Standard 5: Analyze the effects of the changing social, political, and economic conditions of the Roaring Twenties and the Great Depression.

Test your knowledge of the "Roaring Twenties" with a 9-question multiple choice quiz provided by Khan Academy. Good luck!

Type: Assessment

Test your knowledge of the Great Depression and the New Deal with this 15-question multiple choice quiz provided by Khan Academy. Good luck!

Type: Assessment

In this lesson students will examine the history of the Federal Communications Commission to include when the FCC was created, the legislation passed to create the agency, its purpose, how it has changed over the years and expanded as technology has advanced, and how it continues to be used today. Students will also create a billboard demonstrating their understanding of the F.C.C. and their role in society since its creation.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson plan, students will be using primary sources to create an annotated timeline on the causes of WWII. The events start with the Treaty of Versailles and end with Hitler’s invasion of Poland. Students are tasked with describing how one event led to another to analyze how the Treaty of Versailles created instability in Europe and a climate for totalitarian dictators to take control. Ultimately, students will reflect on how dictators gained power and how their policies contrasted with democracy. 

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will learn to evaluate sources of political information from multiple perspectives for fact and bias.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will read excerpts and analyze the fireside chats broadcasted during the Great Depression. Broadcasts will highlight President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal focusing on Fair Labor Standards Act (minimum wage) and child labor laws. 

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will become familiar with Franklin D. Roosevelt and his use of the radio to communicate with the American people one of the New Deal programs, Social Security. 

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will become familiar with Franklin D. Roosevelt and his use of the radio to calm and reassure citizens during the Great Depression. Students will focus on the fireside chat addressing drought conditions and policies to aid farming. 

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will become familiar with Franklin D. Roosevelt and his use of the radio to calm and reassure citizens during the Great Depression. Students will focus on the first chat addressing the banking crisis. 

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will review important leaders in the African American community and the impact of civic and political participation in the early 20^th century, a time of change for African Americans. 

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will review how the public and media reaction associated with the Red Scare influenced government decision making related to public issues.  

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will review how different movements and institutions, like Hollywood, shaped American life during the 1920s and 30s. Students will also examine how civic engagement was used to preserve or reform institutions as American society changed.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson plan, students analyze the impact of civic engagement as a means of preserving or reforming institutions. This analysis will take place through identifying means and methods to promote social change using historical examples of citizens achieving or preventing political and social change through civic engagement.

Type: Lesson Plan

In 1939, Hurston went to Cross City in Dixie County, Florida, to interview workers of the Aycock and Lindsay turpentine camp. Turpentine camps were isolated and known for their terrible working conditions and abuses. It was unusual for a writer to be allowed in to gather information. Hurston's essay, entitled "," is one of the few firsthand accounts written about the lives of the turpentine workers.

In this lesson, students will examine the essay, "" as a primary source document using the document analysis worksheet from the National Archives.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will integrate and evaluate multiple sources of information about Brown v. Board of Education and the struggle for civil rights before and after the case through discussion, music, and video, using reasoning and evidence from class discussions to be inspired to do their part to educate and stop discrimination.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, designed to follow a more general study of the New Deal, students analyze primary and secondary source documents and engage in a Structured Academic Controversy in an effort to answer the central historical question: Was the New Deal a success or a failure? Students receive 7 documents, including a "fireside chat" by FDR, an oral interview, a speech by a WPA representative, unemployment statistics, and song lyrics by the Carter Family. Students then divide into groups of 4 and into pairs within each group to analyze the documents using a graphic organizer. Each pair presents the argument to the other that the New Deal was either (Pair A) successful or (Pair B) a failure. Only at the end can students abandon their previous positions, reach consensus in writing as a group, and defend that view in a final class discussion.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students analyze primary and secondary source documents in an effort to answer the central historical question: Which historical account of Social Security is more accurate? Students begin by responding to a prompt: should out-of-work Americans receive government assistance? The teacher then streams a video on the New Deal and its critics, including Huey Long, followed by discussion. Students then look at the summarized views of 2 historians, Carl Degler and Barton Bernstein. In pairs, students summarize and discuss. They then read 3 primary source documents: 1) a 1935 speech by FDR, 2) the testimony of NAACP spokesman Charles Houston before Congress, and 3) a letter to Mrs. Roosevelt by an anonymous critic of Social Security. For each, students answer guiding questions. In a final class discussion, students corroborate the documents and use them to side with the views of 1 historian-Degler or Bernstein-over the other.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students analyze primary source documents in an effort to answer the central historical question: Why did people care about the Butler Act? Students first read an excerpt from a 1914 textbook, A Civic Biology, and answer brief questions. The teacher then gives a mini-lecture on the rise of religious fundamentalism in the 1920s and streams a video clip on the Scopes Trial. Students fill out a graphic organizer during/after they watch and then they analyze 4 documents: 1) a letter to the editor of the Nashville Tennessean, 2) a speech from one of John Scopes' defense attorneys, 3) a magazine article written by a fundamentalist preacher, and 4) a New York Times article commenting on the media circus. For each, they answer guiding questions. A final class discussion contextualizes the documents: how did the context of the 1920s make this more than a simple debate over evolution?

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students analyze primary source documents in an effort to answer the central historical question: What caused the Palmer Raids? The lesson begins by asking students what communism/socialism means to them. Students share answers in pairs. The teacher then provides background information on the Red Scare and follows up by streaming a film clip from Discovery Education. Students then analyze 2 documents-"The Case Against the Reds" by A. Mitchell Palmer and a deportation statement by Emma Goldman-and answer guiding questions for each. A final class discussion corroborates the documents: why did the nation allow the Palmer Raids to take place?

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students analyze primary source documents in an effort to answer the central historical question: Why was Marcus Garvey a controversial figure? Students first read their textbook's passage on Garvey and discuss; the teacher then distributes a timeline to extend students' background knowledge. The teacher may also (optional) stream some video clips on Garvey "In His Own Words," about 5 minutes total. Students then analyze 4 documents: 1) an excerpt from the Autobiography of Malcolm X, 2) a letter from NAACP members and others to the Attorney General complaining of Garvey, 3) a memo by J. Edgar Hoover, and 4) Garvey's own Autobiography. For all, students answer extensive guiding questions and engage in Socratic discussion with the teacher: why was Garvey so popular and controversial? Students then answer the question in writing using all the documents as evidence.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students analyze primary source documents in an effort to answer the central historical question: Why was the 18th Amendment adopted? Students first read the text of the amendment and answer brief guiding questions. Then, the teacher streams a video clip from Discovery Education about the temperance movement. Students then analyze, in small groups, 4 documents: 1) a statement by the National Temperance Council, 2) a New York Times article, 3) a propaganda poster, "Alcohol and Degeneracy," and 4) another such poster, "Children in Misery." For each, they answer detailed guiding questions. A final class discussion evaluates the strategies of temperance advocates: are their arguments convincing?

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students analyze primary source documents in an effort to answer the central historical question: Why did people, including women, oppose women's suffrage? It is recommended (but not essential) that the teacher begin by screening some of the HBO film Iron Jawed Angels to start a discussion about the motives of anti-suffragists. In groups, students then analyze 3 documents: 1) an excerpt from Molly Seawell's anti-suffragist book, 2) an anti-suffrage newspaper article, and 3) a speech by Tennessee Congressman John Moon. For each, students answer questions on a graphic organizer. In a final class discussion, students discuss the validity of anti-suffragists' motives, relate them to the film, and discuss what other sources they might want to read for further corroboration and contextualization.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students analyze primary source documents in an effort to answer the central historical question: Who was a stronger advocate for African-Americans, Booker T. Washington or W.E.B. DuBois? The teacher first uses a mini-lecture and a streaming video clip from Discovery Education to explain late 19th-century race relations in the South. Students then analyze an excerpt from Washington's "Atlanta Compromise" speech as the teacher models-extensively-sourcing, contextualization, corroboration, and close reading techniques, answering questions on a graphic organizer. Students then do the same, on their own, with a selection from DuBois' Souls of Black Folk. A final class discussion evaluates the 2 men: who was more right in his approach, given the historical context?

Type: Lesson Plan

Learn how women took on leadership roles during the Civil Rights Movement by exploring the contributions of Fannie Lou Hamer, Ella Baker, and Dorothy Height with this interactive tutorial.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Travel through the southern United States to visit significant areas of the Civil Rights Movement with this interactive tutorial.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Explore the "birth" and legacy of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) with this interactive tutorial.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Travel around the state of Alabama to learn about three events during the Civil Rights era: the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the 16th Street Church bombing, and the March to Selma with this interactive tutorial.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Learn about President Franklin D. Roosevelt's use of the radio to communicate New Deal policies that are still relevant with this interactive tutorial.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Learn about the history, purpose, and impact of the National Labor Relations Board with this interactive tutorial.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Explore the purpose, role, and impact of the Federal Communications Commission (F.C.C.) with this interactive tutorial.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

In Parts 1 and 2 of this interactive tutorial series, learn about the famous first hundred days of Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidency.  You'll learn how FDR and his fellow New Dealers used government in an attempt to combat the worst economic disaster the U.S. has ever faced: The Great Depression.  

CLICK HERE to open Part 1.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

In Parts 1 and 2 of this interactive tutorial series, learn about the era of Jim Crow segregation and the larger context within which it flourished, the "Nadir" of American race relations.

CLICK HERE to open Part 1.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

In Parts 1 and 2 of this interactive tutorial series, learn about the famous first hundred days of Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidency. You'll learn how FDR and his fellow New Dealers used government in an attempt to combat the worst economic disaster the U.S. has ever faced: The Great Depression.

CLICK HERE to open Part 2.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

In Parts 1 and 2 of this interactive tutorial series, learn about the era of Jim Crow segregation and the larger context within which it flourished, the "Nadir" of American race relations.

CLICK HERE to open Part 2. 

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Learn about Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois and their rivalry of ideas in this interactive tutorial. Both men were African-American leaders during the "nadir" of race relations, but they had very different visions.

This is part 2 in a two-part series. CLICK HERE to open Part 1. 

Type: Original Student Tutorial

In this interactive tutorial, learn about a different side of the 1920s: the foreign and economic policies the U.S. pursued in the decade following World War I.  You'll learn about the treaties and agreements the U.S. entered into during this time in an effort to produce a more peaceful and stable world, and you'll evaluate the extent to which the U.S. truly pursued "isolationist" policies during the 1920s.   

Type: Original Student Tutorial

In this interactive tutorial, take a look at America in the 1920s and the ways in which the changing political culture influenced American society. You'll explore the effects of Prohibition, including the rise of bootlegging and the increase in organized crime through the work of notorious gangsters like Al Capone. You'll also examine the changing role of women and look at one of the most popular symbols of the Roaring Twenties, that of the flapper. Finally, you will also study two notable movements of the era, Garveyism and Fundamentalism.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

In Parts 1 and 2 of this interactive tutorial series, learn about Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois and their rivalry of ideas.  Both men were African American leaders during the "Nadir" of race relations, but their visions were very different.  

CLICK HERE to open Part 2.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Have you ever heard of the Jazz Age? How about the Roaring Twenties? Both of these labels describe an interesting era in American history, a time period that you'll take a look at in this two-part tutorial series.  In Part 2, you'll learn about Hollywood, movies, and celebrity culture during the 1920s.

CLICK HERE to open Part 1.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Have you ever heard of the Jazz Age? How about the Roaring Twenties? Both of these labels describe an interesting era in American history, a time period that you'll take a look at in this two-part tutorial series. In Part 1, you'll learn about the birth of the Harlem Renaissance, the rise of jazz music, and some unusual fads that swept the nation. 

CLICK HERE to open Part 2.

Type: Original Student Tutorial

In this interactive tutorial, learn about the economy of the 1920s, a decade often called the "Roaring Twenties."  You'll explore consumerism, advertising, the auto industry, and the stock market, as well as how the 1920s boom contributed to the Great Depression.  

Type: Original Student Tutorial

In this interactive tutorial, learn about the years immediately following World War I: 1919 and 1920.  These were dangerous years of economic depression, racial violence, and anti-immigrant nativism in the United States.  You'll learn about the Red Scare, the Palmer Raids, Sacco and Vanzetti, and the rise of the Ku Klux Klan.  

Type: Original Student Tutorial

In this lesson, students view and discuss a PowerPoint presentation in an effort to answer the central historical questions: Why did people oppose women's suffrage? Did anti-suffragists think men were superior to women? As a starter, the teacher displays a photo of a WWI-era suffragette and asks students when they think the picture was taken. Then, using the PowerPoint, students review the history of the suffrage movement, starting with the Seneca Falls convention (the class pauses to read and discuss Mott and Stanton's "Declaration of Sentiments") and finishing with Alice Paul's acts of civil disobedience and the passage of the 19th Amendment. Discussion questions are included throughout.

Type: Presentation/Slideshow

This full-length video is a complete biography of Franklin D. Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States. Topics touched on include the Great Depression, the New Deal, and World War II. Teachers should find the video an excellent resource to review or learn more about this time period.

The webpage also includes numerous shorter videos, articles, and primary sources about FDR, as well as a teacher's guide for using the film in class.

Type: Resource Collection

Learn more about the 1935 landmark Supreme Court decision Schechter v.U.S. In this Depression-era case, the Court ruled against one of the key parts of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal: the National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA). Issues of economics, capitalism, and government power were all at stake.

Type: Text Resource

This informational text resource is intended to support reading in the Social Studies content area. It is most appropriate for 6th-8th grade students enrolled in a U.S. History class. In this essay, the author details the Depression-era Civilian Conservation Corps, explaining to readers how the organization formed, functioned and operated during its heyday in the 1930s.

Type: Text Resource

This informational text resource is intended to support reading in the Social Studies content area. It is most appropriate for 9th-10th grade students enrolled in a U.S. History class.

This essay is a reevaluation of the life and reputation of Helen Keller, especially as it is commonly (mis)represented in textbooks and biographies for young readers. The author argues that Keller should be remembered for far more than being courageous, as she was also a "defiant rebel" and a radical.

Type: Text Resource

This informational text resource is intended to support reading in the Social Studies content area. It is most appropriate for 9th-10th grade students enrolled in a U.S. History class.

The author explains the causes of, and the attempted solutions to, the 1930s-era environmental catastrophe known as the Dust Bowl.

Type: Text Resource

Learn about President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal legislation that transformed the American government during the Great Depression. This short video describes several programs of the New Deal including the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), and the National Recovery Administration (NRA).

Type: Tutorial

Learn about President Franklin D. Roosevelt's efforts to stimulate the economy and combat unemployment during the Great Depression. This short video describes several programs from Roosevelt's New Deal including the National Youth Administration, the Rural Electrification Administration, and the Works Progress Administration.

Type: Tutorial

In a series of short videos, learn about the life and work of Eleanor Roosevelt, wife of the 32nd president and niece of the 26th president. The first video details Eleanor's lonely childhood, the second describes her first involvement in American politics and public speaking, the third examines her work with organizations like the Red Cross and the League of Women Voters, and the fourth explains her role working with the United Nations and leading the committee that drafted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. This pivotal document changed the way the world viewed the rights of people. Watch one video or enjoy them all!

Type: Tutorial

View a brief, funny video about the 30th President, Calvin Coolidge, who presided over an era of economic expansion during the "Roaring Twenties!"

Type: Tutorial

View a short, funny video about the 29th President, Warren G. Harding, the first president of the 1920s, who offered Americans "a return to normalcy" after World War I!

Type: Tutorial

View a brief, funny video about our 31st President, Herbert Hoover, a president known as a great organizer but a terrible politician.

Type: Tutorial

View a brief, funny video about the 32nd President, Franklin D. Roosevelt, a man who ushered the U.S. out of the Great Depression and into World War II. Enjoy this quick trip through American history!

Type: Tutorial

In this webisode brought to you by PBS, you will explore key events that took place in American history from 1903-1927. Topics include the Wright Brothers, World War I, women's suffrage, Prohibition, jazz, Hollywood in the 1920s, and Charles Lindbergh. In this resource you can examine primary source documents and photographs, a timeline and glossary, take a quiz, and explore additional resources. Enjoy this journey into American history!

Type: Tutorial

In this webisode brought to you by PBS, you will explore key events that took place leading up to and during the Great Depression and World War II. You can explore primary source documents and photographs, a timeline and a glossary, take a quiz, and investigate additional resources to learn more about these eras. Enjoy this journey into American history!

Type: Tutorial

In this tutorial, you will view a brief video about the purpose and function of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). The CCC was created by President Roosevelt through the New Deal program to promote economic growth and create jobs across the nation during the Great Depression.

Type: Tutorial

In this tutorial video, you will take a whirlwind journey through the New Deal, which was Franklin D. Roosevelt's plan to pull the United States out of the Great Depression of the 1930s. The New Deal consisted of a series of programs that were designed to provide relief, recovery, and/or reform. The video briefly describes a number of the New Deal programs, including the Social Security Act, the Public Works Administration, the Works Progress Administration, and the Agricultural Adjustment Act. The video also describes how the New Deal forever changed the relationship between the government and citizens of the United States. Enjoy this "crash course" in U.S. History!

Type: Tutorial

In this tutorial video, you will take a whirlwind journey through the events that led up to the Great Depression. The video explores the possible causes of the Great Depression, including the economic, social and political changes that may have contributed to this financial crisis. The video also examines what took place after the Great Depression began, including the failure of many banks and massive unemployment across the nation. Enjoy this "crash course" in U.S. History!

Type: Tutorial

In this tutorial video, you will take a whirlwind journey through the glitz and glam that personifies the Roaring Twenties Era. In the decade known for its numerous social changes, you'll learn about the popularity of the automobile, the rise of Hollywood and celebrity culture, flappers, the economy, limits on immigration, the Scopes Trial, and much more. Enjoy this "crash course" in U.S. History.

Type: Tutorial

In this tutorial video, you'll take a whirlwind journey through the Progressive Era in American history. During this time, people were attempting to solve governmental and societal issues, all while trying to better implement equality for all. Enjoy this "crash course" in U.S. history!

Type: Tutorial

Type: Video/Audio/Animation

Learn how to "think like a historian" in this brief video from Khan Academy. Your hosts explain the difference between primary and secondary sources and analyze the beginning of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's First Inaugural Address.

Type: Video/Audio/Animation

In this lesson plan, students will read and analyze text and visual sources related to the 19th Amendment and the women's suffrage movement. Students will answer questions about each document after reading/viewing. At the end, discussion questions require an overall contextualization and synthesis of the documents.

Type: Worksheet