CREC-TAH Final Product
Textbook Addendum and Lesson
“Great Depression”
By:
Melissa Lopes
Barbara Oman
Karen Pratson
Irene Turner
July 16, 2010
Addendum
During the Great Depression FDR established numerous projects to get America working
again. These projects were titled the WPA-Work Progress Administration. His intent with these projects
was prompt action in order to relieve poverty and want. The WPA allowed the government to hire the
American people to end the Great Depression. Roosevelt meant WPA to hire as many people as quickly
as possible to reduce unemployment as much as possible. The WPA quickly became the largest
employer in the country providing 8 million jobs between 1936 and 1943.
The WPA was set up to furnish useful work that did not require much expense for materials. A
wide variety of useful projects were carried out by WPA workers. Jobs included everything from
builders and pavers to actors and writers. Unemployed writers, artists, musician, actors, and teachers
were put to work on projects making use of their special skills.
The Federal Art Project was the visual arts portion of the Work Progress Administration. It ran
from 1935 to 1943 and created more than 200,000 separate works projects for unemployed artists. The
project was put together because government officials believed that art played an important role in
national life. According to Harry Hopkins the head of the WPA, “they’ve (artists) got to eat just like other
people.”
Media
Painting
Photography
Music
Vaudeville
Theater
Film
Literature
Architecture
Arts of the 1930’s
Artist
1.Thomas Benton
2. Georgia O’Keefe
3. Diego Rivera
4. Grant Wood
1.Dorthea Lange
2.Walter Evans
3. Margaret Burk
1.Aaron Copeland
2.George Gershwin
3.Irving Berlin
4.Woody Guthrie
5.Billie Holiday
1.Flo Zigfield
2.Jack Benny
3.Bob Hope
1.Cole Porter
1.Judy Garland, Burt Lahr, Ray Bolger
2.Vivian Leigh, Rhett Butler
1.John Steinback
2.Margaret Mitchell
3.Pearl Buck
4. Earnest Hemingway
1.Willian Van Alen
2.Haran and Lamb Shreve
3. Joseph Strauss
Titles of Works
1. “Indiana Mural: Fur traders and Pioneers”
2. “Jack-in-the-Pulpit”
3. “Rockefeller Center Mural called “Man at
the Crossroads.
4. “American Gothic”
1.”Migrant Mother, woman of the high plains”
2.”Bud Fields and his family”
3.”At the Time of the Louisville Flood”
1.”Fanfare for the Common Man”
2.”Of Thee I Sing (Pulitzer Prize”
3.”God Bless America”
4.”This Land is Your Land”
5.”Sunny Side of the Street”
“Zigfield Follies Review”
1.”Porty and Bess”
1. “Wizard of Oz”
2.”Gone with the Wind”
1. Grapes of Wrath
2. Gone with the Wind
3. The Good Earth
4. Death in the Afternoon
1. Chrysler Building, NYC
2. Empire State Building, NYC
3. Golden Gate Bridge, SF California
Web sites to be used in student power point presentation:
Photos:
1. Library of Congress
a. http://Icweb2.loc.gov/ammem/fsowhome.html
2. Dorothea Lange
a. http://historyplace.com/unitedstates/lange/index.html
3. Arkansas Depression photographs and phots
a. Http://www.oldstatehouse.com/exhibits/virtual/hard_times
Music:
1. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
a. http://www.rockhall.com
2. History in Song
a. http://members.fortunecity.com/folkfred/history.html
Other sites used for historical content:
1. http://www.Edhelper.com –Articles on historical time period
2. http://www.Thepathfinderproject.org
3. http://www.pptpalooza.net --power point examples of the Depression
4. http://www.pophistorydig.com --the Depression through the eyes of Vanity Fair
5. http://www.americanhistory.pppst.com –power point examples
6. http://www.firstladies.org --information on first lady
History Through Fiction
Teaching The Great Depression through “Bud, Not Buddy” by Christopher Paul Curtis
Overview:
The novel, “Bud, Not Buddy” by Christopher Paul Curtis takes place during the late
1930s. The main character, 10 year old Bud Caldwell is an orphan living in Flint, Michigan.
After numerous bad experiences in foster care, Bud sets off in search of his father, who he has
never met. The journey takes him on an adventure through various depression area events and
areas including bread lines, hoovervilles, riding the rails, protesting and development of
automobile unions, and the popular African-American Jazz scene.
This unit will examine the role of historical events within fictional writing. Students will
examine and analyze how historical events can shape fictional writing and fictional characters.
They will also examine how historical fiction can provide insight into historical events and
concerns. By synthesizing historical events and fictional, emotional reactions to these events
students will be able to gather a better feel for how the people of the time period felt and dealt
with the events of the time.
Text books often only cover the facts while leaving out the emotional tie of the people
living through the time period. Children find it easier to connect to events if they can tie the
learning to a story. The use of fiction gives them a story behind the events. The use of
historical fiction also shows students how authors, removed from the time period, interpret the
time period. Students are able to see into the views of the author through what they decided
to include in their story. What did the author find important during the time period, what
stood out to the author and how did the author view the issues of the time?
Guiding Questions:
How can history be examines through the art of the time period?
How does history influence fiction and the arts?
How can fiction be a tool to teach history?
Objectives:
Examine the roll of fiction as a tool to teach history.
Examine how history can influence fiction.
Examine how the arts of the Great Depression can be used to:
Teach the great depression
Representation of the time period
Synthesize historical and fictional information
Lesson Activities:
Activity 1:
Journals
a. Use “Dear Mrs. Roosevelt: Letters from Children of the Great Depression” as resource.
i. Have students examine the structure and content of model letters taken
resource listed above.
b. Periodically throughout the novel students will be given journal topics to respond to.
They will be synthesizing information from the novel and from historical articles
(provided by edhelper) in order to respond in first person narrative.
Purpose:
 to connect history and fiction.
 Assess what students have learned from the time period and how they are synthesizing the events
of the time period to the events and characters within the novel.
Activity 2:
“Riding the Rails” dvd by Micheal Uys and Lexy Lovell
a. Watch clips from movie and read historical articles regarding riding the rails.
b. Respond to questions
a. How were the rails used to by the unemployed?
b. How did the railroads try to counter the illegal riding of their railways?
c. How did the addition of the musical soundtrack enhance the viewing of the
movie?
d. What influence did the rails have on the creation of Hoovervilles?
e. How accurate was the chapter representation of riding the rails based on
information gathered from clips and articles?
Purpose:
 Examine history through film
 Compare first person narrative with fictional representations
Activity 3:
Music Analysis
a.Listen and read the lyrics to various songs produced during the time period.
b.View images of the musicians and the musical locations (i.e. clubs, undergrounds,
speakeasy)
c. Read historical background of the music and musicians
d.Answer the following questions
f. Describe the mood set by the music.
g. Identify any points that are emphasized within the lyrics.
h. Looking at the images, describe the feel of the music and the sense of emotion
contained within the locations.
e. Model using “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” sang by Judy Garland. Use clip from Judy
Garland YouTube video.
Purpose:
 Examine history through music
 Create context for fiction through time period historical references
Activity 4:
Photo and Music power point
a. Use music and photo websites to create an overview of events shown through the novel.
b. Use websites as models for how to set up and create the flow of the presentation.
Purpose:
 Assess learning of historical time period from fictional writing
 Demonstrate the influence the use of historical events within fiction
Resources:
Photos:
Library of Congress
http://Icweb2.loc.gov/ammem/fsowhome.html
Dorothea Lange
http://historyplace.com/unitedstates/lange/index.html
Arkansas Depression photographs and phots
Http://www.oldstatehouse.com/exhibits/virtual/hard_times
Music:
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
http://www.rockhall.com
History in Song
http://members.fortunecity.com/folkfred/history.html
DVD:
”Riding the Rails” by Michael Uys and Lexy Lovell
Books:
”Dear Mrs. Roosevelt: Letters from Children of the Great Depression” ed. Robert Cohen
Other sites used for historical content:
http://www.Edhelper.com –Articles on historical time period
http://www.Thepathfinderproject.org
http://www.pptpalooza.net --power point examples of the Depression
http://www.pophistorydig.com --the Depression through the eyes of Vanity Fair:photos
http://www.americanhistory.pppst.com –power point examples
http://www.firstladies.org --information on first lady
Connections to Textbook Addendum
The textbook addendum will be used in the introduction to the unit. The addendum will provide
background knowledge of the arts used, developed, and created during the depression and through the
depression era initiatives. See lesson plans for specific pedagogical techniques. All resource used in
lessons were gathered during CREC: Teaching American History workshops. The technology being used
in the unit is the development of power points for the use of assessment and student demonstration of
knowledge.