Progressive Era Newspapers Project
SSUSH13 The student will identify major efforts to reform American society and politics in the Progressive Era.
a. Explain Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle and federal oversight of the meatpacking industry.
b. Identify Jane Addams and Hull House and describe the role of women in reform movements.
c. Describe the rise of Jim Crow, Plessy v. Ferguson, and the emergence of the NAACP.
d. Explain Ida Tarbell’s role as a muckraker.
e. Describe the significance of progressive reforms such as the initiative, recall, and referendum; direct election of senators; reform of labor laws; and efforts to improve living conditions for the poor in cities.
f. Describe the conservation movement and the development of national parks and forests; include the role of Theodore Roosevelt.
Directions: In groups of no more than 3 you are to create a newspaper that highlights the accomplishments of the Progressive Era.
*Your newspaper can be computer generated or it can be constructed by hand on poster board.
*Your newspaper must include ONE of EACH of the following sections typically found in most newspapers: an article, an editorial, an obituary, an advertisement, an announcement (events, parties, fund raisers, etc.) and a primary source political cartoon.
(Example: an article on Jane Addams, a political cartoon on Ida Tarbell, advertisement for “The Jungle”, editorial for the NAACP, etc.)
*Your newspaper must include references to all people, places and/or events mentioned in Standard 13 (see above). Below you will find a list of all these people, places and/or events followed by some guided questions that you might answer/include in your newspaper:
1. “The Jungle”, a book by Upton Sinclair
* Why did Sinclair write “The Jungle”?
* What abuses in the meat-packing industry was he trying to expose?
* What effects did “The Jungle” have on the meat packing industry?
2. Jane Addams and the Hull House
* Why did Jane Addams found the Hull House?
* What was the mission of the Hull House?
* What lasting legacies did women like Addams have during the Progressive Era?
3. Jim Crow, Plessy v. Ferguson and the NAACP
* What were “Jim Crow” laws?
* How did the Supreme Court decision in Plessy v. Ferguson affect African Americans?
* What are the reasons behind the creation of the NAACP? What did/do they do?
4. Ida Tarbell and the Muckrakers
* Who was Ida Tarbell?
* What was a “muckraker”?
* Explain the reasons behind Ida Tarbell’s distrust of Rockefeller’s Standard Oil Company.
5. Progressive Reform Movements
* Explain how the initiative, the recall, the referendum and the 17th amendment gave more power to American voters.
* What changes were made to labor laws during the Progressive Era? (length of work days and work week; child labor, labor unions, etc.)
* Describe how Jacob Riis improved living conditions for the urban poor.
6. The Conservation Movement and Teddy Roosevelt
* What was the goal of the conservation movement?
* Why did the federal government establish national parks and forests?
* What role did President Teddy Roosevelt play in the conservation movement?
Progressive Era Newspapers Project Rubric
Here is the breakdown of how you will be graded:
Structured Requirements:
Title/Date of your newspaper: ______/5
Inclusion of an article: ______/5
Inclusion of an editorial:______/5
Inclusion of an obituary:______/5
Inclusion of an advertisement:______/5
Inclusion of an announcement:______/5
Inclusion of a political cartoon:______/5
Total for structured requirements:______/35
Content Requirements:(Structured Requirement Fulfilled)
Upton Sinclair and “The Jungle”:______/10()
Jane Addams and Hull House:______/10()
Jim Crow, Plessy v. Ferguson and NAACP:______/10()
Ida Tarbell and the Muckrakers:______/10()
Voter, Labor and Living Conditions Reform:______/10()
Conservation Movement and Teddy Roosevelt:______/10()
Total for Content Requirements:______/60
Creativity, Originality and Grammar:______/5
Total Overall Score:______/100