Core and Extended Lesson 1 A Growing Economy 1920 – 1930 Core and Extended Lesson 1

Lesson Organizer 1 World War 1 ends 2 People start working again 3 Demand for goods increases 4 Businesses hire more workers 5 3 presidents…3 perspectives

World War 1 ends… President Warren G. Harding was elected after the war. He thought Americans were tired of war. He believed in “back to normalcy”, where they stop thinking about the war and go back to their homes and jobs. The economy of the U. S. went through a boom! A boom is a period of fast economic growth. International trade during and after the war increased. Loans from European nations during the war were being repaid.

People start working again… Many people in the 1920’s had enough money to buy their own homes for the first time. Mass production: using machines to make many products at once. Henry Ford set up assembly lines, a long line of workers and equipment where each worker has a specific task. Division of labor is where each worker or group of workers has one small task in a big project. Other industries copied this method of production. The result was lower prices for a product, higher wages (income) for workers, profits for companies, and consumer spending increased.

Demands for goods increase… People started spending more money since the prices of items were lower. Americans started investing in the stock market. A stock is an ownership in a company. The stock market is where stocks are bought and sold. Banks gave out many loans to people and businesses. With production high and prices low, and with money being loaned out to everyone, people demanded more goods.

Businesses hire more workers… With the boom in the economy, people created new businesses with borrowed money from the banks. The new businesses hired more people to work and fill the new jobs. Mass production made industries grow, gave people jobs, and allowed people to buy consumer goods. Mass production, assembly lines, and division of labor are used to start companies still today!!

A little more on the stock market… People invested money in the stock market, into companies that they chose. If the company did well, then everyone that had stock in the company would earn money. They would buy their stock at a low price and sell it at a high price as the company did well. If the company didn’t do well, the stock holders lost money because their stock was worth less than they paid for it.

A little more on Henry Ford… He founded the Ford Motor Company in 1910. He introduced “mass production”. Workers worked in assembly lines. Production was organized in a way called “division of labor”. Tools and machines powered by electricity permitted workers to put cars together more quickly; electric lights made factories safer and brighter. Cost of producing a car went down because of “mass production”, from $850 to $290. More than 15,000 Model T’s were sold between 1909 and 1920 Other companies copied Henry Ford’s model and people owned many new things for the first time.

A look at the presidents… All 3 were republicans, all 3 wanted the US to have a stronger economy. Warren G. Harding 1920 Republican Encouraged growth in the United States Died in office in 1923 because of heart disease Calvin Coolidge 1923 Said “The chief business of the American people is business” Kept spending low and cut taxes. If taxes were lower, he believed people would have more money to spend. Herbert Hoover 1928 Also a republican Believed that real economic growth came from the hard work of ordinary people Didn’t think the government should do too much to make the economy strong

Core and Extended Lesson 2 The Roaring Twenties 1920 – 1933 Core and Extended Lesson 2

Lesson Organizer 1 Freedom 2 Entertainment 3 Harlem Renaissance 4 Aviation 5 Laws and Problems

Freedom… During WW1, people began moving to big cities to work in factories and other businesses. Many people bought cars and homes for the first time. Because of cars, farmers could get supplies in bigger towns; people vacationed all over the US; dirt roads were paved; gas stations, billboards to advertise, and hotels were all along the roads. Homes with electricity went from 35% to 70%. Chores were easier, with electric appliances like vacuum cleaners and washing machines. Women had a lot more free time and they made work easier. Women started playing sports, going to college, and working outside the home in many types of jobs. They also drove cars and flew airplanes. Young women called “flappers” cut their hair short and wore knee length skirts. Most importantly, however, women were given the right to vote in national elections!

Entertainment… Jazz music was the popular music. It uses a lot of improvisation. This era is also called the Jazz Age. Louis Armstrong helped to make jazz so popular in the 1920’s. The first radio broadcast was in the 1920’s in the US. The first broadcast, on KDKA in Pittsburgh, reported that Warren Harding had been elected president. Families would gathered around the radio each night to listen, much like we do with TV today. More than 2 million homes owned radios by 1925. They listened to news reports, music, comedy shows, and mystery stories. Sports programs were also some of the most popular programs, listening to greats like Babe Ruth (first baseball player to hit 60 HR in a season), Jack Dempsey (fought fearlessly in the boxing ring), and Helen Willis Moody (famous tennis player that won first tournament at 17yrs old). Movies were a favorite form of entertainment, with more than 700 silent films being produced in Hollywood, CA by 1924. The first movie appeared with sound, called a “talkie”, in 1927. The dance, called the Charleston, was popular in the 20’s.

Harlem Renaissance… Jazz was influenced by many cultures, but began among African Americans who lived in the south. They showed how they felt about being black in a white world. Enslaved African Americans brought many musical styles with them. Harlem, NYC became famous for jazz and a center for African American musicians, artists, and writers. A renaissance is when there is a renewed interest in art, music, literature, and learning. This period became known as the Harlem Renaissance. Duke Ellington was a bandleader whose songs are still performed today. Louis Armstrong, a singer and trumpeter, helped make jazz popular. Zora Neale Hurston wrote short stories and novels about African Americans Georgia Douglas Johnson was a school teacher and poet. Langston Hughes wrote books of poetry, plus stories, novels, plays, musicals, and operas.

Aviation… The Wright Brothers made the first successful airplane flight in 1903 at Kitty Hawk, NC. Charles Lindbergh was the first person to fly alone across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927. Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean, flying solo from Newfoundland to Ireland in 1932. Bessie Coleman became the first African American woman to earn a pilot’s license in 1921. She learned to fly in France because flight schools in the US would not teach African American women to fly. She thrilled crowds with stunts when she returned to the US.

Problems… Discrimination, prejudice, violence, and crime were problems in the 1920’s. Immigrants, African Americans, Asian Americans, and Mexican Americans still faced prejudice. Ku Klux Klan was a group of mostly white men who spread hatred against immigrants, African Americans, Jewish people, and Catholics. Its’ membership decreased from nearly 5 million down in 1929 because people started to speak out against the Ku Klux Klan. Farmers had grown and sold large amounts of crops during the war. Since the war ended, the Allies no longer needed the crops and demand decreased, causing prices to drop. Many ended up finding other jobs because they couldn’t pay back the loans on their land.

Laws… The 18th Amendment was ratified in 1917, and made selling and drinking alcoholic beverages against the law in the US. The 19th Amendment was ratified in 1920, and gave women the right to vote in national elections. Immigration Act of 1921 was an act to reform immigration. So many people were coming into the US that the government had to create this act to put a quota on how many people could come over from specific nations (3%), with an annual quota of 357,000 allowed. The 21st Amendment came about because of the Prohibition Era, where criminals made and sold alcohol illegally because it was prohibited. This led to violence and crime and to the 21st amendment that repealed, or ended the 18th amendment, in 1933.