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Exploring The Great Depression and The New Deal
Exploring The Great Depression and The New Deal
Exploring The Great Depression and The New Deal
An Interdisciplinary Project
Introduction:
By November 1932, almost 25% of the American workforce was unemployed. Small
family farmers had either lost their land or were faced with possible foreclosure on their
mortgages. Tens of thousands of people had lost their entire life savings when banks
failed. The stock market had collapsed in October 1929, but instead of rebounding as
anticipated, stock prices continued to decline.
It was under the set of circumstances that America began to search for solutions to its
deepest economic crisis of all time. The nation began to debate the responsibilities of the
federal government in terms of managing the economy and addressing the social
catastrophes that were threatening the country. This project will take an interdisciplinary
approach to studying the causes and effects of the Great Depression and the subsequent
New Deal using a variety of hands on, long-term activities.
Objective
To gain a better understanding for the direct and indirect causes of the Great
Depression.
To explore the impact that the Depression had on the American psyche and its
culture.
To identify the solutions proposed by the federal Government to end the
economic crisis.
To identify the main political and cultural figures of the Depression era.
To gain better understanding of the philosophy behind the New Deal and its
ramifications of American society.
To debate the role of the Federal Government.
Procedures
Over the course of the next two weeks, you and a partner will be engaged in a variety of
activities that will help you meet the objectives of this project. You will be required to
create a website using Microsoft Sharepoint Designer that incorporates all your
completed activities. I will supplement your workshop time in class with
notes/discussion. You will be required to complete the following activities to receive full
credit.
Required Activities
You and your partner must create the front page of a newspaper
This special issue of the newspaper explains at least 4 causes and
impact of the Great Depression. The following parts should
be included in the story:
- A Headline that discusses the cause
- An intro paragraph that explains the cause and its role
in creating the Depression
- An explanation of the impact of the cause on the
entire country.
- All of the stories should be typed and laid-out as the
front page of the local newspaper.
- The page should include appropriate pictures and
editorial cartoons.
Alphabet Agency Poster
You and your partner will investigate the purpose of one New
Deal Agency and create a poster or mural that explains its role
to the American people
Your poster must convey the Following:
- The goal/role of the agency
- How the agency benefited the public
- Tries to garner public support for the program
- The New Deals broader idea of active government as
a solution to the problem created by the depression
Movie Review- The Grapes of Wrath
Based on famous novel by John Steinbeck, this movie tells the story of a family
driven off their farm in the dust bowl days of the depression. Trying to retain their dignity
they move to California in search of work. This film serves as an introduction to the
Great Depression. The following must be included in your two-page (double-spaced)
review.
A brief plot summary
A brief analysis of each character
A discussion on how this film portrayed the stress of hard
times on a family and a nation. Include appropriate visuals.
Poem- A Poetic description of the Causes of the Depression and the Governments
Response to the Situation
-You and your partner must write a creative poem describing the cause of the
Depression, how the Depression impacted society, and how the government responded to
the crisis. Your poem must:
Over the course of this project you and your partner should create a diary written from
the perspective of a person living during the Depression. This person can be from any
social group and be from any part of the country. Possible perspectives include
Southern black tenant farmers
California migrants farm workers
Small businessmen
Pittsburg steel mill workers
Professionalsect
Your diary entries, in correct chronological order, must typed, and include at least five
of the following elements.
You may create as many diary entries as you need to meet the above requirements, but
there must be a minimum of 10. Remember the diary entries are to be written in first-
person narrative and not as an essay about the Great Depression. Use descriptive writing
to illustrate your ideas. It must seem as if your character lived through the Great
Depression. Your first entry should be dated October 30, 1929.
New Deal Debate: Did the New Deal Solve the Great Depression? (only required for
groups of three)
Evaluation: