Social Studies and the Young Learner 29 (1) pp. 4–8
©2016 National Council for the Social Studies
Hoovervilles, Jalopies, and Riding the
Rails: Investigating the Great Depression
Through Primary Sources
Heidi J. Torres
Nine-year-old Jason is at the computer with his teacher, Ms.
Palmer, looking for photographs of men’s shoes from the 1930’s.1
On the floor nearby, a group of students examine a photograph
of Eleanor Roosevelt, working together to make “curly hair”
out of grey pipe cleaners for their life-sized figure. Meanwhile,
Rashid comes to tell me (the guest instructor) that in investigating a photograph of President Herbert Hoover, his group
discovered that Hoover had a dog. Would it be okay to include
the dog in their portrait? I nod my head “yes” and smile as
he skips away. How far these students have come, I think to
myself, in grasping the importance of using primary sources to
understand history and represent it with accuracy!
Using Primary Sources in the Elementary Classroom
In addition, skills required by Common Core and state literacy standards are strengthened through their application to
new contexts and content during the investigation of historical
people, places, and events through primary sources.4
In this article, I describe a unit of eight lessons on the Great
Depression in which primary sources were central in helping
students first construct an understanding of the era, then represent what they learned through a visual project. I will begin
with an introduction to the unit, then will focus on the ways
students used primary sources throughout the lessons.
Introducing the Setting and Unit
Ms. Palmer welcomed me into her third grade classroom to
teach a three-week unit on the Great Depression. Through
this era of history, students explored “people, events, and
developments that brought important changes to the regions
of Indiana,”5 reflecting how TIME, CONTINUITY, AND CHANGE (in
the National Curriculum Standards for the Social Studies)
can be taught at the third grade level.6 In presenting materials
Ewig Galloway/Library of Congress
Library of Congress
Using primary sources to help students learn about history is
one of the most effective ways to make social studies
purposeful, relevant, and supportive of inquiry,2 while
integrating it with literacy. Constructing an understanding of
an historical event, person, or time period by examining
evidence from that era helps students understand that history
is not a straightforward narrative, but must be pieced together
using particular skills and concepts. Using primary sources is
central to supporting the C3 Framework’s Inquiry Arc as
students learn and practice social studies skills.3
Dimensions of the C3 Framework’s Inquiry Arc
1. Developing Questions and Planning Inquiries
2. Applying Disciplinary Concepts and Tools
3. Evaluating Sources and Using Evidence
4. Communicating Conclusions and Taking Informed Action
Above: Breadline at McCauley Water Street Mission under Brooklyn Bridge, New York (ca. 1930–34). Right: Herbert Hoover and large dog. (ca. 1920–30)
4 Social Studies and the Young Learner
about the economic causes of the Great Depression, as well
as government responses to the crisis, the unit also addressed
a number of state standards for economics and government
that are reflected in the social studies themes of INDIVIDUALS,
GROUPS, AND INSTITUTIONS; POWER, AUTHORITY, AND GOVERNANCE;
and PRODUCTION, DISTRIBUTION, AND CONSUMPTION. Each lesson
was organized around one or two supporting questions related
to an important aspect of the Great Depression. Lessons were
designed to build on each other, so that earlier lessons provided the necessary background to understand later material.
Students chiefly studied the Great Depression through primary
sources in multiple forms, including transcripts and recordings
of oral histories, graphs, music, letters, artwork, posters, maps,
photographs, and film that are available on the Internet, many
of them free (Table 1). A major location was the website of the
Library of Congress.7 Important secondary sources included
online “slide shows” that use primary source videos and photographs to explain specific events during the Depression,8
as well as books (children’s literature, both historical fiction
and nonfiction) available in the classroom. Students created a
tableau of figures from the Great Depression, explaining what
they had learned in visual form. The result was an exciting use
of primary sources both for learning about and expressing
understanding of this important historical era. The activity
served as an assessment of students’ understanding of concepts.
Introducing Primary Sources
We began with a special lesson on primary sources and historical evidence.9 The children had never used primary sources
before, and were unfamiliar with how they are used to construct an understanding of the past. Students became curious
as I asked each of them to make a short list of what she or he
had done earlier that day, then place the list in one of four
piles. I explained what primary sources are, and used their
lists as examples that described what had happened that day.
I threw the first pile away. Some kids gasped, but I explained
that these sources got burned in a fire. Other students groaned
and expressed disappointment that their personal histories
had disappeared when the second set was stolen, and the third
set was lost in a move. Only the fourth pile remained to give
Table1: Primary Sources about the Great Depression
Teachers will find Resources Approprate for Grades 3–6 at Websites hosted by Public Institutions
Collection
Institution
Website URL
Topics and Features
“The Dust Bowl,” American
Memory Collection
Library of Congress
www.loc.gov/teachers/
classroommaterials/
presentationsandactivities/
presentations/timeline/depwwii/
dustbowl/
“The Great Depression and the
New Deal”
National Archives and Records
Administration
www.archives.gov/seattle/
exhibit/picturing-the-century/
great-depression.html
Photos and captions of New Deal
public works
“1934: A New Deal for Artists”
Smithsonian American Art
Museum
americanart.si.edu/exhibitions/
archive/2009/1934
Art, mapping, video tour, slide
show of art
“Great Depression, ” American
Enterprise Exhibition
National Mueum of American
History
Photos and captions of people,
americanhistory.si.edu/americantoys, documents, political
enterprise-exhibition/corporatecartoons; links to the other
era/great-depression
sources
“The Dust Bowl,” A Ken Burns
Film
Public Broadcasting
www.pbs.org/benburns/
dustbowl/legacy/
Biographies, photos, video,
interactive
“A Timeline of the Great
Depression,” Shenandoah
National Park
National Parks Service
www.nps.gov/shen/learn/
photosmultimedia/ccc_curric_
one_timeline.htm
Five movies (4 minutes each) and
interactive features
Photos, sound recordings, lyrics,
radio script, lesson activites
September/October 2016
5
future historians an account of what life was like in the early
21st century. I read the remaining lists and “drew conclusions”
about their lives from the incomplete evidence. This exercise
allowed us to talk about the concept of primary sources, historical evidence, the construction of history from incomplete
evidence, the changing nature of our understandings about
history (especially when the third pile was later “discovered”),
and the job of historians as “history detectives”, who gather
together clues to try to figure out what makes the most sense
based on available evidence. By the time we were ready to begin
our first lesson on the Great Depression, students were eager
to engage with the materials, and discuss what they thought
each source was telling them about history. Following is a
description of some of the ways they used primary sources to
learn and represent understanding.
Using Primary Sources to Answer Supporting Questions
The principal goal in using primary sources was for students to
learn to use them to answer the supporting questions for each
lesson. In doing so, students could construct an understanding
of some of the significant people, places, and events of the Great
Depression by the end of the unit. Every lesson began with an
activity to engage interest, and focus students’ attention on the
supporting question for that day. Students then gathered clues
in a variety of ways, including read-aloud passages, inquiry
centers, online investigations, small and whole group conversations, as well as independent or partner reading.
During one lesson, students participated in inquiry groups
to answer the supporting question, “What were some of the
effects of the Great Depression?” I began by reading an excerpt
from Roosevelt’s second inaugural address about citizens who
were “ill-clad, ill-housed, and ill-nourished.”10 I asked students
to consider what these words might mean, and how they were
related to the effects of the Depression. Armed with investigation sheets, students rotated between different stations containing transcripts of oral histories, photographs, and letters.
Students wrote down what effect they thought each station’s
materials represented, as well as the clues that helped them
draw their conclusions. Leah explained on her investigation
sheet that one effect was “No job because not enough money
to pay people.” The clues that helped her draw this conclusion were a photo of a “guy crying” with a caption explaining
he was an unemployed youth, and another of a man “selling
apples for money.” A number of children also explained the
terms used in Roosevelt’s speech. Ashley explained that the
term “ill-nourished” meant “not enough nourishing food,” and
that she knew this through two oral histories which related
how “People are fighting over trash. And school kids are not
having sacked lunches, just milk.”
Throughout the unit, some students struggled to use primary sources to gather evidence. Therefore, it was particularly
important to come back together at the end of lessons to discuss
what students learned about the supporting question, and
what evidence helped them draw their conclusions. Hearing
6 Social Studies and the Young Learner
peers explain their reasoning, and what they had found in the
sources, helped strugglers see how the sources could be used.
In addition, if students were missing things, I could ask direct
questions to help focus their attention on details in the materials they may not have noticed. A class web we added to at the
end of lessons helped students see how we were constructing
knowledge about the Depression piece by piece through our
primary and secondary sources, and encouraged students to
summarize their answers to the supporting questions.
Using Primary Sources to Understand Cause and Effect
Students also learned to use multiple sources to piece together
a sequence of events and understand cause and effect. After
studying the Dust Bowl through primary sources (photos, a
farm auction flier, Woody Guthrie’s music, maps, film clips,
a first person account) and children’s books,11 Hank was able
to explain the chain of events that led to the Dust Bowl and
the outcomes:
Well, they had this kind of grass in it [the prairie], that
kept all the dirt down, which they took it out, so they
could make more food…so they could make more money,
so, once the wind or something picked up, it took all the
dust and carried it, and made a big giant…dust storm,
which buried all the houses…it went up 6 feet high…
then sometimes people would go to sleep and next morning when they wake up, there would be a lot of dust on
‘em, and then some people… they would have like, the
dust stuck in their nose…and they suffocated and some
people get buried.
While this is a simple explanation for a complex series of
events, at the third grade level, it’s an accurate account of one
of the main causes of the Dust Bowl, and some of its effects. Using Primary Sources to Justify Decisions
Later in the unit, students began to engage with primary sources
more deeply by using them to justify decisions they would make
as an historical figure. During the second lesson about the Dust
Bowl, students were told they would have to make a choice,
and needed to continue to gather evidence to decide. I asked
them to think about what it would be like to be a Dust Bowl
farmer. By the end of the lesson, they would have to choose
whether they were going to stay on their Dust Bowl farms, or
leave and become “Dust Bowl refugees.” We had studied the
perspective of the farmers the day before, and this day each set
of sources shared one part of the story of the refugees. I would
stop between every one or two sets of examples and ask them,
“Who’s staying? Who’s going?” By the middle of the lesson,
students were beginning to understand the complexity of the
situation. As Hudson finally said, exasperatedly, “NEITHER
choice is really good!”
When it was time to choose, Hank used a map of the United
States and Dust Bowl areas to discuss his decision with friends
and offer examples
from our investigations, while
Hud son t a l ked
through the “pros
a nd con s” (h i s
words) with Stuart,
using evidence he
had gathered. More
than half the class
decided to leave
and be refugees,
Hud son among
them, while only nine decided to stay. Jason, one of the “farmers” who chose to stay, explained his reasoning:
The Dust Bowl won’t last forever, but it could, but
it’s unlikely…if you would go to California, you’re
not guaranteed that you’re gonna get there with the
jalopies, and then when you get there you’re not guaranteed to get a job and then you don’t wanna have to
live in a shantytown and be called Okies and then…
it’s better just to have your house and hopefully you’ll
survive through it.
His explanation includes information he gathered from multiple primary sources—even using the correct terminology,
such as “jalopies,” “Okies,” and “shantytown” — to make a
logical decision that a Dust Bowl farmer from that time might
have made. Not only did he justify his decision through his
use of evidence he gathered from multiple sources, he made
his decision from the perspective of an historical figure that
he learned about through those sources.
Using Primary Sources to Represent Learning
The final dimension in the Inquiry Arc of the C3 Framework
encourages students to “represent their ideas in a variety of
forms and communicate their conclusions to a range of audiences.”12 As they construct explanations about what they are
learning, students gain a better understanding about how the
creators of secondary historical accounts use primary sources
to justify their work. In addition, creating a representation
of their own learning gives children practice in synthesizing multiple primary sources to construct their explanations,
demonstrating what they learned about a topic, as well as how
they used primary sources.
Consequently, for our final lesson, students engaged in an
art project in which they created a two-dimensional tableau of
important people from the Great Depression to be displayed
in the hall for other students, teachers, and parents to see. I
chose visual art as a medium of expression for several reasons.
First, in creating their projects, students would have to make
some of the same decisions historians make in creating an
account for another audience. What should they include or
exclude? From what
perspective should
they tell their visual
story? Second, students would have
to review what they
learned throughout
the unit, synthesize those multiple
sources of information, and use
them to “construct
explanations that
advance claims of understanding.”13 These goals could be
accomplished through the typical written essay, but I wanted
students to have the opportunity to use a multimodal form of
representation, which, for some third grade students, might
be a more effective way to learn.14 Furthermore, I wanted the
opportunity to understand the range of what each student had
learned about the Depression and primary sources as I talked
with them individually about their pieces.
We began our project by looking at photos of the FDR
National Memorial in Washington, D.C., to see how artists
had chosen to depict aspects of the Great Depression in that
work. The memorial covers more than 7.5 acres as it tells the
story of FDR’s presidency through bronze sculptures and
moving water. The first of four outdoor “rooms” is dedicated
to FDR’s first term (1933–1937) and the Great Depression.
There are life-size statues (that visitors are invited to touch)
of Americans waiting in bread lines and listening to the radio.
I explained to the students that we would be creating lifesize figures of people from the Great Depression, with speech
bubbles explaining more about themselves and their roles during
the Depression. The class had to choose eight historical figures
they felt best represented the people, places, and events of the
Great Depression. Discussion about who should be included
was lively, sometimes supported by evidence students had
gathered in the course of our unit. Once we settled on the eight
figures to study and depict, students were divided into groups
(based on the historical figure each student was interested in
depicting), and construction of the figures commenced.
An Awareness of Accuracy
The group that depicted FDR illustrates how some children
were quite concerned about representing their historical figures
accurately. This group referred specifically to primary source
photos in order to make their figure historically accurate. When
the students couldn’t see FDR’s shoes in the pictures, Jason
asked Ms. Palmer to find some photos online, specifically
requesting that they be men’s shoes from the 1930s. The Hoover
group wanted additional sources as well, which is how they
discovered Hoover’s dog. They considered including a flag in
their portrayal, but since none of the photos showed one, and
they weren’t sure if Hoover had one, they decided not to add
September/October 2016
7
it. The Hoover group decisions are significant in that two out
of the three students in this group previously had very little
understanding about the connection between primary sources
and constructing an account using historical evidence.
Students didn’t just copy from the primary source photographs, but also used what they had learned throughout the unit
to make inferences and include their own creative additions.
When the Eleanor Roosevelt group added a wedding ring to
her finger, Willa explained that she was married to FDR, so
she should have a ring. The FDR group knew that he suffered
partial paralysis as an adult, so Jay suggested that they put their
figure in a chair to represent his wheelchair. All these examples
show how students developed a sense of the importance of
using evidence in primary sources to construct an accurate
secondary account of an historical person.
Challenges With Using Primary Sources
Not all students understood or used primary sources as
described. Some children had difficulty pulling evidence
from sources and justifying their reasoning, while others had
difficulty synthesizing across multiple sources. One useful
strategy to assist these students was to discuss certain sources as
a whole group, or to reconvene and review students’ gathering
of evidence after they worked in small groups or individually.
In hearing fellow students discuss their findings and textual
evidence, strugglers were able to see the process modeled by
their peers. In addition, I was able to ask more focused questions to help students notice features they may not have initially
noticed. I reframed questions to help them think about how
the primary source supported—or didn’t support—claims they
were making. In retrospect, another good strategy would have
been to use some of the more specific questioning suggested
in the Library of Congress’ guide for using primary sources,15
as well as modified versions of document analysis worksheets
from the National Archives, which address different forms
of primary sources, such as written documents, photos, or
political cartoons.16
Another challenge was to help students who either didn’t
understand how, or didn’t choose to use, primary sources to
justify their projects. One particular group seemed to construct
their figure with little regard for primary sources or evidence
to justify their work. If I were to do this project again, I would
spend more time having students analyze and discuss other
visual representations of the Great Depression era to see how
primary sources were used to create these works. This would
help students be more mindful of the centrality of primary
sources in developing their own historical representations.
One final challenge in using primary sources with elementary students is in gathering materials appropriate for young
learners. The Library of Congress literally has millions of
resources, many of which are organized into sets that also
include lesson plans. Many universities also maintain digital
archives filled with free resources that can be downloaded.
In addition, public and school libraries that have good non8 Social Studies and the Young Learner
fiction children’s collections often include books that contain
primary source documents, and many more can be obtained
through interlibrary loan. Sharing the supporting questions
for each lesson with librarians (as well as the historical focus
of the lesson) can help them find the primary sources that best
fit a lesson’s pedagogic aims.
Conclusion
Time for social studies is often short or non-existent in elementary classrooms, where testing has necessitated a greater focus
on math and reading. By using primary sources to learn and
represent understanding about a topic, social studies can teach
students valuable disciplinary skills and patterns of thinking
while giving them chances to practice and apply literacy and
other skills that strengthen concepts and thinking important
for testing success. This unit demonstrates that students are
capable of using primary sources for these aims, if supported
at an appropriately challenging level.
Notes
1. All names in this article are pseudonyms.
2. Linda S. Levstik and Keith C. Barton, Doing History: Investigating with Children
in Elementary and Middle Schools, 4th ed. (New York: Routledge, 2011), 12-18.
3.NCSS, Social Studies for the Next Generation: Purposes, Practices, and
Implications of the College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social
Studies State Standards (Bulletin 113, Silver Spring, MD: NCSS, 2013), xvii.
4. Common Core State Standards Initiative, wwww.corestandards.org.
5. This unit was taught before the most recent Indiana standards were revised and
posted online July, 2014. The wording of the standard, 3.1.4, has changed to be
more specific. For the new standards, see IDOE, Indiana Academic StandardsSocial Studies 2014, Grade 3 (Indianapolis: IDOE, 2014); see also www.doe.
in.gov/sites/default/files/standards/socialstudies/ss-2014-gr3-20140718.pdf 014.
6.NCSS, National Curriculum Standards for Social Studies: A Framework for
Teaching, Learning, and Assessment (Silver Spring, MD: NCSS, 2010), 10.
7. Library of Congress, www.loc.gov. (See Table).
8. Library of Congress, “America’s Story from America’s Library”, www.americaslibrary.
gov; “Creating the United States,” myloc.gov/exhibitions/creatingtheus.
9. Adapted from Marilynne Boyle-Baise and Jack Zevin, Young Citizens of the World:
Teaching Elementary Social Studies Through Civic Engagement, 1st ed. (New
York: Routledge, 2009), 107.
10. Franklin D. Roosevelt, “One Third of a Nation: FDR’s Second Inaugural Address,”
History Matters: The U.S. Survey Course on the Web, historymatters.gmu.
edu/d/5105/. The full excerpt I read: “In this nation, I see millions of citizens…
who at this very moment are denied the greater part of… the necessities of life. I
see one-third of a nation ill-housed, ill-clad, ill-nourished.”
11. Karen Hesse, Out of the Dust (New York: Scholastic Press, 1997); Albert Marrin,
Years of Dust: The Story of the Dust Bowl (New York: Penguin Group, 2009).
12. NCSS, C3 Framework, 60.
13. NCSS, C3 Framework, 23.
14. Douglas Selwyn, Arts and Humanities in the Social Studies (Washington, DC:
National Council for the Social Studies, 1995).
15. Library of Congress, “Using Primary Sources,” Library of Congress, www.loc.
gov/teachers/usingprimarysources.
16. National Archives, “Document Analysis Worksheets,” National Archives, www.
archives.gov/education/lessons/worksheets.
Heidi J. Torres is Assistant Professor in the Department of Instructional
Leadership and Academic Curriculum at the University of Oklahoma
in Norman, Oklahoma. This article was submitted while she was on the
faculty at Indiana University, in Bloomington, Indiana. Contact the author
at [email protected].