Post-War America

Standards

Michigan High School Content Expectations

8.2 Domestic Policies-Examine, analyze, and explain demographic changes, domestic policies, conflicts, and tensions in Post- WWII America.

• 8.2.1 Demographic Changes– Use population data to produce and analyze maps that show the major changes in population distribution, spatial patterns and density, including the Baby Boom, new immigration, suburbanization, reverse migration of African Americans to the South, and the flow of population to the “Sunbelt.”
• 8.2.2 Policy Concerning Domestic Issues– Analyze major domestic issues in the Post-World War II era and the policies designed to meet the challenges by:• describing issues challenging Americans such as domestic anticommunism (McCarthyism), labor, poverty, health care, infrastructure, immigration, and the environment• evaluating policy decisions and legislative actions to meet these challenges (e.g., G.I. Bill of Rights (1944), Taft Hartley Act (1947), Twenty-Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution (1951), Federal Highways Act (1956), National Defense Act (1957), E.P.A. (1970)

Common Core State Standards

• SL.9-10.1 Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 9-10 topics, texts, and issues, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
• SL 9-10.3 Evaluate a speaker's point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, identifying any fallacious reasoning or exaggerated or distorted evidence.
• RH.9-10.3 Analyze in detail a series of events described in a text; determine whether earlier events caused later ones or simply preceded them.
• RH 9-10.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including vocabulary describing political, social, or economic aspects of history/social science.
• RH 9-10.7 Integrate quantitative or technical analysis (e.g., charts, research data) with qualitative analysis in print or digital text.
• RH 9-10.8 Assess the extent to which the reasoning and evidence in a text support the author's claims.
• RH.9-10.9 Compare and contrast treatments of the same topic in several primary and secondary sources.
• WHST 9-10.1 Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.
• WHST 9-10.2
• Write informative/explanatory texts, including the narration of historical events, scientific procedures/ experiments, or technical processes.

b. Develop the topic with well-chosen, relevant, and sufficient facts, extended definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples appropriate to the audience's knowledge of the topic.

C3 Framework

• D2.His.9.9-12. Analyze the relationship between historical sources and the secondary interpretations made from them.
• D2.His.13.9-12. Critique the appropriateness of the historical sources used in a secondary interpretation.
• D2.His.14.9-12. Analyze multiple and complex causes and effects of events in the past.
• D2.His.16.9-12. Integrate evidence from multiple relevant historical sources and interpretations into a reasoned argument about the past.
• D4.2.9-12. Construct explanations using sound reasoning, correct sequence (linear or non-linear), examples, and details with significant and pertinent information and data, while acknowledging the strengths and weaknesses of the explanation given its purpose (e.g., cause and effect, chronological, procedural, technical).
• D4.3.9-12. Present adaptations of arguments and explanations that feature evocative ideas and perspectives on issues and topics to reach a range of audiences and venues outside the classroom using print and oral technologies (e.g., posters, essays, letters, debates, speeches, reports, and maps) and digital technologies (e.g., Internet, social media, and digital documentary).

Unit Compelling Question: Is the American Dream Attainable for All Americans?

Supporting Questions

• How did the end of WWII affect the lives of soldiers returning from the war?
• How did the experiences of African American veterans differ from those of white veterans?
• Was post-war suburbanization a move towards cultural uniformity or the achievement of the American dream?
• What were the opportunities and challenges which the growth of suburbs offered postwar Americans?

Instructional Materials/Texts

1. U.S Government Veteran Policy Following WWII: The G.I Bill

Standards: RH 9-10.2, 9-10.6

Learning Targets:

1. I can analyze documents to explain the impact the G.I Bill had on the country.
2. I can compare & contrast the treatment of African American and white soldiers under the G.I Bill.

Supporting Question: How did the end of World War II affect the lives of soldiers returning from the war? What was the G.I Bill? What effects did the bill have on the country as a whole? How did the experiences of African American veterans of World War II differ from those of white veterans?

2. 1950s Suburbanization and the Baby Boom

Standards:

Learning Targets: I can analyze primary source documents to determine demographic & domestic changes that occurred in America post WWII.

Supporting Questions:

3. The 1950s Housewife

Standards:

Learning Targets: I can corroborate primary source documents with other evidence from history to make a claim about women in the 1950s.

Supporting Questions: