Great Depression Web Quest
Introduction
Imagine you are living during the Great Depression, in the years between the stock market crash in October, 1929, and the implementation of the” New Deal” proposed by President Franklin Roosevelt. You are a history professor at a small university, and you have access to newspapers containing articles about the economy, and other representations of the effects of the economic depression and you see pictures from the Dust Bowl. Realizing the significance of the difficult times during which you live, you begin to collect these items in a scrapbook, with the idea of writing a book about these experiences since you maintain the hope that circumstances will improve within your lifetime. Prepare your scrapbook which will represent your view of the political and economic climate you are experiencing.
Task
Your task is to create a scrapbook dealing with the Great Depression, using primary documents from the time period. This scrapbook will contain three main sections. Each section will illustrate a different aspect of the Great Depression. The sections will be divided into:
- a document section,
- a photograph section, and
- a political cartoon section
Process
- Step 1:
- You should design and decorate a title page for your scrapbook. You can either draw something yourself or use a photograph or some other visual primary source from the time period.
- The title page should include your name and class period.
- Step 2:
o In the first section of the scrapbook, you are required to read two documents dealing with the Great Depression.
o The two documents that you read should be printed and placed in your scrapbook.
o Immediately after each document, you should write a summary of the work making sure to describe the contents of the document and to discuss how the document pertains to the Great Depression. Your descriptions should be approximately 5 sentences and should use specific details from the text and from history.
First Inaugural Address of Franklin D. Roosevelt (Listen to the Speech)
Franklin D. Roosevelt's 8th "Fireside Chat" Radio Address (Listen to the Chat)
Cisco Houston: "Beans, Bacon and Gravy" Lyrics (Listen to the Song)
"Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?" Lyrics An online article on the song (click on links on the left to listen to the song itself)
Benjamin Roth's Depression Diary (excerpt)
- Step 3:
o In the second section of the scrapbook, you must view Great Depression photographs from the time period.
o You should choose four photos to include in the scrapbook.
o After each photo, you need to write a description which details the scene and its relationship to the Great Depression. These written descriptions should be included in your scrapbook after each photo. Your descriptions should be approximately 5 sentences and should use specific details from the photo and from history.
- Step 4:
o In the third section of the scrapbook, you will view political cartoons from the Depression.
o You should choose two political cartoons to include in the scrapbook.
o After each political cartoon, you must write a short description of the cartoon making sure to explain the meaning of the cartoon. Your descriptions should be approximately 5 sentences and should use specific details from the cartoon and from history.
A Couple of Convincing Testimonials
The New Trend in Easter Fashions
Sample Scrapbook Page:
Evaluation
Great Depression Web Quest Rubric
Document Section
- The scrapbook contains two documents dealing with the Depression _____ (5pts.)
- There is a written summary accompanying each of the two documents, and each description is original, clear, appropriate, organized, and historically accurate _____ (10pts.)
Photograph Section
- The scrapbook contains four photographs from the Depression _____ (10pts.)
- There is a written description of each of the four photographs, and each description is original, clear, appropriate, organized, and historically accurate _____ (10pts.)
Political Cartoon
Section
- The scrapbook contains two political cartoons from the Depression _____(5Pts.)
- There is a written description of each of the two political cartoons, and each description is original, clear, appropriate, organized, and historically accurate _____ (10pts.)
Conclusion
The prosperity of the 1920s came to an abrupt end with the collapse of the stock market in October of 1929. The collapse of the stock market triggered a much wider, long term crisis known as the Great Depression. The Great Depression was felt throughout the United States causing millions of Americans to loose their jobs, farms, and homes. The Great Depression lasted from 1929 until the United States entered World War II.
Primary sources, images, and page links in this WebQuest are from The American Memory Collection of the Library of Congress and their digital archives. Some parts of this WebQuest are also borrowed from Mr. Mike Jensen, Walhalla High School.
Other Sources:
http://www.mhrcc.org/fdr/chat8.html
http://www.ciscohouston.com/lyrics/beans_bacon_gravy.shtml
http://www.library.csi.cuny.edu/dept/history/lavender/cherries.html
http://www.thebigmoney.com/articles/history-lesson/2008/10/28/depression-diary-part-2?page=0,0
http://www.stls.frb.org/greatdepression/photography.html
http://www.presidentialtimeline.org/html/educators/HCH/stockmarket_kac/
http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/swann/herblock/images/s03389u.jpg