Introduction
Bud Not Buddy, written by Christopher Paul Curtis, is a story about a boy growing up during the Great Depression. This webquest will explore the Great Depression of the 1930's. Your task will be to research the Depression and create a newspaper article.
Task
You are a reporter for a major newspaper network. You discover a time capsule from the 1930's and you find artifacts from the Great Depression. Once you get over your shock of your luck at finding this discovery you begin to uncover the documents and get the scoop on the Great Depression. You believe that as a reporter you have an obligation to report what you have found to the public.
You will:
-Research a topic from the 1930's
-Write a front page cover story complete with a headline and appropriate picture
Process
1. Decide which topic you are interested in:
-History: Bud finds that life is hard during the Great Depression. Describe what the Great Depression was and how it affected people in the United States. Include an appropriate photo.
-Business News- Labor Strikes: Bud hears about the possibility of labor strikes during the story. Give some general information about labor strikes in the 1930's as well as specific information about strikes in Flint Michigan. Include an appropriate photo.
-Entertaninment-Jazz/Swing Music: Bud hears a lot about jazz music when he stays with the Calloways Band. Write an article about jazz music (often called swing) in the 1930's. Choose a famous musican from the 1930's and include some information about his/her music and life. Include a picture of the musician.
-Technology/Fashion & Fads in the 1930's: The people in the 1930's used different technology than we do today Report on some of the new technology in the 1930's. Include information about a specific invention. Or you may write on the fashions and fads of the 1930's. Include a picture of the musician.
2. The resources sections has a list of several possible websites for your topic. Look at the websites and take notes.
3. Using the computer, type a full page article in which you report on your findings. You will need an eyecatching headline and don't forget to include your byline. Each picture will need a caption. Use newspaper formatting (2 columns) and subtitles.
4. Be creative and make your project look like it really came from the 1930's! Use your imagination.
Resources
History:
History, Hoovervilles, Stock Market Crash, etc.: http://www.history.com/search?q=the%20Great%20Depression
http://images.google.com/images (for photos, key in the words "great depression" in the search field.
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/fsowhome.html (for more photos of the depression)
http://www.history.com/topics/hoovervilles
Hoovervilles; http://www.teachamericanhistory.org/file/hooverville.pdf
Stock Market Crash: http://www.history.com/topics/1929-stock-market-crash
Historical Context of Strikes: http://l3d.cs.colorado.edu/systems/agentsheets/New-Vista/flint-strikes/history.html
The Flint Sit-Down Strike: http://www.historicalvoices.org/flint/organization.php#
Business:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/general-article/dustbowl-great-depression/
http://history1900s.about.com/od/1930s/p/greatdepression.htm
Technology News:
The Golden Age of Technology: http://www.fcc.gov/omd/history/tv/1930-1959.html
The People History: http://www.thepeoplehistory.com/1930s.html
Entertainment News/Jazz: http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Jazz.aspx/
https://www.google.com/search?q=1930s+jazz+musicians&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8
People Memories from the 1930's: http://www.thepeoplehistory.com/30s-memories.html
Library of Congress: http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/primarysourcesets/dust-bowl-migration/
Fashion & Fads of the 1930's:
Evaluation
