Part 1

Immigrant: A person who travels to another country in order to live and work there.

Immigration to America began hundreds of years ago, the moment those famous explorers set foot in the “new world” and set up colonies. A lot has happened since then! The colonies grew bigger and eventually started their own country. (Maybe you’ve heard of it… It’s called the United States of America.)

The U.S. was pretty amazing, so more people came, and more people, and more … There’s a reason why America is sometimes called a “melting pot.” Over the years, Americans have come from everywhere!

Check out the link to learn why five kids and their families left their homelands and what it's like to be a newcomer in America.

Push-Pull Factors

When people migrate, they don’t just leave one place and magically arrive somewhere else. Usually something pushes them away from their native country and pulls them toward a new place. This idea is called the push-pull factor.

Push factors are the circumstances that make a person want to leave. Don’t have a job? Treated badly by your government? Lose all of your crops in a drought? These kinds of problems can cause people to look for a better life somewhere else.

Pull factors are the advantages a country has that make a person want to come and live there. America has huge pull factors for many people around the world who live with unstable governments, few job opportunities, and no reliable security.

Follow the link to read more about why people have come to America.