perspectives constructed from monuments in the Vietnamese community and create a collection of monuments that build up their personal identities.
Lesson Background
The Vietnamese people have created different diasporic communities throughout the United States, with the highest population in southern and northern California. As they built their communities, they aimed to preserve their heritage and unique experiences by building monuments and memorials dedicated to Vietnamese heritage, culture, the country of Vietnam that they knew, and their refugee experiences. The formation of these monuments are often ways of remembering their own community as they are forgotten in official institutions.
Image Citation: Sappho, S. (n.d.). Vietnam War Memorial. Flickr. https://www.flickr.com/photos/skinnylawyer/5871538063
Skills
Ethnic Studies Theme
This lesson connects to the ethnic studies theme of reclamation and joy from the Asian American Studies Curriculum Framework (Asian American Research Initiative, 2022). Students explore the ways that communities reclaim histories through art, cultural expression, and counternarratives. Students explore how monumental sites, such as statues, memorials, or buildings, can help preserve and build cultural identities.
For additional guidance around ethnic studies implementation, refer to the Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum (2021) https://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/cr/cf/esmc.asp.
Historical Thinking Skills
This lesson will facilitate student proficiency in historical significance, one of Seixas’ historical thinking skills (Seixas & Morton, 2013). Educators improve student familiarity with the criteria for historical significance. Students consider how events, people, or developments have historical significance if they are revealing. That is, they shed light on enduring or emerging issues in history or contemporary life.
Materials
Supplies
- Bakery and Vietnamese restaurant on University Avenue, St. Paul, Minnesota [Photo]
- Cultural court in Little Saigon, Westminster, California [Photo]
- Human rights marchers in the Tết parade, Westminster, California [Photo]
- Dragon dance at Tet festival, Garden Grove, California [Photo]
- "Of Two Lineages" (2017) by James Đinh
- Vietnam War Memorial
- Vietnam War Memorial dedication [Photo]
Videos
- Emperor Quang Trung Statue Unveiled
Handouts
- Collage Rubric
- Artistic Statement Rubric
- Link to handouts: https://ucdavis.box.com/s/3ard509kyf9iew18yqykrpwrg81g45nu
Procedures
- Cultural Energizer (5 minutes)
- Begin the lesson with one or more of the following prompts:
- What buildings or structures in your community stand out to you?
- Solicit several responses to share with the entire class.
- Introduction (10 minutes)
- Transition into today’s lesson by letting students know that what they see today as a flourishing community took a long time to form. It takes hard work and dedication to re-create a life that many of these Vietnamese people lost when they escaped their country after the Fall of Saigon. In this diaspora, the Vietnamese people have been able to access the food that they grew up eating, attend church or temple, speak their native language, celebrate their successes, mourn their loss, and still fight for freedom and remembrance of what they left behind.
- Use the following sources to take students through the photographs of different ways the Vietnamese people started forming their community. Invite students to share if they have personally seen these monuments in real life. Students do not need to take notes in this section.
- Source 1: https://ucdavis.box.com/s/xw9c62ht9mj7maic5y9wj3r6xnqi9b8f
- Sourced from: Forming communities all over the US - Frank, A. (2002). Bakery and Vietnamese restaurant on University Avenue, St. Paul, Minnesota [Photo]. Calisphere, UCI Southeast Asian Archives. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/13030/hb8j49p1p2/
- Source 2: Religion - https://ucdavis.box.com/s/mgjyglzpgeictm59ffa4byi6famk897a
- The Cultural Court Statues in Little Saigon Westminster are away from the hustle and bustle of Bolsa Avenue. In all, there are seventy-two statues of ancient priests in various poses. These beautiful statues are the last thing you would expect to find squeezed between a grocery store loading dock and a housing tract.
- Sourced from: Frank, A. (2002). Cultural court in Little Saigon, Westminster, California [Photo]. Calisphere, UCI Southeast Asian Archives. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/13030/hb6b69p0f1/
- Source 3: Human Rights - https://ucdavis.box.com/s/ce9k2hxd1daqed2gfu337o95nbn7gjd4
- The following is a human rights demonstration by Vietnamese refugees in Little Saigon, calling for the US government to pressure the Vietnamese government to release Nguyễn Văn Lý and other democracy activists who were arrested in Vietnam due to their activism.
- Sourced from: Frank, A. (2002). Human rights marchers in the Tết parade, Westminster, California [Photo]. Calisphere, UCI Southeast Asian Archives. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/13030/hb9c6008z7/
- Source 4: Dragon Dance Tet Festival https://ucdavis.box.com/s/d3fnl3n1duytgsqgyhfs8x3g8rgw25vx
- Sourced from: Frank, A. (2002). Dragon dance at Tet festival, Garden Grove, California [Photo]. Calisphere, UCI Southeast Asian Archives. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/13030/hb996nb5wd/
- Source 5: James Đinh https://ucdavis.box.com/s/gxj9ter15bzunqctflnstz8bm7r7u7bc
- Of Two Lineages in Little Saigon, City of Westminster. The artwork is a contemporary re-telling of the traditional Vietnamese founding legend of Lạc Long Quân and Âu Cơ. It celebrates the immigrant story about a people taking roots in a new land, yet connected to the ancestral land through myth, traditions, and family. Surrounding the central steel sculpture is a powder-coated aluminum mural of 100 portraits of everyday Vietnamese Americans. (https://www.publicartinpublicplaces.info/of-two-lineages-2017-by-james-dinh)
- Source 6: Vietnam War Memorial https://ucdavis.box.com/s/6wfom92p9r8s2ajl0doa62ox2fefaglw
- The Vietnam War Memorial in Westminster, California is located in Sid Goldstein Park and is an 11-foot-tall statue commemorating the fall of Saigon. It features an American Infantry soldier and a soldier from the former republic of South Vietnam standing side by side. The statue, cast in bronze, was sculpted by Vietnamese artist Tuấn Nguyễn who lived through the fall of Saigon and managed to make it to the United States in 1988. Behind the soldiers are the flags from each of their countries on a marble base. The memorial got underway when, in 1997, City Councilman Frank G. Fry started the process of finding a site and hiring an artist. The statue was completed in 2003 and dedicated on April 27 of that year.
- Sourced from: M, Ben and Hayley Simokat. "Vietnam War Memorial ." Clio: Your Guide to History. May 19, 2015. Accessed July 20, 2022. https://www.theclio.com/entry/14866
- Source 7: Vietnam War Memory https://ucdavis.box.com/s/js9py86gabtiojvx1t42ahs230ktdtl5
- The following is the unveiling ceremony of the Vietnam War Memory located in Freedom Park in Westminster, California. The monument showcases a South Vietnamese soldier alongside an American soldier, with the flags of South Vietnam and the U.S. hoisted side-by-side.
- Sourced from: Frank, Anne (2002). Vietnam War Memorial dedication [Photo]. Calisphere. UCI Southeast Asian Archives. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/13030/hb167nb0f4/
- Source 8: Youtube video: Emperor Quang Trung Unveiled - On Sunday, September 10, 2017, the City held a street renaming and statue unveiling ceremony at Business Center Parkway, now Emperor Quang Trung Street, from Euclid Street to Corporate Drive. The special dedication was generously paid for by the Quang Trung Statue Committee. Emperor Quang Trung is considered a national hero in Vietnam and for Vietnamese living around the world, especially in major Vietnamese enclaves such as Orange County’s Little Saigon. Quang Trung, originally named Nguyen Hue, led the Tây Sơn Uprising in what is Bình Định Province today. Under the leadership of Hue and his two brothers, peasants from central Vietnam overthrew the feudal lords who ruled over both the north and the south and implemented egalitarian reforms across a more unified Vietnam. The newly-crowned Emperor Quang Trung and his troops then subdued a Chinese invasion. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W56Fmx_uhEo)
- Source 1: https://ucdavis.box.com/s/xw9c62ht9mj7maic5y9wj3r6xnqi9b8f
- Encourage students to share out again what they’ve noticed in their community. If students have traveled and gone outside of their community, ask students to do a quick compare and contrast.
- Directions: Explain to students that they will now examine three monuments in Orange County, CA. They will read and learn a little history about each monument and how these monuments tell the history of the Vietnamese diaspora. Some of these are pulled from the preview they just completed.
- Use the following sources to take students through the photographs of different ways the Vietnamese people started forming their community. Invite students to share if they have personally seen these monuments in real life. Students do not need to take notes in this section.
- Interaction with first monument - James Đinh of Two Lineages Monument and Artist’s explanation on plaque (10 minutes) (https://www.publicartinpublicplaces.info/of-two-lineages-2017-by-james-dinh)
- Prior to engaging in the sources, have students create a notetaker that best suits their learning styles.
- The first monument is located at Phước Lộc Thọ (Asian Garden Mall) located in Westminster, CA. Read the plaque that comes with it about the legend on the plaque. Make connections to what other legends they may have heard.
- Ask students why they think it’s important to add the story of where the Vietnamese people started from next to that monument.
- Ask students why there are 100 faces surrounding the monument. What does it symbolize? What is the significance?
- Interaction with the second monument - Street Renaming and Statue Dedication for Emperor Quang Trung (10 minutes)
- Show the short video clip and the picture of the second monument. Ask students similar questions as previously. (Youtube video: Emperor Quang Trung Unveiled (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W56Fmx_uhEo)
- The last monument is a celebration of the heroes who fought alongside the Americans to defend their country and to honor the heroes who fought bravely. In the diaspora, although far from home, people pay homage and honor to people who have made those sacrifices.
- Interaction with the third monument - The Vietnam War Memorial in Westminster, California is located in Sid Goldstein Park (10 minutes) (https://www.theclio.com/entry/14866)
- Lesson questions for students to discuss: How do Vietnamese refugees use monuments to remember that identity? What are the challenges that are faced in building that identity?
- They can google search to get more information about the Con Rồng Cháu Tiên, Vua Quang Trung, and the Fall of Saigon if time allows.
- Explain to students that the three monuments take students briefly through the important events in the history of Vietnam. Ask students why they think the community chose those events.
- Cultural Production: Collage Making (15–20 minutes)
- This collage assessment will help students reflect on ideas that they have learned during this lesson and how they can contribute to creating their own community. This is a great way for students to express their ideas in a metaphorical way. They will focus on the important themes learned, ideas, emotions, activities, buildings, monuments, etc. that are important to them. They can draw, cut out pictures, bring their own photographs, or a mix of it to showcase what it means to be a community.
- Alternatively, students can create the collage on a digital application such as Canva. The final product can be open to a written, visual, or audio narrative.
- Choose a few pictures that represent the big theme of diaspora. Students should define the term diaspora and its significance to Vietnamese refugees before engaging in the collage.
- Choose monuments, buildings, areas, that represent them and what they love about it
- Choose a symbol, colors, or any type of media that they’d want to incorporate.
- Provide students with samples to draw inspiration from.
- https://ucdavis.box.com/s/jcyif1kxhlyfrk4xw6atokyc8kbhdfjg
- Sourced from: Sunil, K. (2016, November 28). Reading response 5. Calisphere. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/20775/bb2223459z/
- https://ucdavis.box.com/s/l0s04ji8boovw0yuvx7g77gr1djp4bnh
- Sourced from: Anonymous. (2016, November 28). Reading Response Five. Calisphere. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/20775/bb57047164/
- https://ucdavis.box.com/s/iq0nal44q3u372i47u8b95a4oign55fp
- Sourced from: Elkin, K. (2016, November 28). UCSD. Calisphere. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/20775/bb24965061/
- https://ucdavis.box.com/s/hrrwgbu9pp4h66xbg0nj1wu2yygekp8t
- Sourced from: Anonymous. (2016, November 28). UCSD Family. Calisphere. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/20775/bb2325859x/
- https://ucdavis.box.com/s/jcyif1kxhlyfrk4xw6atokyc8kbhdfjg
- Provide students with samples to draw inspiration from.
- Critical Circular Exchange (5 minutes)
- There will be a discussion to assess what the students created and how they connect their works to the ideas and themes of monuments in the Vietnamese refugee community.
- Debrief: You can also use the Gallery Walk to showcase students’ work. Post their work around the room and have students rotate around to each station to look at each other’s work. If time allows, you can give them a sticky note to leave positive feedback for each piece of artwork.
Assessments
Students will apply their learning by creating a collage of their experiences and what they find valuable and important in their lives and their community. The collage will be assessed through a rubric about what the students created and how they connect their works to the ideas and themes of monuments in the Vietnamese refugee community.
Scaffolds
- Engagement: Consider the following method to support with lesson engagement:
- Design activities so that learning outcomes are authentic, communicate to real audiences, and reflect a purpose that is clear to the participants
- Provide tasks that allow for active participation, exploration and experimentation
- Invite personal response, evaluation and self-reflection to content and activities
- Representation: Consider the following method to support with multiple means of representation:
- Provide descriptions (text or spoken) for all images, graphics, video, or animations
- Action and Expression: Consider the following method to support in presenting their learning in multiple ways:
- Provide response starts for collaborative discussions for students to exchange ideas and opinions:
- What do you think of the..?
- What is one way to ask ___ to give reasons for an opinion?
- What part of the text supports your opinion that…?
- What other ideas do you have about __ to add to what __ said?
- Provide response starts for collaborative discussions for students to exchange ideas and opinions:
For additional ideas to support your students, check out the UDL Guidelines at CAST, 2018 http://udlguidelines.cast.org.
Multilingual Learner Supports
- Emerging: Consider the following method to support with emerging students:
- Reading: Pair students to read one text together
- Students turn to their designated partners to discuss prompts posed by the teacher. Partnerships are organized in teams of two.
- Students listen to a content rich text read aloud, take notes, collaborate with a partner and rebuild (as precisely as possible) the original text.
- Reading: Pair students to read one text together
- Expanding: Consider the following method to support with expanding students:
- Reading: Provide a content vocabulary word bank with non-linguistic representations
- Students use a Frayer graphic organizer to support understanding of a keyword or concept. Place the target word in the center amid four surrounding quadrants to support different facets of word meaning.
- Reading: Provide a content vocabulary word bank with non-linguistic representations
- Bridging: Consider the following method to support with bridging students:
- Reading: Use focused questions to guide reading
- Students use inquiry posing their own questions and wonderings to guide shared research experiences.
- Reading: Use focused questions to guide reading
For additional guidance around scaffolding for multilingual learners, please consult the following resources:
- English Learner Toolkit of Strategies, https://ucdavis.box.com/s/ujkdc2xp1dqjzrlq55czph50c3sq1ngu
- Providing Appropriate Scaffolding, https://www.sdcoe.net/educators/multilingual-education-and-global-achievement/oracy-toolkit/providing-appropriate-scaffolding#scaffolding
- Strategies for ELD, https://ucdavis.box.com/s/dcp15ymah51uwizpmmt2vys5zr2r5reu
- ELA / ELD Framework, https://www.caeducatorstogether.org/resources/6537/ela-eld-framework
- California ELD Standards, https://ucdavis.box.com/s/vqn43cd632z22p8mfzn2h7pntc71kb02
Enrichment
- Foil and Figurines - Teacher to provide each student with a specific amount of foil. (If foil is not accessible, students can also do this with recycled paper, cardboard, clay, or equivalent). With the materials, prompt students to manipulate the foil to create a figurine or structure that is symbolic of themselves or a vital moment in their lives. Once students have successfully molded the foil (or equivalent material) to their choice, allow them to prepare to share their thinking and reasoning behind the monument. Students can do a show and tell through a gallery walk activity, whole class/mini group discussion, or other.
- Exploration of other monuments - Students can do similar activities with other monuments around the state, including:
- Vietnamese Boat People Memorial (OC): https://lost-at-sea-memorials.com/?p=1006
- Quảng Trị Monument (San Jose): https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/san-jose-monument-dedicated-to-south-vietnamese-who-fought-at-quang-tri/
- Vietnamese American Monument (New Jersey): https://www.legion.org/memorials/240022/vietnamese-american-monument
- Vietnam War Memorial (Houston): https://www.houstoniamag.com/news-and-city-life/2018/06/vietnam-war-memorial-houston
- Vietnamese Refugee Memorial (Houston): https://www.flickr.com/photos/wallyg/42521320322
- Students can also branch off from monuments belonging to the Vietnamese American community and instead find one that represents their cultural community and/or a monument that is local to their area of residency.
Works Cited
American Initiative. 2022. Asian American Studies K-12 Framework. https://asianamericanresearchinitiative.org/asian-american-studies-curriculum-framework/
Britt, K. 2020, May 11. English learner toolkit of strategies. California County Superintendents. https://cacountysupts.org/english-learner-toolkit-of-strategies/
California Department of Education. 2021. Ethnic studies model curriculum. https://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/cr/cf/esmc.asp
California Department of Education & English Learner Support Division. 2012. California English Language Development standards (Electronic Edition) kindergarten through grade 12 (F. Ong & J. McLean, Eds.). California Department of Education. https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/el/er/documents/eldstndspublication14.pdf
California Educators Together. (n.d.). ELA / ELD framework. https://www.caeducatorstogether.org/resources/6537/ela-eld-framework
CAST. 2018. The UDL guidelines. http://udlguidelines.cast.org
M, B. & Simokat, H. 2015. Vietnam War Memorial. Clio: Your Guide to History. Accessed July 20, 2022. https://www.theclio.com/entry/14866
Đinh, J. 2017, May. Of Two Lineages [Monument]. Public Art in Public Places. https://www.publicartinpublicplaces.info/of-two-lineages-2017-by-james-dinh
Frank, A. 2002. Bakery and Vietnamese restaurant on University Avenue, St. Paul, Minnesota [Photo]. Calisphere, UCI Southeast Asian Archives. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/13030/hb8j49p1p2/
Frank, A. 2002. Cultural court in Little Saigon, Westminster, California [Photo]. Calisphere, UCI Southeast Asian Archives. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/13030/hb6b69p0f1/
Frank, A. 2002. Dragon dance at Tet festival, Garden Grove, California [Photo]. Calisphere, UCI Southeast Asian Archives. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/13030/hb996nb5wd/
Frank, A. 2002. Human rights marchers in the Tết parade, Westminster, California [Photo]. Calisphere, UCI Southeast Asian Archives. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/13030/hb9c6008z7/
Frank, A. 2002. Vietnam War Memorial dedication [Photo]. Calisphere, UCI Southeast Asian Archives. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/13030/hb167nb0f4/
GardenGroveTV3. 2017, November 2. Emperor Quang Trung Statue Unveiled [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W56Fmx_uhEo
Garden Grove City Hall. 2017, September 10. Street Re-naming and Statue Dedication for Emperor Quang Trung [Photo Album]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10155708696544253.1073741875.149409874252&type=3
Public Art in Public Places - “Of Two Lineages” 2017 by James Đinh. (n.d.). Www.publicartinpublicplaces.info. Retrieved October 13, 2023. https://www.publicartinpublicplaces.info/of-two-lineages-2017-by-james-dinh
San Diego County Office of Education. (n.d.). Providing appropriate scaffolding. https://www.sdcoe.net/educators/multilingual-education-and-global-achievement/oracy-toolkit/providing-appropriate-scaffolding#scaffolding
Sexias, P. & Morton, T. 2013. The big six: Historical thinking concepts. Nelson Education.
Tulare County Office of Education. (n.d.). Strategies for ELD. https://commoncore.tcoe.org/Content/Public/doc/Alpha-CollectionofELDStrategies.pdf
Vietnam War Memorial. (n.d.). Clio. Retrieved October 13, 2023. https://www.theclio.com/entry/14866
Supplementary Sources
American Legion. (n.d.). Vietnamese American Monument. American Legion. https://www.legion.org/memorials/240022/vietnamese-american-monument
Anonymous. 2016, November 28. Reading Response Five. Calisphere. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/20775/bb57047164/
Anonymous. 2016, November 28. UCSD Family. Calisphere. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/20775/bb2325859x/
CBS Bay Area. 2021, November 13. San Jose Monument Dedicated to South Vietnamese Who Fought at Quang Tri [Video and text]. CBS Bay Area. https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/san-jose-monument-dedicated-to-south-vietnamese-who-fought-at-quang-tri/
Elkin, K. 2016, November 28. UCSD. Calisphere. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/20775/bb24965061/
Gobetz, W. 2018, June 5. Houston - Alief: Vietnamese Refugee Memorial [Photos]. Flickr. https://www.flickr.com/photos/wallyg/42521320322
Knapp, G. 2018, July. The Story Behind Asiatown’s Vietnam War Memorial. Houstonia Magazine. https://www.houstoniamag.com/news-and-city-life/2018/06/vietnam-war-memorial-houston
lost-at-sea-memorials.com. (n.d.). Vietnamese Boat People Monument – Westminster, California. lost-at-sea-memorials.com. https://lost-at-sea-memorials.com/?p=1006
Sunil, K. 2016, November 28. Reading response 5. Calisphere. https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/20775/bb2223459z/