Curated OER
Oral History: Park City Museum
Bring U.S. history to your language arts class with this lesson. Middle schoolers complete an interview for an oral history project, and discuss the importance of oral histories - and how they embellish written accounts. They write...
Curated OER
Taxes in U.S. History: The Social Security Act of 1935
High schoolers explain the history of the Social Security Act and the FICA tax. They describe what Social Security is and whom it is intended to help. They explain the purpose of the FICA tax.
Curated OER
Read All About It! California History of the 30s and 40s
Explore the Great Depression! Discover the challenges people experienced during the time period. Learners investigate photographs from the Dust Bowl and WWII era and create a story line about the photographs, writing a newspaper article...
Curated OER
From The Great War To The Great Depression
Discover details about 1920's America. In this American history instructional activity, students read From the Great War to the Great Depression. Students then research famous Americans from the time period and present their findings to...
Curated OER
Causes of America's Great Depression
High schoolers identify principal causes of the Great Depression. They analyze causes including a decline in worldwide trade, the stock market crash, and bank failures and explain the legacy of the Depression in American society.
NPR
The History of America’s Weed Laws
To understand the laws regarding marijuana use in the United States, you can go all the way back to the 1800's to learn about farming hemp, or you can go back to 2018 when California became the sixth state to legalize recreational...
Curated OER
U.S. History: The Great Depression
Seventh graders examine the Great Depression and federal relief programs such as the Civilian Conservation Corps. Focusing on Texas, they assess the effects on poor farmers and discuss what they would do for a living had they lived in...
Curated OER
About Life: The Photographs of Dorothea Lange Going to the Promised Land
To better understand the migrant experience during the Great Depression, pupils analyze two primary resources: photographs by Dorothea Lange and a U.S. Map that shows the Dust Bowl. They compare and contrast Lange's images to Steinbeck's...
National Endowment for the Humanities
The Music of African American History
High schoolers examine role spirituals have played in African American history and religion, examine Harriet Tubman's use of spirituals in her work, explore power of spirituals in Civil Rights Movement, and work with oral tradition,...
Federal Reserve Bank
What Really Caused the Great Depression?
Falling wages. Rising unemployment. Falling prices. Sound familiar? Young economists look at the role the US banking system had in causing the Great Depression.
Curated OER
Dust Bowl Depression
Students examine the Dust Bowl and the impact it made on farm families. In this U. S. history lesson, students role play a writer searching for a family that moved during the Great Depression. Students uncover what prompted families to...
Constitutional Rights Foundation
History of Immigration From the 1850s to the Present
The Statue of Liberty may embrace the huddled masses of the world, but has American society always joined in? After young historians read a passage about the history of American immigration in the 19th and 20th centuries, focusing on...
Curated OER
The Social Security Act
Students examine the Social Security Act of 1935. In this U.S. history lesson, students research primary sources in order to prepare for a mock debate of the act prior to it becoming legislation.
Curated OER
Immigration and Identity
Young scholars will analyze four historical events: The Annexation of U.S. Southwest, The Mexican Revolution, The Great Depression, and World War II. They determine how each event affected immigration to the U.S. from Mexico and Central...
Curated OER
Enduring Legacies of the New Deal
Students investigate U.S. history by listening to an economics lecture. In this U.S. government instructional activity, students research the "New Deal" which happened after the Great Depression. Students identify movies, books and music...
Curated OER
Music of the Great Depression
Eleventh graders take a closer look at the music of the Great Depression. In this 1930's America lesson, 11th graders read and analyze the provided lyrics of 6 songs from the era. Students then compose their own lyrics for songs that...
Curated OER
The Great Depression
Seventh graders investigate the implications of economic fallout. In this Great Depression lesson, 7th graders analyze political cartoons and documents about the era. Students then conduct further primary source research about the toll...
Curated OER
The Social Effects of the Great Depression
Students explore U.S. history by listening to an economics lecture. For this Great Depression lesson, students read a letter written to the President during the worst economical disaster in U.S. history. Students answer study questions...
Curated OER
U.S. History Since 1877
Learners identify and analyze when the following occurred: the beginning of the NAACP, the enactment of the Pure Food and Drug Act, the ratification of the nineteenth Amendment, and the enactment of the Clayton Anti-trust Act. Students...
Curated OER
Saving Strawberry Farm
Students explore U.S. History by analyzing the Great Depression. In this economic instability lesson plan, students read fictitious accounts of a farm dealing with the loss of a Strawberry Farm and discuss the reasons behind the loss....
Federal Reserve Bank
Could It Happen Again?
The final lesson in a series of six about the Great Depression focuses on the Federal Reserve's role in stabilizing the economy.
Curated OER
The 1932 Election: A Turning Point in History
Young scholars discuss the presidential election in 1932. In this U.S. history lesson plan, students compare and contrast the differences between the Hoover administration and the administration of FDR. Young scholars work in groups and...
Center for History Education
To What Extent Were Women's Contributions to World War II Industries Valued?
Women rose to the challenge when the nation's war effort called them—but were sent home when the GIs came back from World War II. Young historians consider whether the United States valued women's contributions during the war using a...
Curated OER
Life During the Great Depression
Eleventh graders explore life during the Great Depression and how Americans responded to the problem. Using information discussed, 11th graders complete a flow chart activity depicting the Dust Bowl. After watching clips of movies...