The 1930s and Arts Education

Recommended Children's and Pedagogy Literature: 1930s and Arts Integration

2010-12-01T11:51:00.000-08:00

I recommend the following books for use when teaching the era of the 1930s to students in intermediate-level grades:

Rose's Journal: The Story of a Girl in the Great Depression by Moss, Marissa
Bud, Not Buddy (Readers Circle (Laurel-Leaf) by Curtis, Christopher Paul and A Guide for Using Bud, Not Buddy in the Classroom
The Hoover Dam: The Story of Hard Times, Tough People and The Taming of a Wild River (Wonders of the World Book) by Mann, Elizabeth and Wischonke, Alan
Rudy Rides the Rails: A Depression Era Story (Tales of Young America) by Mackall, Dandi Daley
Saving Strawberry Farm by Hopkinson, Deborah
Out Of The Dust (Apple Signature Edition) by Hesse, Karen
Tree of Hope by Littlesugar, Amy
The Great Depression by Kids Discover
The House in the Mail by Wells, Rosemary
Tough Times: A Novel by Meltzer, Milton
Talkin' About Bessie by Grimes, Nikki
Children of the Great Depression by Freedman, Russell
Dust Bowl!: The 1930s Black Blizzards (X-Treme Disasters That Changed America) by Levey, Richard H.
Civilian Conservation Corps (Cobblestone)
Rent Party Jazz by Miller, William

Living Tableaus—Class Activity from January, 2010

2010-01-27T21:45:00.001-08:00

Lecture: DeAnna Beachley - The New Deal and Minorities

2010-01-27T21:15:00.000-08:00

Lecture: DeAnna Beachley - The New Deal and Minorities

Classroom Scrapbooking

2010-01-21T16:36:00.000-08:00

Using scrapbooking as an instructional technique for reinforcing content learning is gaining popularity with teachers. A method presented by Heidi Willard suggested having students dedicate one scrapbook page to each major content topic. On the front of the page, students include pictures of themselves participating in a hands-on activity relating to the topic (they use classroom cameras for this purpose) and they draw on the page or add pictures and text to demonstrate an understanding of the topic. On the back of the page, students write a one-page overview describing what they know about the topic. Students collect all their scrapbook pages into a single notebook that could serve as a classroom portfolio.

Click here for presentation notes by Heidi Willard on the topic of classroom scrapbooking. It was delivered during the National Council for Social Studies Annual Conference

1930s Resources

2009-10-31T19:13:00.000-07:00

PBS offered a five-part series on the 1930s era. Episodes included "The Crash of 1929," "The Civilian Conservation Corps," "Hoover Dam," "Surviving the Dust Bowl," and "Seabisquit." The American Experience programs draw parallels between the 1930s and current political climate and include available online resources.

Another resource on the 1930s with a specific focus on the Dust Bowl is Rain: A Dust Bowl Story. The site includes an epic story of a young American farm family struggling through the hard times of the Depression Dust Bowl. New mini-episodes appear daily.

Cartoons and Comics

2009-08-27T14:17:00.000-07:00

Several free (or nearly free) online tools are available for having students create cartoons. See the examples below:

ComicLife: By Plasq, this application offers students an opportunity to create comic book style products. The software offers a free 30-day trial download. Click here for examples of educators' uses by grade.
Toondoo: Toondoo is an easy-to-use and free cartoon strip generator. The resulting images are embeddable.
Xtranormal: This free tool allows students to create animated and HTML-embeddable cartoons. Click here for student-generated examples.

To learn to use these tools, to see additional samples, or for links to similar tools, I recommend Learning Through the Funnies, a presentation by Brad Fountain. You may view the Discovery Educator's recording of his webinar by clicking here.

In-Class Activities: 1930s Mime

2008-09-15T14:58:00.001-07:00

During one class session, students chose cards with simple headings related to artistic expression of the 1930s (e.g., mural painters, photojournalists, sculpture artists). After selecting the cards and choosing group members with similar interests, they turned over their cards to learn their assignments.

Below is a video of a group given the following instruction:

Actors

Create a mime act that tells the story of Roosevelt’s New Deal. The performance must last at least one minute and you will perform it in front of the class. The performance must involve all group members.

In-Class Activities: New Deal Song

2008-09-15T08:09:00.000-07:00

Singers and Songwriters

Write lyrics using the tune for “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot.” The song must tell about one of the 1930s New Deal agencies and must contain at least two verses. You will sing the song with your group to the class.

Larger-Than-Life Artistic Expression

2008-06-06T09:05:00.000-07:00

Thank you to Pearl Nagoshi for sharing these examples of artistic expression.

The first is called "Human Statue of Liberty" and was taken at Camp Dodge in Iowa. The depiction of the Statue of Liberty required 18,000 servicemen. What an incredible tribute to liberty! This would be a wonderful image to use in classrooms to teach about the Statue of Liberty, war, and symbolism. For more information about the art and photography behind this picture, visit the Snopes entry. More examples are available here.
The second is a series of Japanese rice fields turned into artists palettes. Note that the rice field art requires large-scale pixellation. Examples of the process for developing these artistic renditions is available here. What crops would be amendable to this type of art and how could the crops, themselves, serve as symbols of the pictures they are depicting? For example, using wheat to depict the Dust Bowl could provide a rich opportunity to discuss the historical relationship between feast and famine in U.S. history.

Lecture: DeAnna Beachley, Ph.D. — The 1930s II

2008-05-14T12:47:00.000-07:00

Lecture: DeAnna Beachley, Ph.D. — The 1930s II

Lecture: Dr. Michael Green — The 1930s II

2008-05-14T12:45:00.000-07:00

Lecture: Michael Green, Ph.D. — " The 1930s II"

Session II Class Slides

2008-05-14T11:57:00.000-07:00

Click here to access the PowerPoint slides presented during the first session of this module.

The Nine Themes of Visual Arts by Fredrick B. Lanuza, Ph.D.

2008-05-14T11:26:00.000-07:00

The elements listed below were developed by Dr. Fredrick Lanuza and presented at the Computer-Using Educators Annual Conference in 2008.

The Subject: Describe what you see — person, place, thing
Reasons: Determine the purpose of the work in societal, chronological, and environmental terms
Lines: Identify line directions and types (e.g., straight, curvy, rhythmic)
Colors: Describe the hue (name), value (level of lighting, brightness), and intensity (brightness, dullness)
Form: Describe apparent shapes — regular vs. irregular, definite vs. suggestive
Texture: Consider materials used, surface quality, and smooth/rough aspects
Focal Points: To what part of the picture are the eyes drawn?
Imagination: What does the picture conjure for the beholder?
Judgment: What elements of the picture does the audience like and dislike?

Note: The first eight themes may be addressed in any order, but “Judgment” must not occur until after addressing all other eight themes.

Notes and Ideas for Art Integration

2008-05-14T11:20:00.001-07:00

Visual Arts

History Trading Cards
Mock protest/advocacy posters
Picture analysis (Cut a picture into four parts and have groups critically examine one part. Then, have all groups work collaboratively to explain the entire picture.)
Mock movie posters
Hide-and-seek in a picture (Have students pretend to shrink themselves and stand somewhere in the picture. They would then tell their classmates what they see, hear, smell, feel, hear while others try to guess their location.)
Cartoons/Comics/Graphic novels
Murals
Photos
Drawing/Paintings
Sculptures
Story maps
Architecture

Dramatic Arts (including dance)

Chautauqua performances/Character sketches
Living portraits (of famous art)
Frozen pictures (living portraits in which the student designs the image)
Freeze frames (multiple living portraits combined)
Create or re-create a dance from the time
Re-enact events/“Day-in-the-Life” Enactments
Write and perform skits and plays
Dramatic readings of primary source documents
Costume design (Have students design and sew period clothing)
Design and make props and backdrops for a stage performance
Musical Arts
Read lyrics of the time and create a word wall of historically relevant words
Construct a song using a musical score from the era

Written Composition Arts

Poetry
Novels/Short stories/Children’s books
Scripts (e.g., reader’s theater, movies, commercials, plays, news)
Mad libs
Book covers
Articles (e.g., magazines, newspapers)
Foldable reports

General Notes

“Rehearsing the imagination” can be accomplished freely in the virtual realm.” Take advantage of “technology’s ability for layering image, sound, [and] text in ways that engage learners, spark learning, and trigger curiosity.” (Donovan and Bellisaro)
Learning happens best when it involves “active doing and seeing.” (AccessArts)
Be mindful of the relationship between aesthetics, writing, and design. For example, make sure the graphics and text flow well together.
When working with art, recognize and discriminate among various colors, shapes, and textures in natural and man-made forms. (Fredrick Lanuza).
Many teachers are now including mixed-media, technology-based projects in their classrooms. One such example is a Facebook page replica to look as if it was between parties engaged in World War II. Additional examples recommended by Dr. Daniel Qualls include:

Blog Based Examples (Ecosystem and Napoleon)
My Space Example (Benjamin Franklin)

National Standards for Arts Education

2008-05-14T10:45:00.000-07:00

Ways to integrate the arts to develop and retain historical content knowledge can be combined with arts education. Instead of simply using artistic products to motivate students in the history classroom, teach artistic concepts alongside requiring arts-based assessment of historical content. To learn art concepts appropriate for given grade levels and artistic forms, see the National Standards for Arts Education.

Overview of the National Standards for Arts Education (Grades K-8)
from http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/teach/standards.cfm

Dance

Identifying and demonstrating movement elements and skills in performing dance
Understanding choreographic principles, processes, and structures
Understanding dance as a way to create and communicate meaning
Applying and demonstrating critical and creative thinking skills in dance
Demonstrating and understanding dance in various cultures and historical periods
Making connections between dance and healthful living
Making connections between dance and other disciplines

Music

Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music
Performing on instruments, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music
Improvising melodies, variations, and accompaniments
Composing and arranging music within specified guidelines
Reading and notating music
Listening to, analyzing, and describing music
Evaluating music and music performances
Understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts
Understanding music in relation to history and culture

Theater

Script writing by the creation of improvisations and scripted scenes based on personal experience and heritage, imagination, literature, and history
Acting by developing basic acting skills to portray characters who interact in improvised and scripted scenes
Designing by developing environments for improvised and scripted scenes
Directing by organizing rehearsals for improvised and scripted scenes
Researching by using cultural and historical information to support improvised and scripted scenes
Comparing and incorporating art forms by analyzing methods of presentation and audience response for theatre, dramatic media (such as film, television, and electronic media), and other art forms
Analyzing, evaluating, and constructing meanings from improvised and scripted scenes and from theatre, film, television, and electronic media productions
Understanding context by analyzing the role of theatre, film, television, and electronic media in the community and in other cultures

Visual Arts

Understanding and applying media, techniques, and processes
Using knowledge of structures and functions
Choosing and evaluating a range of subject matter, symbols, and ideas
Understanding the visual arts in relation to history and cultures
Reflecting upon and assessing the characteristics and merits of their work and the work of others
Making connections between visual arts and other disciplines

Understanding Copyright, the Public Domain, and Fair Use

2008-05-14T09:43:00.001-07:00

I highly recommend the following resources for better understanding copyright and the public domain. The Davidson table is particularly helpful for understanding what is acceptable within educational contexts.

Tales from the Public Domain: Bound by Law: This comic book (available online and for download) explains the public domain and its relationship to copyright.
The Educator's Guide to Copyright and Fair Use (Hall Davidson): In addition to an overview to fair use in educational settings, this techLEARNING article includes a link to a helpful self-quiz and chart.

Appreciating Artistic Forms

2008-05-14T09:24:00.000-07:00

Two websites helpful in learning to appreciate a variety of artistic forms appear below. Each includes information about several artistic styles.

The Lively Arts: This is a companion website for a course offered at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. It includes a wealth of study guides teaching how to appreciate a variety of art forms and topic guides for better understanding those forms.
Access Art: This site is designed to help teachers integrate a variety of visual art forms into classrooms. It includes instructions for engaging with certain media formats (e.g., mod roc) and includes excellent online applets allowing students to learn about various art forms and how to replicate those forms.

In addition to the above sites, the attached document (source unknown) outlines guiding questions to use with groups of students when reviewing works of art. The intention of the sheet is to separate a classroom of students into groups of five students each, having each group evaluate a work of art using a different set of questions.

Finally, an excellent source for familiarizing oneself with artistically-designed primary source artifacts is the collection of primary source analysis sheets from the Library of Congress.

Lecture: DeAnna Beachley, Ph.D. — "The 1930s"

2008-05-04T20:55:00.001-07:00

Lecture: DeAnna Beachley, Ph.D. — "The 1930s"

Lecture: Christy G. Keeler, Ph.D. — "Creativity Theory and Using Creative Composition to Learn Historical Content"

2008-05-04T17:51:00.000-07:00

Lecture: Christy G. Keeler, Ph.D. — "Creativity Theory and Using Creative Composition to Learn Historical Content"

Videos of Bank Runs

2008-05-02T11:49:00.001-07:00

The below video is from YouTube and provides a popular media version of bank runs.

It's A Wonderful Life Bank Run Scene

Session I Class Slides

2008-05-01T19:36:00.000-07:00

Click here to access the PowerPoint slides presented during the first session of this module in downloadable format.

Click here to access the slides in web format.

Dust Bowl Lessons for Intermediate Students

2008-05-01T19:23:00.000-07:00

Thank you to Shauna Harris who shared the following website: EDSITEment — Dust Bowl Days. The site includes seven consecutive lessons for a unit on the Dust Bowl era as well as support materials (such as links to Dust Bowl information, primary source artifacts like song lyrics and photographs) for the lessons.

Primary Sources from the 1930s

2008-04-21T11:29:00.001-07:00

You may find some of the following links helpful in finding primary source photographs, documents, and other artifacts from the 1930s:

Smithsonian Opportunities

2008-04-17T10:39:00.000-07:00

The Smithsonian is a wonderful resource for teachers wishing to integrate primary source documents and other artifacts into history instruction. Their online sites include rich collections of visual resources for student analysis. In addition, they offer training for teachers interested in using their resources. One such training is "Teaching with Documents and Works of Art: An Integrated Approach" taught by LeeAnn Potter and Elizabeth K. Eder.

In particular, students of arts in U.S. history may enjoy browsing the National Archives and Records Administration, Smithsonian American Art Museum (particularly see "Teachers and Students" which links to interactive features such as "Campfire Stories with George Catlin," a timeline of Native American history described through art and primary sources), and National Portrait Gallery sites.

Examples of Dance as a Reporting Technique

2008-04-05T12:14:00.000-07:00

The following videos are wonderful examples of the use of dance for teaching social studies content.

The Evolution of Dance by Justin Laipply
Dancing Around the World by Matt from Connecticut

Resources on Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt

2008-04-05T08:11:00.001-07:00

The Roosevelt Library is an excellent resource for gaining information about Roosevelt, his life, and his policies. The site also includes teacher's resources with rich collections of primary sources including "Growing Up At Springwood" (preparation for visiting the museum).

Books and Activities on the Great Depression

2008-04-05T08:00:00.000-07:00

Carol Hurst's Children's Literature Site includes a section on the 1930s. This website includes recommended books on the topic as well as activities appropriate for use with the books.

Of course, Bud, Not Buddy is a classic children's book focusing on the era. Teacher Anya Fontes had her fourth grade students create a quilt about the story. One child was responsible for each quilt square and each square represents one chapter summary. Behind each square is a chapter summary written by the artist's own hand on an index card.

In addition to the quilt, Ms. Fontes' students created a glossary of terms to use with the book.

Art Portfolio: Self-Evaluation

2008-03-06T20:18:00.000-08:00

The self-evaluation form for the art portfolio is available here. To use the form fields, download the document and click within each gray box.

Module Assessment

2008-02-01T19:43:00.000-08:00

Click here for the assessment for the 1930s/Arts Integration module. The assessment requires participants develop an art portfolio including three artistic creations, two reflections, and one self-assessment.

Below are links to some sample products:

Book Project

A website developed by Jamie Tschan and Selena McDowell
A book cube developed by Dorothy Russin
A PowerPoint-based newspaper-style book review by Yvette Edwards
A tri-fold brochure by Michael Kuennen
A newspaper by Erica Saia and another by Megan Leider
A poem by Alexandra Reub
An annotated PhotoStory by Amy Martin
A "Causemopolitan" magazine by Alana London

Artifacts

The Hoover Dam Jam, a rap Michael Tomorosky wrote and his students performed
A short story about the Dust Bowl by Yvette Edwards
A four-way timeline showing the relationship between the Great Depression, Dust Bowl, New Deal, and Hoover Dam uniquely developed using Excel by John Yoder
A PowerPoint-based scrapbook by Robert Mitchell
Sidewalk chalk art depicting 1930's content by Robert Mitchell
Students singing a song written by Jamie Tschan and Selena McDowell
Recipe Cards by Lori Ritter
Dust Bowl Book by Susan Giancaspro

Artifact Reflections

A press release to announce a new country song about Eleanor Roosevelt by Dana Matthews and Shana Prue
An acrostic to describe a quilt by Anya Fontes

Self-Evaluation

A self-evaluation by Erica Saia

Course Syllabus

2008-01-17T09:34:00.001-08:00

Click here to access the syllabus for the 1930s/Arts Integration module.