Classroom Activities

Classroom Activities | Contributions | Main

Then and Now

Students will read a selection of oral histories and compare/contrast the interviewees' lives with their own experiences.

Grades:

Adaptable for 5th through 12th grades

Group size:

Individual students or small groups of 2 - 4 students

Time:

45 minutes to read transcripts; essay could be homework assignment

Vocabulary:

Oral history, transcript, concept map, compare, contrast

Materials:

Access to computer with internet connection, pen/pencil, paper

Location:

Classroom or computer lab

Safety:

Proper Internet use guidelines

Learner Outcomes

Students will select three main subject categories and for each, describe three ways that their own daily lives are different from the lives of the people interviewed.

State Standards

Colorado Content Standards: Reading and Writing 1 - 5; History 2.1, 2.2

Background

On Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve's web site, there is a selection of oral history interviews that were conducted with people who lived in the vicinity of Great Sand Dunes in the early 1900's. The interviews were conducted in 2002 and 1999.

The interviews are divided into six main subject categories: Body and Health, Shelter and Warmth, Tools and Materials, Transportation, Family and Friends, and School Days. Most of the interviews are in written transcripts, although for each category there is also an audio version of one transcript. Audio quality varies, according to speaker quality of your computer and the tape quality of the original interview.

In each category, the transcripts have been organized so that the ones that seem most relevant for students are at the top of the list.

Procedure

1. Either divide students into small working groups or have them complete this assignment individually.

2. Have students choose three of the subject categories to investigate.

3. For each category, the students will read three of the transcripts.

4. For each category, students will make a concept map of how the interviewed people lived and a concept map of their own life and how it is similar to and different from the interviewees.

5. Using the concept map as a guide, students will write an essay comparing and contrasting their own lives with the lives of the people from the oral history interviews.

Critical Thinking Questions

1. In what big ways have people's daily lives changed over time?

2. In what ways do you think our lives today are better or worse, and why?

3. How do you think people's lives 100 years from now will be different than ours are today? In your opinion, what will be better or worse? Why?

Assessment

Teachers will observe the thoroughness and depth of thinking evident in the essays and concept maps.

Participation in discussions.

Extension

An oral report or art project based on the concept maps can be used instead of or in addition to the essay.

Everyone Has a Story