Lesson 4: “Photos: 3 Very Different Views of Japanese Internment”

Have students take out Seen and Unseen.

Quick Writes

Say these Directions: Seen and Unseen explores the photographs of three different photographers. It is not like a typical novel; instead, it uses a mix of text, photographs, illustrations, and primary sources. Flip through your copy to explore how the book is organized. Look closely at the layout, visuals, and features like captions, timelines, and primary source panels, and pay attention to how this book presents information differently from a novel.

• Ask: Think about the different types of images in Seen and Unseen. Remember that this is a book about photographers and the photos they took. Why do you think the author and illustrator chose to include a mixture of photos and drawings? What are the advantages of using each kind of artwork?

  • Photos can show you exactly what a person, place, or event looked like. However, not everything important that happened in history was photographed. Drawings can help us imagine parts of history that were not recorded in photos. They can help us understand how the artist and illustrator feel, and want us to feel, about their subject. I think the people who created this book used both photos and illustrations to show different perspectives on what happened in the camps.

Connection to Today’s Learning

• Say: Today, you’ll closely read an article about how three different photographers documented Japanese American incarceration at Manzanar. You’ll annotate, answer text-dependent questions, and track the article’s claim and how the author develops it with examples and explanations.

Guide students in understanding the word intent through examples and discussion. Support students in connecting the word to real-life situations and analyzing the purpose in images.

Generating Situations, Context, and Examples

Target Word: intent

Say these Directions: We’re learning about the word intent today. Take out your Key Terms and Topics graphic organizer as we explore the word more deeply. In this unit, you will read and think about the intent of different photographers who took pictures of the same place.

Introduce the Word: Write intent on the board and pronounce it.

Ask: Have you seen this word before? Where?

Identify the Root:

Ask: Do you know other words with this root? (extend, attend, pretend)

Language Connection: The Spanish word for intent is intención. A related Spanish word is entender, which means to understand, or what a person can intellectually “grasp” when they turn their attention to (reach toward) something in their mind.

Provide Examples: Explain that a person’s intent is their goal or aim in doing something. The related word intention is sometimes used in the same way.

1. Say: Sometimes, it is hard to understand a person’s actions unless we know their intent. For instance, a friend might tell a joke that we do not like. We want to know whether their intent was to make us laugh or to hurt our feelings.

2. Share that, likewise, people who study photographs and other artworks often want to know the intent of the person who made them.

Generate New Examples: Brainstorm with students about different situations in which a person might take a picture. Examples might include a family portrait, a natural landscape, or a product for sale.

• Ask: Imagine you are taking a picture of a beautiful sunset. What is your intent in taking that picture? (to share and remember how beautiful it was)

  • Ask: Now, imagine you work for a jewelry store. You are taking a picture of some earrings that the store sells. What is your intent? (to show customers the earrings and encourage people to buy them)

Build Word Relationships: Write intentional and intend next to intent.

• Ask: What is the relationship between intend and intent? (To intend is to have the intent to do something. “I intended to do that” and “That was my intent” have similar meanings.)

  • Ask: What is the relationship between intentional and intent? (Something intentional was done with a specific intent, not by accident. A person getting ready to bake a cake might leave out the butter intentionally so it will get soft.)

Allow students to share their work. Once sharing is complete, affirm the connection.

Connection to Today’s Learning

• Say: Understanding vocabulary like intent will help you read today’s article with precision. As you annotate and answer text-dependent questions, notice how the author describes the intent of the different photographers. Keep in mind that a person’s intent is sometimes open to interpretation and debate.

Transition the students into partnerships to engage with the “Photos: 3 Very Different Views of Japanese Internment” article, which examines the incarceration of Japanese Americans through three photographers’ perspectives.

Part A: Determine Central Ideas (RI.7.2) (15 minutes)

Say these Directions: First, listen as we review brief background information about each photographer before they took photos of the camps. You will return to and build on this information later as you read Seen and Unseen. Remember, a central idea is what a text is mostly about; the most important point the author is making.

• Dorothea Lange: Documentary photographer during the Great Depression who captured images of migrant workers, displaced families, and poverty. She was known for her empathetic eye and her ability to convey human dignity amid hardship.

• Toyo Miyatake: Professional portrait photographer in Los Angeles’s Little Tokyo. He ran a small studio photographing families, children, and community events, building trust within the Japanese American community.

• Ansel Adams: Landscape photographer focused on the American West and Yosemite National Park. Known for his technical precision and dramatic compositions, he captured nature’s grandeur and often aimed to inspire public appreciation of wilderness.

Ask: Which photographer was imprisoned at the camp? Which came voluntarily as a government employee? Which was invited by the camp’s director?

Say: Although the government called Manzanar a “relocation center,” it functioned as a prison where Japanese Americans were incarcerated without trial.

Read the article with your partner and annotate as you read to answer the following question.

• What is the central idea of this article, and how does the author support that idea by referring to the work of the three photographers?

  • In this short article, author Adrian Florido argues that the photographers who worked at Manzanar provided “three different views” of what happened there. That is, their photos revealed very different things about life at Manzanar. For example, Dorothea Lange showed how unjust the conditions were at Manzanar, while Ansel Adams focused on the beauty of the natural surroundings and the dignity of the people who lived there. Toyo Miyatake was himself incarcerated at the camp, so he was able to photograph daily life and community experiences that the other photographers — who visited from outside — could not easily access or fully understand.

Part B: Analyze Connections (RI.7.3) (15 minutes)

Have students watch the video in the article about Toyo Miyatake (runtime: 5:25). Ask students to notice differences in framing, subjects, and emotional tone.

Think-Pair-Share

Say these Directions: Now that you have closely read and discussed the article, you will continue exploring how the authors develop their claim through connected examples with your partner. First, think about your ideas independently. Then, discuss and refine your ideas with your partner. Finally, be prepared to share your ideas with the class. As you work, watch the video about Toyo Miyatake and pay attention to differences in framing, subjects, and emotional tone.

Ask: How do the photographers' perspectives shape the way the events of Japanese American incarceration are presented to the audience?

Ask: Explain how one photographer’s perspective influences how the events of Japanese American incarceration are understood by viewers.

Transition students into the Lesson Look Back by providing them with the 3-Column Chart graphic organizer.

Say these Directions: Create a 3–2–1 summary focused on the phrase “3 Very Different Views” from the article’s title. As you complete your summary, think about how the meaning of this phrase is revealed throughout the article. Use the graphic organizer to record:

• 3 important words/phrases (key ideas/events that matter)

• 2 key details or ideas

• 1 sentence explaining what the text is mostly about (gist sentence)

Direct students to use specific evidence from the text in their responses.

Students read their independent reading book for 20 minutes and complete a reading log entry.

Read your independent reading book for 20 minutes. In your reading log, record the date and pages you read, write 1–2 sentences about what happened or what you learned, and respond to this week’s prompt using evidence from the text.