Objectives

At the end of this lesson, students will be able:

• to search the FSA American Memory collection
• to understand different methods of analyzing photographs, including distinguishing between objective and subjective observation

Resources Used

America from the Great Depression to World War II: Photographs from the Farm Security Administration-Office of War Information 1935-1945

Photograph Observation Sheet
 

Procedure
 

• The day before the lesson you may want to print and distribute background information on the FSA
• Introduce the lesson by explaining that students will choose from the collection a photograph of a migrant
• In the computer lab model a search of the collection using the key word migrant.
• Give students time to search the collection and narrow down their interests to one or two photographs, which they should then print
• In the classroom, model analysis of a photograph using the Photograph Observation Sheet
• Students, using one of their photographs, should complete the Observation Sheet