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Program Summary
Teacher's Notes
The Great
Depression Part 1
Post-War Boom
and Bust
Global events leading to the
economic depression of the 1930s
Grades: 10-12
Duration: 30 mins
This video is suitable for students studying 20th century
history, economics, government, civics, and law.
Business courses may also benefit from the discussion
of investment and the stock market. Any teacher
focusing on the causes, effects, and conditions of the
Great Depression will benefit from this video. The
depression era images will elicit an empathetic
response from students which will, in turn, lead to a
better understanding of the time period. This video is
suitable for students in grades 10-12.
The conclusion of World War I created a new
world of optimism in the 1920s. It was the
beginning of consumerism, a time of buying
products on credit, buying stock ‘on margin’,
mass production, and overproduction. The
stock market crashed in October of 1929 and
the domino effect led to the foreclosure of
homes, farms and businesses. The majority of
banks closed and approximately 25% of the
population would be out of work. Most
countries of the world were affected and faced
difficult times throughout the 1930s.
This video examines the efforts of various countries,
including the USA, Canada, Australia, and several in
Europe, to make the transition from war economies to
more normal market conditions. It covers the postwar boom in manufacturing and wheat production in
the USA and Canada; the prosperous “Roaring
Twenties”; the effects of severe drought conditions in
North America; and the economic, agricultural, and
societal conditions that led to the ‘Crash of ‘29’. The
program uses archival film and photographs to clearly
depict the struggle of ordinary people to survive. It
concludes with the election of Franklin Delano
Roosevelt in the U.S. and his goal of returning
confidence to the American people. (The next video,
Part Two, explores FDR’s New Deal, the ‘On-to-Ottawa’
trek, and the beginning of WWII.)
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Chapters
Minute Counter
Introduction
00:00
The Effects of War
00:05
Europe in the 20s
07:02
Post-War Australia
11:03
America: The Roaring 20s
12:29
Dark Days of October
17:10
Hitting the Road
21:47
Global Dominoes
25:53
America: Changing of the Guard 28:17
Credits
29:45
End
30:23
Section 1 (Vocabulary)
Define and give the significance of the
following terms and people.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
Treaty of Versailles
Infrastructure
Mass Production
Overproduction
Credit
Stock Market
Shares
‘Buying on margin’
Depression
Inflation
General Strike
Reparations
Dawes Plan
Bankruptcy
‘Roaring Twenties’
Prohibition
Bootlegging
‘Laissez-faire’
Protectionism
Tariffs
Black Tuesday
Dust Bowl
R.B. Bennett
Herbert Hoover
Franklin Delano Roosevelt
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Section 2 (Paragraph Answers)
4.
Have students answer the following questions in
a structured paragraph using at least four points
from the video and other sources.
1.
Describe the economic conditions that
many countries faced following the war.
2. Explain the economic hardships that
affected Germany in the 1920s.
3. Explain why the United States was
‘roaring’ in the 1920s.
4. Summarize the reasons for the stock
market crash of 1929.
5. Describe the conditions faced by
American and Canadian farmers during
the 1930s.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
Section 3 (Mind Mapping)
In groups of four, have students map out the
causes and effects of the Great Depression.
Three sections to focus their information could
be social, economic and political conditions.
For more information on mind maps refer to the
following resource:
“Beyond Monet” by Barrie Bennett and Carol
Rolheiser.
Section 4 (Video Worksheet)
Have students answer the questions in note
form after they watch the video.
1.
Why were returning soldiers unable to
find work back home?
2. List three new products that were being
mass-produced after World War I.
3. Why were Canadian farmers doing well
in the twenties?
13.
14.
15.
In chart form describe what the conditions
were like in Britain, France and Germany
following the end of the war.
What plan did the Australian government
launch to create jobs for soldiers?
List some crazes of the ‘Roaring Twenties’
in the United States.
What percentage of the cost did you have
to pay when buying stocks ‘on margin’?
Why was the economic policy of ‘laissez
faire’ problematic in the United States?
What did countries do to protect their
home markets as the economies began to
slow?
What occurred on October 29, 1929?
Why did banks get hit very hard by the
events of October 29?
What were the unemployment rates in the
US and Canada during the worst years?
What was a ‘Bennett Buggy’?
What did many North Americans do when
they lost their jobs?
Why did many American people dislike
Herbert Hoover?
Section 5 (Research)
Create a list of products that became available to
all economic classes during the 1920s. In pairs,
have the students research the impact these
products had on the decade. If applicable, also
discuss how the inventions continue to affect our
lives today and what it would be like without
them. Some examples of products are:
automobiles, radio, dishwasher, vacuums,
refrigerator, electric stove, hair dryer.
Section 6 (Journal Writing)
Have students create journal entries based
on the first person accounts of individuals
during the depression.
Examples:
Farmers dealing with drought and lower prices
for wheat.
Politicians’ reaction to unemployment.
(Hoover, Bennett, FDR)
Wife/mother faced with a laid-off husband and
children to feed.
Wall Street broker facing personal bankruptcy
as the stock market crashes.
Written, Produced, and Directed by
BERNARD MOTUT
Editing/Computer Graphics
OLIVER SCHNEIDER
Executive Producer
JOHN DAVIS
Special Thanks to:
City of Vancouver Archives
National Archives of Canada
US National Archives & Records Administration
Franklin D. Roosevelt Library
National Archives of Australia
Saskatchewan Archives Board
Corinna Klupiec
Teacher’s Notes
SCOTT BANCROFT
Section 7 (Illustrated Timeline)
Give students an unordered list of events from the end of World War I to the early 1930s. Approximately 16 events will suffice. Have the students
write summaries both defining and giving the significance of these events to the time period. Students will place events in chronological order and
draw (or photocopy) a picture to represent each event. Have them display the timeline in a creative manner. Events can be at the teacher’s
discretion or selected from the list below.
The Great Depression Timeline – 1919 to 1933
1919
1920
1921
June 28
December 9
1922
1923 August 3
1924
1926
May 3
1929 March 4
October 22
October 24
October 29
1930
August 7
1931
September 8
1932
October 14
1933 January 30
March 4
Peace Treaty of Versailles signed in France
Germany pays Allies territories, coal, and iron as partial reparations
Final total of German reparations established: 400% of national income
William Lyon Mackenzie King elected Prime Minister of Canada
Hyperinflation in Germany begins
Calvin Coolidge becomes President in USA
New York Stock Exchange begins dramatic rise
In Canada, Old Age Pension instituted by federal government
General Strike in Britain begins; lasts for 9 days
Herbert Hoover becomes President in USA
James Henry Scullin becomes Prime Minister of Australia
“Black Thursday”; Wall St. investors panic and 13 million shares traded
“Black Tuesday”; the Wall St. ‘Crash’; 16 million shares traded
First bank panic in the US; leads to bankruptcies, bank failures
Richard B. Bennett becomes Prime Minister of Canada
1/3 of Australian work force out of work
Japan invades Manchuria
In the US, the worst year of the Depression; 13 million unemployed
Relief camps established throughout Canada by federal government
Great Hunger March to London by British unemployed
Adolph Hitler becomes German Chancellor
Franklin Delano Roosevelt becomes US President; launches New Deal
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Section 8 (Debates)
The Great Depression is an excellent event to debate political and economic decisions. Some examples of debating ideas are:
1. Political leaders (Bennett/Hoover) could do nothing to fix the economy.
2. Laissez-faire capitalism is to blame for the depression.
Section 9 (Website Reference)
http://memory.loc.gov (USA)
http://www.historychannel.com/classroom/classroom.html (USA/Canada)
http://library.trinity.wa.edu.au/subjects/sose/history/depression.htm (Australia)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history (Britain)
http://www.yesnet.yk.ca/schools/projects/canadianhistory/depression/depression.html (Canada)
http://history1900s.about.com/cs/greatdepression (USA)
http://www.pbs.org (USA/Canada)
http://www.education-world.com (General)
Recommended Video:
“The Global Economy”
An appropriate companion video to the “Great Depression” programs, “Global Economy” is a contemporary look at issues surrounding the
interdependence of countries in the international marketplace. Many of the issues raised in the “Depression” videos are analyzed and explained:
challenges of global trade, free trade and protection, trading blocks, international economic organizations. Available from Classroom Video. 20 min.
Grades 9-12
Copyright
CLASSROOM VIDEO (2003)
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