Unit 7: Prosperity and Depression
Stage 1- Desired Results
Essential Questions
Was American foreign policy during the 1920s isolationist or internationalist? Was the decade of the 1920s a decade of innovation or conservatism? Should the United States limit immigration? Does economic prosperity result from tax cuts and minimal government? Was the Great Depression inevitable? Did the New Deal effectively end the Great Depression and restore prosperity?
Enduring Understandings
Students understand that... The 1920s and 1930s were a time of cultural and economic changes in the nation. During this period, the nation faced significant domestic challenges, including the Great Depression.
Common Core Standards and Performance Indicators:
Unifying Themes:
Individual Development and Cultural Identity (ID)
Time, Continuity, and Change (TCC)
Development and Transformation of Social Structures (SOC)
Civic Ideals and Practices (CIV)
Social Studies Content Area Standards:
World History
Geography
Economics
Civics, Citizenship, and Government
Social Studies Practices (begin on page 3)
Common Core Learning Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science,and Technical Subjects (begins on page 76)
Knowledge
Students know that...
Skills
Students will be able to...
Students will examine the cultural trends associated with the Roaring Twenties, including women’s efforts at self-expression and their changing roles.
Students will examine the impact of Prohibition on American society.
Students will examine change in immigration policy as reflected by the passage of the Quota Acts of the 1920s.
Students will examine the reasons for the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan.
Students will examine the key issues related to the Scopes trial.
Students will examine literary and artistic contributions associated with the Harlem Renaissance and its impact on national culture. Students will examine the rise of African American racial pride and Black Nationalism, including the role of Marcus Garvey
Students will examine the reasons for economic prosperity during the 1920s.
Students will examine the underlying weaknesses of the economy that led to the stock market crash of 1929 and the Great Depression.
Students will compare and contrast the responses of Presidents Herbert Hoover and Franklin D. Roosevelt to the Great Depression.
Students will examine the human and environmental causes of the Dust Bowl and its effects.
Students will evaluate President Roosevelt’s leadership during the Depression, including key legislative initiatives of the New Deal, expansion of federal government power, and the constitutional challenge represented by his courtpacking effort.
11.7a The 1920s was a time of cultural change in the country, characterized by clashes between modern and traditional values.
11.7b African Americans continued to struggle for social and economic equality while expanding their own thriving and unique culture.
African American cultural achievements were increasingly integrated into national culture.
11.7c For many Americans, the 1920s was a time of prosperity. However, underlying economic problems, reflected in the stock market crash of 1929, led to the Great Depression. President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s responses to the Great Depression increased the role of the federal government.
Key Terms
Roaring Twenties
Prohibition
Quota Acts of the 1920s
Ku Klux Klan
Scopes trial
Harlem Renaissance
Marcus Garvey
Stock market crash of 1929
Great Depression
President Franklin D. Roosevelt
President Herbert Hoover
Dust Bowl
New Deal
Stage 2- Assessment Evidence
Summative Tasks
Formative Tasks
Photos from Hooverville - Gilder Lehrman - Contains critical thinking questions
Supreme Court Upholds Prohibition - Gilder Lehrman - Students evaluate evidence and create a timeline, among other higher level thinking activities.
Herbert Hoover on Great Depression and New Deal - Gilder Lehrman - Uses a private letter written by Hoover to compare him to other politicians and evaluate his level of sympathy.
I Think - Hard Times - Page 59 - 63 (1920's & 30's) Students will view chart with Great Depression statistics and interpret. Also has students to view photographs from the Great Depression and complete a claims and evidence activity.
Beyond the Bubble - Breadline at McCauley Water Street Mission under Brooklyn Bridge, New York - Using primary source photograph, students put the Depression into context by connecting it to the stock market crash and the establishment of the WPA.
Beyond the Bubble - Migrant Mother - Evaluates the usefulness of this famous primary source as a historical document
DBQ on Great Depression (August 2005 Regents)
The Depression brought devastation to the economy of the United States and resulted in severe problems for the American people. Throughout the 1930s, the American people and the government dealt with the Depression in various ways.
Gilder Lehrman - DBQ on Great Depression
Group activity asking students to work with eight documents to write a thesis paragraph and complete a DBQ evaluating the New Deal.
Stage 3- Related Lessons
Lesson Plans and Content
SHEG - Dust Bowl Power point - Using primary source photos, students will be able to view and make projections on the damage the Dust Bowl created in the Mid-West and by extension, the rest of the US.
LOC - 3 Lesson plans from the Library of Congress using materials from The Great Gatsby, as well as various primary source materials. Students use the LOC's primary source analysis tool and the lesson set culminates with students creating a newspaper.
PBS - Full lesson plans on Harlem Renaissance; including art interpretations and passages from "Harlem," by Walter Dean Myers. Students are also asked to compare and contrast the experiences presented in various African-American poems
St. Louis Fed (Federal Reserve of US) - What caused the Great Depression “The Great Depression: An Overview,”
The essay is incorporated into many of the lessons, as students are asked to read and refer to various sections of the essay.
Following the essay, the curriculum includes six stand-alone lessons, allowing the teacher to pick and choose the lessons most appropriate for his or her students. Although each lesson is written to stand alone, the lessons are sequenced for instruction so that a teacher can use the entire unit.
Inquiry Lesson: "Was the New Deal a good deal?" Includes lessons on causes of the Depression, programs of the New Deal, and positive and negative effects.
Videos, Documents, and Resources 3-5
(Primary sources, either by itself or with some questions, videos, etc)
LOC - Prosperity and Thrift: The Coolidge Era and the Consumer Economy, 1921-1929Prosperity and Thrift: The Coolidge Era and the Consumer Economy, 1921-1929, contains sources that document widespread prosperity during the Coolidge years, the nation's transition to a mass consumer economy, and the role of government in this transition. The collection includes photographs, films, audio selections, personal papers, institutional papers, books, pamphlets, and legislative documents, along with selections from consumer and trade journals. The collection is particularly strong in advertising and mass-marketing materials and highlights economic and political forces at work in the 1920s
Suggestions for Diverse Learners:
Anything from the categories of Stage 2 or 3 above that would apply solely to students who would benefit from modified or adapted materials.
"I Think" - Hard Times - Page 57-60 (1920's & 30's) Students will view chart with Great Depression statistics and interpret.
"I Think" pgs. 15-16: Explain how new technology shaped American life
"I Think" pg. 31: 30 statements, label each as Fact or Opinion