Jacqui Ferraby
SSED 314
Friday, December 4, 2009
Unit Topic: Rank 10 events from the 1930s that have had the most
Grade: Social Studies 11
significance for Canadian society.
Prescribed Learning Outcomes the Unit Addresses:
 applying critical thinking
 demonstrating effective written skills
 demonstrating skills and attitudes of active citizenship
 assessing Canada’s participation in world affairs with reference to refugee policy
 assessing the development and impact of Canadian social policies and programs related to the welfare state
 explaining economic cycles with reference to the Great Depression and the labour movement in Canada
Your Unit Goals:
Students will learn:
 to make judgments based on criteria
 to assess significance based on the criteria of profile at the time, consequences and subsequent profile
 to develop habits of mind, particularly attention to detail
 to distinguish between causes, antecedent events, consequences, and subsequent events
 to adopt an historical perspective
Lesson Topic
Introduction to
Historical Significance
Rank the 3 most
significant events of the
past 10 years.
Specific Lesson Objectives
● understand historical
significance
● make judgments based on
criteria for historical
significance:
-prominence at the time
-consequences
-subsequent profile
● communicate ideas and
Methods/ Activities
● have students individually write a
list of the 3 most significant events
in the past 10 years
● students will pair and share their
events
● as pairs, students will create a list
of why the events they selected are
significant
● have students write their events
Resources
● Critical Thinking
Consortium, Teaching
About Historical
Thinking, 2006
Assessment Strategies
and Criteria
● at the end of class or
next day, collect the
worksheet the students
have done related to
assessing significance
and ranking in order of
significance.
● check worksheets for
understanding of key
arguments effectively in
written form
● collaborate and consult
with others
Causes of the
Depression
Distinguish between
causes/antecedent
events, consequences
and subsequent events of
the Depression.
● apply critical thinking skills
of drawing conclusions and
classifying
● apply habit of mind of
attention to detail
● organize information
effectively in a visual
organizer
● identify relationships and
patterns
● relate terms recession,
on the chalk board
● have groups share their reasons
for why the events they selected are
significant
● introduce “criteria for
significance”:
-prominence at the time
-consequences
-subsequent profile
(from TC2 Historical Thinking pgs
13-14) Select an example from the
events the students listed, perhaps
“Sept 11, 2001”, and relate it to the
criteria.
● provide students with the
worksheet “Comparing
Significance” (TC2 Historical
Thinking pg 80)
● have students individually select
3 events that have been listed on the
board and complete the worksheet
● introduce and explain the unit
assignment for the 1930s
● photo analysis of “Drought in
Saskatchewan during the Great
Depression.” Students will note
details in the photo and draw
conclusions. Guiding questions will
be provided:
-What is happening in this
photograph?
-Where do you think this picture is
occurring?
-What era is this photo from?
concepts.
● Depression era
photograph of “Drought
in Saskatchewan during
the Great Depression”
from:
http://z.about.com/d/cana
daonline/1/0/6/C/gddroug
ht.jpg
● Counterpoints
● Critical Thinking
Consortium, Teaching
● circulate throughout the
class during the photo
analysis and also assess
responses during the large
group sharing. Check for
amount and accuracy of
details and plausibility of
conclusions.
● Assess for accuracy
students’ ability to
categorize events. Assess
depression, recovery,
prosperity, deficit, inflation
and supply and demand to
economic cycles
●distinguish between causes,
antecedent events,
consequences and subsequent
events
-Why is the man located where he
is in the photo?
-What conclusions can be drawn
from the clothes he’s wearing?
-Predict what the man is feeling.
-What factors caused the land to
look like this?
-How would this landscape have
affected the community?
● Findings will be shared with a
partner and then with the rest of the
class.
● The teacher will provide students
with notes on factors that caused,
influenced and exacerbated the
Depression:
-1929 collapses of the New York,
Toronto and Montreal stock
markets
-overproduction of goods and wheat
-falling prices
-decreased production and layoffs
-high US tariffs
-Germany’s inability to meet
obligations of Treaty of Versailles
-British and French debts to USA
-lack of diversity in Canada’s
economy and over reliance on
exporting primary resources
-prairie drought and grasshopper
plague
● drawing from the notes the
students were provided, they will
create a visual representation of the
About Historical
Thinking, 2006
● Roland Case and
Penney Clark, The
Anthology of Social
Studies: Issues and
Strategies for Secondary
Teachers, 2008
through circulation
during the activity and
group sharing.
Effects on People
As the wife of a farmer
in the Dust Bowl in
1933, write a letter to
PM Bennett persuading
him to help you
● describe the effects of and
various responses to the Great
Depression including
unemployment, government
intervention, soup kitchens
● adopt an historical
perspective
events and policies that influenced
the Depression. (see The Anthology
of Social Studies: Issues and
Strategies for Secondary Teachers,
pg 163, for visual organizer related
to text structure of “description”)
● Introduce students to concepts of
causes, antecedent events,
consequences, and subsequent
events.
● have students sort events related
to Cinderella’s wedding into proper
categories (from TC2 Historical
Thinking pg 37). Students report
back their findings to the class.
● Have students do the same with
factors related to the Great
Depression:
-the Stock Market Crash of 1929
-the “Dust Bowl”
-overproduction
-economic nationalism and tariffs
-international debt
-unemployment
-World War II
(from TC2 Historical Thinking pg
40)
● Students will do a Know,
Wonder, Learn chart on “What was
it like to live during the
Depression?” and then we’ll discuss
as a group what we know and are
wondering about the topic.
● Students will fill-in the “Learn”
● Bridget Moran, Stoney
Creek Woman, 1988
● Michael Bliss, The
Wretched of Canada,
1971
● CBC, Canada: A
People’s History, “Hard
● Collect the letters at the
end of the lesson or next
class for those who need
more time.
● Assess the letters for
accuracy of historical
detail, amount of
financially.
● collaborate and consult
with others
column of their KWL chart, while
the teacher lectures on what it was
like for various groups to live
during the Depression:
-farmers
-Aboriginal peoples
-Chinese people
-middle and upper class Canadians
with secure jobs
-unemployed men
The presentation will also include
slang that developed during the
Depression such as “Bennett
Buggy”
● The teacher will explain that
many Canadians wrote letters to
PM Bennett out of desperation. The
class will then watch “Dear Mr.
Prime Minister”
● Each table group will be given a
different letter to Bennett from the
Depression years and divided into
“reader, recorder, and presenters”
roles. Each group will read the
letters and then as a group will
answer the following questions:
-Who was the letter from?
-What is his or her background e.g
farmer, man/woman, # of kids, age
-Why is he/she writing to the PM?
-What is the tone of the letter? Does
it give us any insight into how the
author of the letter was feeling?
How was s/he was coping with the
Times: Dear Mr. Prime
Minister,” 2001
● Counterpoints
● Michael Horn, Years of
Despair: 1929-1939,
1986
● computer and projector
for powerpoint
supporting detail, the
believability of the letter,
and the inclusion of each
RAFTS category.
● Use a holistic rubric to
communicate feedback to
the students.
Depression?
● Each group will report back.
● Students will be given the task of
writing a letter to R.B. Bennett
(individually):
“As the wife of a farmer in the Dust
Bowl in 1933, write a letter to PM
Bennett persuading him to help you
financially.”
Government response
to the Depression
Create a report card on
the federal government’s
response to the
Depression.
● identify key milestones in
the development of the
welfare state, such as
Employment Insurance and
explain their significance
● relate terms recession,
depression, recovery,
prosperity, deficit, inflation
and supply and demand to
economic cycles
● make judgments based on
criteria
● relate current events to their
historical contexts
● Students who finish early can
write a reply from RB Bennett to
their letter.
● The teacher will read a letter from
a teenager during the Depression,
which students may be better able
to identify with.
● The teacher will do a short power
point presentation introducing the
concept of Keynesian economics
and Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “New
Deal” in the USA. The presentation
will also address the concepts of
recession, prosperity, deficit,
inflation and supply and demand in
relation to economic cycles.
● Students will brainstorm in their
table groups any connections they
can identify between Keynesian
principles and current government
economic policies and report back
to the class.
● The teacher will provide students
● computer and projector
for powerpoint
● Critical Thinking
Consortium, Teaching for
Critical Thinking, 2006,
report card form, pg 87
● Collect report cards and
assess based on
completion of categories,
plausibility of grades they
assigned, quality of
explanation for the rating.
with a fact sheet on the Canadian
federal government’s policies
during the Depression, including:
-relief payment policies
-Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Act
-immigration and refugee policies
-funds for provincial governments
-policies to address unemployment,
including work camps
-tariff policies
-banning of Communist Party
-social program spending
-taxation
-creation of the National
Employment Commission
-Creation of the Rowell-Sirois
Commission
-Employment and Social Service
Act of 1935
● students will create a report card
on the federal government’s
response to the Depression. They
will grade:
-economic policies
-social welfare policies
-agricultural policies
-immigration and refugee policies
● Students will use the criteria of
whether the policies were:
-of benefit to Canadians
-effective in accomplishing the
stated objectives
-fair
● students will support their
Work camps and the
Labour movement
On a scale ranging from
great to horrible, assess
what it would be like to
work in a relief camp
during the Depression,
considering the quality
of the environment, the
standard of living,
safety, and a sense of
community.
● describe the effects of and
various responses to the Great
Depression including
unemployment, government
intervention, protest parties
● relate economic cycles to
the development of the labour
movement including the Onto-Ottawa Trek
● apply the critical thinking
process of drawing
conclusions
● develop tolerance for
ambiguity
grading with evidence
● Photo analysis of “Road
Construction Unemployment Relief
Project.” Students will be instructed
to note details of the photo and
draw inferences. They’ll then pair
and share and then share with the
rest of the class.
● The teacher will provide, in
lecture format, info on:
-relief camps
-Communist organizing
-union organizing
-On-to-Ottawa Trek
-Regina riot
-1937 close of relief camps
-Vancouver protests
● Students will watch a portion of
the video Hard Times: The Enemies
Within
● Students will read reflections
from Canadians on the relief camp
experience from Barry Broadfoot’s
Ten Lost Years: 1929-1939.
● Students will assess, on a scale
ranging from great to horrible, what
it would be like to work in a relief
camp during the Depression,
considering the quality of the
environment, the standard of living,
safety, and a sense of community.
They’ll need to provide evidence
for their assessment.
● Invite individuals to share their
● Depression era
photograph of “Road
Construction
Unemployment Relief
Project” from:
http://z.about.com/d/cana
daonline/1/0/D/C/gdroadc
onstruction.jpg
● CBC, Canada: A
People’s History, “Hard
Times: The Enemies
Within,” 2001
● Barry Broadfoot, Ten
Lost Years: 1929-1939,
1973.
● from group discussion
responses related to the
photo analysis, assess
students’ ability to draw
conclusions from details
in photo
● from group discussion
responses related to
scaling what it would be
like to live in a relief
camp during the
Depression, assess
students’ ability to assess
evidence and make a
plausible judgment
findings. Invite debate to reinforce
the reasoning and evidence behind
students’ scaling.
Were the platforms of
the CCF and Social
Credit of the 1930s more
similar or more
different?
● relate economic cycles to
the development of the labour
movement including the
Regina Manifesto
● access primary documents
● clearly formulate a thesis
● defend a position
1930s culture and
entertainment
● identify measures Canada
has taken to promote a
Politics
● Powerpoint addressing the
emergence and platforms of CCF,
Social Credit, Ontario Provincial
Liberals, Union Nationale, BC
Liberals
● divide portions of the 1935 Social
Credit Platform and the 1933
Regina Manifesto amongst the table
groups
● Have students analyze documents
to determine their assigned party’s
platform on the areas of:
Political spectrum, supporters,
economy, labour, social welfare
policies, structure of government,
foreign policy, taxation, remedies
for the Depression
(the categories are split-up amongst
table groups)
● have students present their
findings to their peers while their
peers take notes
● students individually judge
whether the platforms were more
similar or more different. They will
write their response in 1-2
paragraphs with a thesis and
supporting evidence.
● watch Shirley Temple video clips
from “The Littlest Rebel,” and
● Co-operative
Commonwealth
Federation, Regina
Manifesto, 1933
● Lewis H. Thomas,
William Aberhart and
Social Credit in Alberta,
1977
● dictionaries for difficult
words in the primary
documents
● Collect student writings
at end of the class or next
day. Assess for clearly
stated and relevant thesis,
ability to support thesis
with evidence, and ability
to draw conclusions.
Assess using the Socials
11 holistic essay rubric.
● Shirley Temple clips
from The Littlest Rebel,
● During the U-shaped
debate, assess students
What, if any,
compensation should be
paid by today’s
generation of Canadians
to the Dionne
quintuplets?
Lead-up to WWII
Rank order the key
causes of WWII.
distinct Canadian identity,
such as the creation of the
CBC
● defend a position
● reassess a position
● identify attributes
associated with active
citizenship, including
willingness to participate
● define totalitarianism and
fascism
● recognize the importance of
both individual and collective
action in addressing human
rights issues regarding
refugee policy
● respect and promote respect
for the contributions of others
● make plausible judgments
watch “Million Dollar Babies” on
the Dionne Quintuplets
● provide students with notes on
1930s pop culture, including the
creation of the CBC, the Dionne
Quintuplets, Grey Owl
● Students will be given a fact sheet
on the Quints’ lives and photos of
ads that the Quints were in.
● After reading over the notes and
analyzing the ads, students will
engage in a U-shaped debate on the
topic “what, if any, compensation
should be paid by today’s
generation of Canadians to the
Dionne quintuplets?”
● inform the students of the
compensation the Quintuplets did
receive
● have students complete a chart on
the significance of the Dionne
Quintuplets and the significance of
the formation of the CBC (see final
project)
● Watch video: The Rise of
Nationalism in Europe
● Provide students with notes, and
speak to the notes (from Derek
Smith’s SS 11 Resources). Topics
are:
-rise of dictators
-appeasement 1935 and 1938
-Spanish Civil War
-King’s visit to Germany
from youtube:
www.youtube.com/watch
?v=CpAzoNjBpb8&featu
re=PlayList&p=9E57632
1E3A79949&playnext=1
&playnext_from=PL&ind
ex=3
● Million Dollar Babies
clips from a documentary
about the Dionne
Quintuplets, from
youtube:
www.youtube.com/watch
?v=q7s12ZdqMTU
● Ads that the Quints
were in, from google
images:
http://images.google.ca/i
mages?hl=en&source=hp
&q=Ads+of+Dionne+Qui
ntuplets&gbv=2&aq=f&o
q=
ability to articulate a
position, reassess a
position and their
willingness to participate.
● collect significance
chart and check for
understanding of
significance based on
prominence at the time,
consequences, and
historical prominence.
● Video The Rise of
Nationalism in Europe,
from youtube:
www.youtube.com/watch
?v=en0bl4XutUc
● Notes on the lead-up to
WWII from Derek Smith,
Mt. Boucherie High
School
● computer and projector
● while groups report
back their findings, assess
students’ ability to rank
events plausibly and
support their rankings
with relevant evidence.
supported by evidence
-Canada’s immigration policies
-The SS St. Louis
-Hitler’s Seven Steps to War
● have students work in pairs to
rank order the causes of WWII,
with supporting reasons for their
rankings. Provide them with a list
of causes:
-the Depression
-rise of totalitarian dictatorships
-appeasement
-isolationism
-the Treaty of Versailles
(see Teaching About Historical
Thinking pg 40)
● have students share their rankings
with their table group and come to a
consensus on rankings in their table
group. Assign students the roles of
recorder, discussion facilitator, and
presenter(s).
● groups report back their findings
to the larger class. Invite debate
between groups.
for powerpoint
● Critical Thinking
Consortium, Teaching
About Historical
Thinking, 2006