Group One: The Great Depression

Essential Questions
You may include more information in your presentation, but please be sure to cover these points as a minimum.

• What basic background and historical context should the class know about the Great Depression? A basic timeline would be helpful. You might need to remind us a little about the 1920s to get started.
  
• What were the different causes of the Great Depression?
  
• What were the effects of the Great Depression? On everyday people? On rich people? On businesses?
  
• What finally ended the Great Depression? How did it end (gradually, suddenly, etc)?

Recommended Resources
You may need to go beyond what is listed here, but I’ve included a few ideas to get you started. You will need to cite all sources used at the end of your presentation, so keep track carefully.

• Your history textbook
  
• Timeline from “Riding the Rails”:
  http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/rails/timeline/
  
• Summary from “Surviving the Dust Bowl”: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/dustbowl/peopleevents/pandeAMEX05.html
  
• Online and print encyclopedias, such as MSN’s Encarta:
  http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761584403/
  Great_Depression_in_the_United_States.html
  
• The Modern American Poetry site:
  http://www.english.uiuc.edu/maps/depression/about.htm
  
• Media Center Databases:
  http://www.arlington.k12.ma.us/ahs/mediacenter/databases/databases.htm