Growing a Nation- WebQuest Activity

Follow the specific instructions for each section to help you find information about how
American agriculture developed from colonial times to present day. Note- when you are done
with a box, close it to stay on the same timeline, if you click back on the internet browser
history, it will take you away from the page and you'll have to find the items again.

Part A: Open the link- https://growinganation.org/ and click "The Seeds of Change"
1600-1929
1. Click "1700s Colonial Farming Technologies" and review the tools listed:
a. What agricultural product were the flail and sickle used to harvest/process?
grain
b. Who invented the cotton gin in 1794?
Eli Whitney
c. By the midcentury, America was growing how much of the world's cotton?
Three quarters
d. What negative consequence did the cotton gin have on society?
The growth of slavery
2. Click "1790s Population and Productivity" and review the information.
a. At this time farmers made up what percentage of the U.S. workforce?
90 percent
3. Click "1860s-1920 Population and Productivity" and review the information.
Year % farmers in workforce Average farm size

1860 58% 199 acres

1920 27% 148 acres

4. Click "Westward Expansion" and review the information.

a. What law offered 160 acres of land to settlers who would farm it for 5 years?
The Homestead Act.
b. What section of the U.S. did homesteaders flock to during this time?
The Great Plains
5. Click "A New Century for Agriculture" and review the information.
a. List the 4 "exotic" new crops American farmers were able to produce thanks to
irrigation.
Nectarines, broccoli, seedless raisin grapes, avocado
 b. According to the Pure Food and Drug Act, which government agency inspected
U.S. goods?
USDA
6. Click "1918 Wartime Expansion" and review the information.
a. World War I in Europe led to U.S. farm exports and prices increasing by how
much?
More than double
b. By 1917, farmers invested money to purchase how many tractors and how many
new acres of farmland into agricultural production.
Nearly 50 thousand tractors and 40 million new acres of farmland

Part B: At the top of the page, click the new era "1930-1949".
7. Click "1930s Dust Bowl" and review the information.
a. What region of the U.S. did dust storms occur mostly in?
Oklahoma
b. The Dust Bowl was made worse by what agricultural practices?
Plowing
8. Click 1930s-1940s Population and Productivity" and review the information.
Year % farmers in workforce Average farm Hours to produce 100 1 farmer provides for
size bushels of crop how many people?

1940 18% 175 acres 10 to 14 hours 10.7 people

9. Click on "Conserve and Grow for War" and review the information.
a. When World War II began, why did food processing methods need to improve?
So they could get more food so they could have enough supplies for
war
b. During the war, food was rationed among U.S. citizens, who were encouraged to
grow Victory Gardens to supplement their rations. In 1943, what percent of
vegetables were grown in them?
Schools were encouraged to grow them and 40%

Part C: At the top of the page, click the new era "1950-1969".
10. Click on "1950s-1960s Population and Productivity" and review the information.
Year % farmers in workforce Average farm Hours to produce 100 1 farmer provides for
size bushels of crop how many people?
1960 8.3% 303 acres 5 hours 25.8 people

11. Click on "The Changing Face of Food and Farming" and review the information.
a. List 3 "modern" eating habits that emerged during this time period.
TV dinners, Fast food, Frozen food
12. Click on "Green Revolution" and review the information.
a. Name the plant geneticist who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 for his
research and development of wheat varieties that could survive and thrive in
tropical regions.
Dr. Norman Borlaug
b. Define "agricultural biotechnology" in your own words.
A range of tools used to modify agriculture

Part D: At the top of the page, click the new era "1970-2000".
13. Click on "1970s-1990s Population and Productivity" and review the information.
Year % farmers in workforce Average farm Hours to produce 100 1 farmer provides for
size bushels of crop how many people?

1970 4.6% 390 acres 2 to 3 hours 47.7 people

1990 3.4% 426 acres ----- Not provided 75.7 people

14. Click "Alternative and Sustainable Agriculture" and review the information.
a. List 4 "alternative" agricultural items farmers began to produce in this time.
Commercially growing herbs, fish farming by raising fish, organic
farming, growth regulators
b. Define sustainable agriculture in your own words.
Practices meant to protect the environment

15. Click "1990s Better Times" and review the information.

a. What "war" ended by 1991 after the collapse of the Berlin Wall?
Cold War
b. The booming economy was fueled by what emerging businesses?
Internet businesses
c. What was the first farm animal that was cloned in 1996?
A sheep
 d. The passing of NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) resulted in what
for the U.S.?
Eliminated trade barriers between the US, Mexico, and Canada

Part E: At the top of the page, click the new era "2001- present".
16. Click on "2000-2017 Population and Productivity" and review the information.
Year % farmers in workforce Average farm 1 farmer provides for
size how many people?

2000 1.5% 441 acres 139 people

2010 1% 434 acres 155 people

17. Click in "What's in Your Grocery Bag?" and review the charts provided.
a. Which country spends the lowest percent of disposable income on food?
US
b. In 2012, how many pounds of grains does the average American eat?
174.7 lbs.
c. In 2012, how many pounds of red meat does the average American eat
103.6 lbs.
18. Click "2012-2018 Advancements in Technology and Science" and review the
information.
a. Brainstorm- how might a self-driving tractor impact agricultural production?
It might help harvest stuff faster
b. List 3 uses of drones in agriculture.
Planting, Irrigation, and Crop spraying

19. Click "2019 The Green New Deal" and review the information.
a. List the 3 major goals of the Green New Deal.
Achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, establishing millions of
high-wage jobs and ensuring economic security for all, investing in
infrastructure and industry