- Have your students listen to Arlo Guthrie singing his father’s song “Deportees (Plane Wreck at Los Gatos).” Next, have them read the lyrics. Ask them to consider all or some of the following questions: Who is Woody Guthrie writing about? How do they know? What jumps out at them when they hear this song? What do they notice about the refrain? Do they think the song has relevance today? Why or why not?
- Ask at least two students to read “Everyday We Get More Illegal” aloud, then ask them to consider the following questions: How can someone get “more illegal”? What are the feelings of the people in the poem? How does the poem relate to the song? What relevance does the poem have today? Is it the same or different from the relevance of Guthrie’s song?
