Lesson Plan: Overview

Academic Standards

Standard 5-4: The student will demonstrate an understanding of the economic boom-and-bust in America in the 1920s and 1930s, its resultant political instability, and the subsequent worldwide response.

5-4.2 Summarize the stock market crash of 1929 and the Great Depression, including economic weakness, unemployment, failed banks and businesses, and migration from rural areas.

E. Explain change and continuity over time

K. Use texts, photographs, and documents to observe and interpret social studies trends and relationships

O. Consider multiple perspectives of documents and stories

S. Interpret and synthesize information obtained from a variety of sources—graphs, charts, tables, diagrams, texts, photographs, documents, and interviews

1. Why did South Carolina experience a decade of hard times before the stock market crash of 1929?

2. How did the depression affect the economic and social lives of rural families in South Carolina?

Historical Background Notes

By the time of the stock market crash in 1929, South Carolina had already experienced almost a decade of hard times. During World War I, farming in South Carolina boomed to feed war-torn Europe. After the Great War, Europeans resumed farming; therefore, not needing to import. Overproduction of cotton and tobacco and the loss of overseas markets caused farm prices to plunge. Cotton prices in the spring of 1920 were 40 cents per pound, but by December the price had dropped to 13 ½ cents. Prices improved a little in 1922, but never reached prewar levels. (Walker, pg xxii)

As if things were not bad enough for the farmers in the 1920s, the boll weevil migration to the cotton fields of South Carolina from Mexico was felt. In 1921, the sea island cotton crop was wiped out. In some years, the boll weevil destroyed one half of the cotton crop. Years of drought compounded the economic crisis for the farmers. In 1922, South Carolina farmers produced less than one third the number of bales produced just two years earlier. By 1930, South Carolina agriculture was about to go under. Farmlands and buildings had lost half their value. One third of the state’s farms were mortgaged, and seventy per cent of state farmers survived on borrowed money. The land was in bad shape because of improper farming methods. (Edger, pg 485)

When cotton and tobacco prices were high, farmers borrowed money from banks to buy land, seed, chemicals to kill boll weevils, fertilizer to revitalize the poor soil, and necessities for families. Farmers were unable to meet their installment payments as the farm incomes declined.  Because of the decreased value of agricultural lands that served as loan collateral during the 1920s, roughly half of the 447 banks in South Carolina failed between 1921 and 1929. By 1932, retail merchants began to fail because South Carolinians bought little from stores. There was little or no income to spend, and no one had ready cash. (Schulz, pg. 3)

The depression of the 1920s and 1930s affected the economic and social lives of rural families in South Carolina. Farmers had to pay most of the taxes, but they were the ones with the least amount of money. Farmers lost land because they couldn’t pay taxes. Collapse of agriculture due to crop destruction, low prices, and mortgage foreclosures led to mass exodus by both blacks and whites. By 1929, a quarter of a million South Carolinians, three fourths of them black, had moved out of the state looking for job opportunities. Black Carolinians went north, while whites moved south and west. (Edger, pg. 486) Others who lost their land became renters or sharecroppers. Many white sharecroppers in the Piedmont moved to a growing number of textile mill villages. Wages were low, but better than what was made by farming. (Schulz, pg 3)

Rural women helped the family economy by stretching the scarce resources as far as possible. Women “made-do” by intensifying their traditional coping skills. They sewed the family clothing and knitted socks and winter hats.  Old coats and dresses were turned inside out to make them last longer. The colorful chicken feed and flour sacks were reused to make children’s clothing. Women grew bigger gardens, canned more vegetables, and preserved more sausage. They saved extra eggs and butter for sale at crossroad stores. Many women took jobs off the farm or took in boarders to supplement the family income. Families depended on the help of neighbors and kin to survive financial or health crises and to cope with excess labor demands of the harvest. Many moved in with extended family members to save expenses. (Walker, pg. xxvii)

Because farmers grew or raised their own food, they had enough to eat, but they couldn’t sell their products on the market. No one had money to purchase these products; therefore, the barter system was used in rural South Carolina. Many services of doctors, lawyers, and ministers were paid in pigs, vegetables, and chickens. Merchants had to accept the barter system or see his goods rot on the shelf from lack of sales potential. (Hughes, pg. 31)

Pendleton District Commission

While researching at the Pendleton District Commission, I found the book, A South Carolina Album, 1936-1948, edited by Constance B. Schulz. The introduction includes an overview of South Carolina from 1920 to 1948. The album contains photographs by Dorothea Lange, Marion Post Wolcott, and others taken during the depression. I used the Library of Congress' numbers from the copied pages to obtain the digital photographs from the Library of Congress' web site.

Leslie White, the new curator at the Oconee Heritage Center, was very helpful in finding three photographs in their archives taken during the time period of my lesson.

Materials

“A liquor still getting busted.” Photograph. [1920]. Collection of Oconee Heritage Center. Walhalla, South Carolina. Courtesy of Oconee Heritage Center. The image is available in 1920s ~ Not Roaring in South Carolina PowerPoint, slide 16.

Hughes, Cathy C., ed. Interviews from The Times and Democrat: Reflections in Time. Orangeburg, SC: Sun Printing Inc., 1999.

“Inside Kenneth Mill.” Photograph. [1920]. Collection of Oconee Heritage Center. Walhalla, South Carolina. Courtesy of Oconee Heritage Center. The image is available in 1920s ~ Not Roaring in South Carolina PowerPoint, slide 14.

Martin, Chlotilde R. “The Johnsons Build a House.” South Carolina Writers’ Project. 13 January, 1939. Collection of Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, WPA Federal Writers' Project Collection, Washington, D.C.

“Mules and men.” Photograph. [1920]. Collection of Oconee Heritage Center. Walhalla, South Carolina. Courtesy of Oconee Heritage Center. The image is available in 1920s ~ Not Roaring in South Carolina PowerPoint, slide 15.

“Negro homes near Charleston, South Carolina.”  Photograph. Collection of Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. Photograph taken by Marion Post Wolcott, December 1938. (LC-USF34-050509-D).

“Negro sharecropper, Will Cole and his son picking cotton....”  Photograph. Collection of Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. Photograph taken by Marion Post Wolcott, September 1939. (LC-USF34-052112-D).

“Old home near Jacksonboro, South Carolina.”  Photograph. Collection of Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. Photograph taken by Marion Post Wolcott, December 1938. (LC-USF34-050459-D).

“Oldest son of a sharecropper family working in the cotton. Chesnee, South Carolina. ” Photograph. Collection of Library of Congress. Washington, D.C. Photograph taken by Dorothea Lange, June 1937. (LC-USF34-017371-C).

“Schoolhouse near Summerville, South Carolina.”  Photograph. Collection of Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. Photograph taken by Marion Post Wolcott, December 1938. (LC-USF34-050827-E).

Schulz, Constance B., ed. A South Carolina Album, 1936-1948. Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, 1992.

“Sharecropper family near Chesnee, South Carolina.” Photograph. Collection of Library of Congress. Washington, D.C. Photograph taken by Dorothea Lange, July 1937. (LC-USF34-018102-C).

“Stringing Tobacco. Florence County, South Carolina.” Photograph. Collection of Library of Congress. Washington, D.C. Photograph taken by Cox, Summer 1938. (LC-USF34-015765-D).

“Tobacco workers. Florence County, South Carolina.” Photograph. Collection of Library of Congress. Washington, D.C. Photograph taken by Cox, Summer 1938. (LC-USF34-015762-D).

Williams, R.V. “John B. Culbertson.” South Carolina Writers’ Project, 27 January, 1939. Collection of Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, WPA Federal Writers' Project Collection, Washington, D.C.

Edgar, Walter B. South Carolina: A History. Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, 1998.

Hughes, Cathy C., ed. The Times and Democrat: Reflections in Time. Orangeburg, SC: Sun Printing Inc., 1999. 

Schulz, Constance B., ed. A South Carolina Album, 1936-1948. Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, 1992.

Walker, Melissa, ed. Country Women Cope with Hard Times: A Collection of Oral Histories. Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, 2004.

• Interview worksheet
• Guest speakers ~ older members of the community sharing their lives during the 1920s and 1930s
• Photographs (see Primary Sources section above) from South Carolina from the 1920s and 1930s
• Quotes taken from oral histories about life in the depression
• Oral History and Photograph Analysis sheet
• “1920s ~ Not Roaring  in South Carolina” PowerPoint
• LCD Projector and computer
• Poster sheets with the essential questions (see Essential Questions section above) written on them

Lesson Plans

Assignment before the lesson:
1. A week or more before the lesson, the students are given the assignment to interview an older family member or friend who lived during this time period.
A list of possible questions is given to the students to use in the interview.

2. Invite older members of the community to visit the class and share stories about life during the Depression. This is a great opportunity for students who do not know an older person to interview the guest speakers.

3. Students write a biographical sketch of the person using information obtained from the interview.

Procedures Outline:
1. Present the essential questions (see Essential Questions section above) to the class. Draw from past lessons on the Roaring Twenties, Great Depression, and the guest speakers to generate discussion on why South Carolina’s hard times began before the crash of the stock market in 1929.

2. Share with the class the reasons for the early depression in South Carolina from the PowerPoint.

3. Divide the students into groups of 3 or 4. Each student receives an Oral History and Photograph Analysis sheet.

4. Each group receives a quote and photograph (see Primary Sources section above) from rural South Carolina to analyze. Students are to find who, what, where, why, and how of the quotes and pictures to infer the economic and social conditions caused by the depression. Students write their conclusions on the analysis sheet. The teacher facilitates by moving from group to group asking questions and giving background information to encourage the students to delve deeper into the photograph and quotes.

5. As each quote and photograph is shown on the PowerPoint, the groups share with the whole class their conclusions about their quotes and photographs.

6. A list of economic and social effects of the depression is written on the poster paper during this sharing. Encourage students to include information gained from the guest speaker and their interviews.

Teacher Reflections

The Teaching American History in South Carolina course, US History from 1865, covered all the standards for fifth grade social studies in just two weeks. Since I am the only fourth and fifth grade social studies teacher at Tamassee Salem Elementary, this was a great opportunity for me. The course turned out to be more than I expected. Paul Anderson’s knowledge of the history, the variety of the cultural institutions, along with Tami Finley’s practical and teachable methods encouraged my confidence in using primary sources in various ways in the classroom.

The morning content sections with Dr. Paul Anderson from Clemson University was interesting and engaging. Paul took the STORY from HISTORY and enticed our curiosity and emotions. He did all of this without using the new technology that classroom teachers are encouraged to use! During the first few days of class, I felt intimidated to join the discussion but stayed interested. The guys who taught high school seemed to be the only ones contributing to the discussion. They had taken more history classes than elementary and middle school teachers. Paul’s laid back, demure, casual teaching style, and questioning techniques encouraged us to participate. By the third day, more of us — including myself — felt more confident and were vocally involved in the lessons.

Paul modeled many teaching techniques that I have utilized this school year. Paul encouraged us to look at the standards to determine the essential questions. We started with the “big picture” and then used the facts to answer the essential questions of how and why the events happened. He gave vocabulary terms in groups of three. We, the students, told who, what, where, when, and how of each term providing a clear understanding of the topic being taught. By incorporating primary sources into the story, Paul brought history to life for us. We felt like we had gone back in time and were actually witnessing the events as they happened. Paul encouraged us to ask questions, and then he would ask us questions that would lead us to the answers ourselves. Each day, we found the common thread that connected all the lessons together. He enabled us to understand that history is not just a sequence of isolated events, but a series of causes and effects. Paul used our natural curiosity to drive instruction. If my high school and college history teachers were as interesting and entertaining as Paul, I would have enjoyed history more.

Meeting in the local cultural institutions introduced us to the numerous and valuable resources that are so close to home. The directors, curators, and staff welcomed us with enthusiasm, knowledge, and willingness to help in any possible way. Each cultural institution applies different approaches and styles to showcase their artifacts from the past. The exhibits in the Upcounty History Museum, Pickens County Museum of Art and History, Oconee Heritage Center, and Anderson County Museum are more student friendly, capturing the curiosity of the visitor. The Greenville County Museum of Art is more formal and more appropriate for high school students. However, the technique to interpret the paintings by looking deeper into them can be applied to all grade levels. The walking tour of the Historic District of Pendleton and the visit to Fort Hill in Clemson were very educational and enjoyable.

So many resources were available to us in the Special Collections at Clemson University and the Pendleton History Archives. Unfortunately, I had not tweaked my lesson topic enough to take advantage of the impressive Strom Thurmond Institute. While at the research collection of the Pendleton District Commission, I found the book, A South Carolina Album, 1936 – 1948, edited by Constance B. Schulz. The introduction includes an overview of South Carolina from 1920 to 1948. The album contains photographs by Dorothea Lange, Marion Post Wolcott, and others taken during the depression. I used the Library of Congress' numbers from the copied pages of this book to obtain digital photographs from the Library of Congress' web site for my lesson.

In the afternoon section, Tami Finley modeled practical and teachable methods to include primary sources in our lessons. The creative use of documents, photographs, and oral histories in the classroom bring the past to life. Tami combined strategies and best practices to obtain higher- order thinking from students. I have adapted many of these techniques in my classroom. I use a variation of notebooking for vocabulary. The students write the definitions in their own words and then draw pictures to help them remember the meanings. I now encourage students to look at events through different points of view through role playing, giving them a new perspective of historical events. Tami reminded us that students retain more information when they are focused, actively engaged in the lessons, become emotionally involved, and make connections with the events. I am incorporating many of these methods in my classroom this year.

Teaching American History in South Carolina has given me more confidence as I teach 5th grade social studies. I learned so much from the content segment from Paul. Now, I connect the theme from chapter to chapter and share this connection with my students. Prior to the new school year beginning, I looked at my lessons from past years and found that they already contained many primary sources. I must have been doing something right. This year I have incorporated Tami’s methods to enhance my use of primary sources. The institute also provided me with resources that assist me in finding more primary sources.

In the past, my eighty-five year old dad has told me about his early childhood in Lexington, South Carolina during the 1920’s. I knew that his family had lost all their land. His mother took him, his older brothers, and sisters and moved in with his grandparents and old-maid aunts. I became curious about why South Carolina experienced hard times before the crash of the stock market. I also wanted to know how the depression affected other rural families economically and socially. Thus, these are the essential questions for my lesson, “The 1920s - Not Roaring in South Carolina.” When we began the chapter on the Roaring Twenties, I gave the students the assignment to interview someone in his/her late seventies or older about what life was like for them as a child. I also invited two octogenarians, Mrs. Lib Seigler from Walhalla and Mr. Elmer Littleton from Salem, to share their oral histories with my 5th graders. This was a great experience for everyone. Many of the students interviewed these visitors as the subject for their assignment. The students later wrote a biographical sketch on the person they interviewed. These were interesting to read and find out what the students had learned about the childhood of our guests. I would not change anything about this part of the lesson, but I realize that in future years it will be very difficult to find guests who remember this time period and are able to come to share their early childhood memories with 5th graders.

Inferring information from photographs and oral histories was difficult for my students. Many students were uncomfortable with this higher- level thinking skill. I teach two social studies classes so I was able to make some changes before the second class. For the first class, I told the students to look for who, what, where, when, and how in the pictures and oral histories. Some of the students only saw what was on the surface and were not able to delve deep enough to deduct how people coped during the depression. For the second class, I created a cause and effect worksheet for them to use while analyzing the primary sources. I also modeled how to analyze a photograph and a quote for the students. These changes, along with more direct questions as I monitored the groups, did improve the outcome of the lesson. The students did draw from all sources, including information from their interviews, to create a list of economic and social effects of the depression on rural families in South Carolina.

Learning a variety of techniques to use primary sources in my social studies classes has certainly improved my teaching. The students are more focused and engaged in the lessons. They are curious and ask higher-level thinking questions about the topics we are studying. Their enthusiasm is contagious. Teaching American History in South Carolina has given me valuable resources, tools, and confidence to ensure that my students succeed.

Student Assessment

The students write a biographical sketch using the information gathered from the interviews of people who lived during this time period. Informal assessment is also taken by the teacher while moderating the groups during the lesson.

This would depend on how the lesson is presented:

• Informal assessment during the lesson
• Photo Analysis worksheet
• List of social and economic changes
• Cause and effect worksheet
• Picture analysis – look at background for clues
• Quote analysis
• Mini-drama matching quotes to photographs
• Photo Story
• Finding the who, what, where, why, and how of pictures and quotes
• Reenactment of photographs (see Primary Sources section above)
• List the social and economic changes in the families caused by the depression.
• First person experiences through interviews of people who lived during this time period.
• Possibly having a guest speaker (my Dad or other member of the community)

Examples of Students Work

Credit

Ruth Pekarek
Tamassee Salem Elementary
Tamassee, South Carolina