Postwar Teen | Create WebQuest

Introduction

The American Poet

Teenagers and Society

Walt Whitman said, "the United States themselves are essentially the greatest poem," arguing that the common people of America in "their manners speech dress friendships...[and] their delight in music" was a form of "unryhmed poetry" (Whitman 5). Our individual freedoms and interests are what make us unique from the rest of the world.

As a teenager in America, you are a developing "poet" seeking answers from the world around you. Your perception of society is influenced by culture, trends, adults, peers, advertisements, and music. In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield searches for similar answers as an American teenager growing up in the late 1940s.

The United States had just won World War II as the country began to shift into a period of cultural and economic boom. Mass consumerism thrived, gender roles changed, and the development of the "American Dream" was introduced.

So the question is, how did American culture during the post World War II era shape Holden's perception on society?

Task

Travel Back in Time

You are about to travel back in time as a teenager in the late 1940s and early 1950s. As you read the novel The Catcher in the Rye, explore some of the places Holden Caulfield may have encountered growing up in the postwar era. Take note of the sights and sounds you stumble upon, and try to develop your own understanding of American society during this time.

Your mission is to blog about your findings and create a bibliography using the sites you visit on your journey. When you return you will write a research paper using Holden's experiences in the novel and your own knowledge of the postwar era. To get started choose one of the following paths:

Wall Street: Consumerism

Monroe Road: Gender Roles

Picket Fence Way: American Dream

During your travels submit your blog entries and be sure to search for answers to the essential question: How did American culture during the post World War II era shape Holden's perception on society?

Process

The Trip

Day 1

Read chapter 1-7.

Create a twitter account for Holden with a short bio and icon that matches his personality and interests. Send a tweet (140 characters or less) at the end of each chapter using the hashtag #postwarteen. Your tweet should briefly summarize the chapter using Holden's voice.

You have just landed in the mid 20th century at Pencey Prep in Pennsylvania. You are just about to leave the dorms when you hear the television coming from one of the resident advisors cracked doors. As you peek inside to see what he is watching take note of the economic and cultural changes that are occuring all around you.

Blog about the changes you observed and answer the following questions in your post:

1. What economic and cultural changes did the end of World War II bring to America?

2. What was family life like in the postwar era?

3. How do you think Holden is affected by this change?

4. What are you most excited to explore during your time here?

Day 2

Read chapter 8-14.

Send a tweet (140 characters or less) at the end of each chapter using the hashtag #postwarteen. Your tweet should briefly summarize the chapter using Holden's voice.

You are in New York City during the Fabolous Fifties. As your searching for Central Park you stumble upon a newstand with some of those lousy magazines like Vogue. You know. The ones filled with all those phony stories. You purchase a few for the next train ride. As you read through the articles create a SOAPSTone list and find evidence/quotes that may support your answer to the essential question. Add these articles to your bibliography and create MLA in-text citations for each note you jot down.

Wall Street Journal

Rise of Consumerism

Monroe Reporter

Women and Work After WWII

Picket Fence Gazette

The American Dream

Day 3

Read chapter 15-20.

Send a tweet (140 characters or less) at the end of each chapter using the hashtag #postwarteen. Your tweet should briefly summarize the chapter using Holden's voice.

You're at a record store on Broadway looking for a gift for Holden's sister Phoebe. As you thumb through the records you find a few that spark your interest. Take a listen:

Wall Street Rock

Elvis Presley- Blue Suede Shoes

Jackie Brenston- Rocket 88

Barrett Strong- Money That’s What I Want

Monroe Melodies

Buddy Holly- Peggy Sue

Ray Charles- I Got a Woman

Jackie Wilson- Reet Petite

Picket Fence Jams

Eddie Cochran- C’mon Everybody

The Drifters- Money Honey

Chuck Berry- Johnny B. Goode

Compare and contrast how your theme is portrayed or talked about by Holden in the book and the music of the time period. Submit your response as a blog entry and comment on two other blogs about a theme different from your own.

Day 4

Read chapter 21-26.

Send a tweet (140 characters or less) at the end of each chapter using the hashtag #postwarteen. Your tweet should briefly summarize the chapter using Holden's voice.

You've reached the zoo. As Holden and Phoebe ride the carousel you decide to walk around the place. You notice advertisements hanging around the park. Take a look at these ads and write a blog explaining any symbols and views you can find related to your topic. Answer the following questions in your entry:

1. How was consumerism portrayed in the 1950s?

2. What were the different gender roles depicted in the advertisments?

3. How was the American Dream presented to the public in ads?

4. How do you think these topics in society shaped Holden's view of society?

5. How do you view American Culture after World War II?

Evaluation

	4	3	2	1	Points
Notes (SOAPSTone, T Chart, etc.)	Student's notes demonstrate exceptional research with proper MLA in-text citations. SOAPStone notes address each element of the assignment and go further and explaining how the source can be used for their research. Student provides mastery understanding of the topic through the identification, highlighting, and further questioning of key points and ideas found in the resources.	Student's notes demonstrate thorough research with proper MLA in-text citations. SOAPSTone notes address each element of the assignment. Student provides clear understanding of the topic through the identification of key points and ideas found in the resources.	Student's notes demonstrate some research without proper MLA in-text citations. SOAPStone notes address some, not all of the required elements of the assignment. Student provides decent understanding of the topic through identification of key ideas in the resources, but includes some unrelated details.	Student's notes demonstrate little to no research. SOAPSTone notes don't address any of the key elements of the assignment. Student provides little understanding of the topic or resources provided to them.
Twitter Page	Student's twitter page portrays the voice of Holden Caulfield exceptionally well and demonstrates the learner's understanding of the themes and motifs of the novel The Catcher in the Rye. Student goes above and beyond portraying Holden by providing extra research and links in their tweets.	Student's twitter page accurately reflects the voice of Holden Caulfield and demonstrates the learner's understanding of the themes and motifs of the novel The Catcher in the Rye.	Student's twitter page somewhat reflects the voice of Holden Caulfield and demonstrates some understanding of the themes of the novel The Catcher in th Rye. Student fails to complete all of the required elements of the assignment.	Student's twitter page doesn't accurately portray the voice of Holden Caulfield and demonstrates little to no understanding of the themes of the novel The Catcher in the Rye. Student fails to complete the assignment.
Blog	Learner provides exceptional insight into the novel relating it's themes and characters to American culture during the postwar era using information form online sources. Student effectively addresses all of the discussion questions and even raises their own questions for others to discuss. Student provides thoughtful responses to other's posts and continues discussions on other forums.	Learner provides great insight into the novel and American culture during the postwar era using information from online resources. Student effectively addresses all of the questions posed for each entry and responds to classmates posts.	Learner provides some insight into the novel and American culture during the postwar era using few resources. Student fails to address all of the key discussion questions and is missing responses to other classmates posts.	Learner provides little insight into the novel and American culture during the postwar era. Student fails to answer any of the discussion questions and provides no response to other posts.
Bibliography	Learner uses proper MLA format and includes all of the resources used during the assignment and annotations for each.	Learner uses proper MLA format and includes all of the resources used during the assignment.	Learner uses MLA format with some errors and omits some resources used during the assignment.	Learner does not use MLA format and includes little to no resources.
Total Points

Conclusion

Welcome Back

Welcome back to the year 2014! You have successfully traveled back in time and collected some great information on American culture during the post World War II era. Hopefully you have gained a better understanding of the United States during that time as well as Holden Caulfield's character in The Catcher in the Rye.

So what do you think? How did American culture in the post World War II era shape Holden's perception on society? Using the research you gathered on your journey, write a paper answering the essential question.

Credits

American Experience: TV's most-watched history series. (n.d.). Retrieved December 10, 2014, from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/general-article/tup…

Barrett Strong- Money (That's What I Want). (n.d.). Retrieved December 10, 2014, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yeVx1C73o8k

College Board. (n.d.). Retrieved December 10, 2014, from http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/preap/teachers_corner/4520…

Eddie Cochran- C'mon Everybody. (n.d.). Retrieved December 10, 2014, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRjlZ8x2uQM

Elvis, P. (n.d.). Elvis Presley- Blue Suede Shoes. Retrieved December 10, 2014, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41FC2NoPn4A

Ray Charles- I Got a Woman. (n.d.). Retrieved December 10, 2014, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mrd14PxaUco

Salinger, J., & Mitchell, E. (1991). The catcher in the rye. New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company.

The Drifters- Money Honey. (n.d.). Retrieved December 10, 2014, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHgFs4Oxuc4

This is New York, 1950. (n.d.). Retrieved December 10, 2014, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQJQRGAo3KY

US Post WWII Boom. (n.d.). Retrieved December 10, 2014, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gmka2mydsD0

Welcome to the Purdue OWL. (n.d.). Retrieved December 10, 2014, from https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/02/

100 Best Songs Of The 1950s. (n.d.). Retrieved December 10, 2014, from http://www.nme.com/list/100-best-songs-of-the-1950s/262449/page/3

Teacher Page

Postwar Teen Webquest

by Drew Kravitz

Our post World War II unit will be paired with the novel The Catcher in the Rye in order to give students an understanding of how American society changed after the war. In this assignment students will build skills towards writing a research paper at the end of the unit. They will practice research, creating a bibliography, in-text citations, and developing an argument.

Essential Question

How did American culture during the post World War II era shape Holden's perception of society?

Objectives

1. Students will gain knowledge about American society in the post World War II era by exploring online resources and developing a blog discussing key themes and ideas.

2. Students will produce a Holden Caulfield twitter page analyzing the main character from novel The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger.

3. Students will discuss and determine how American culture in the postwar era may have shaped many teenagers perception on society during the 1940s and 1950s.

4. Students will create an argument for a research paper answering the essential question: How did American culture in the post World War II era shape Holden's perception on society.

State Standards/ Common Core Standards

Students analyze the economic boom and social transformation of post World War II America (CA History-Social Science Content Standards 11.8).

Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence (CA History-Social Studies ELA Writing Standards 11-12.1).

Introduce a topic or thesis statement; organize complex ideas, concepts, and information so that each new element builds on that which precedes it to create a unified whole (CA History-Social Studies ELA Writing Standards 11-12.2).

Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience (CA History-Social Studies ELA Writing Standards 11-12.4).

Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach, focusing on addressing what is most significant for a specific purpose and audience (CA History-Social Studies ELA Writing Standards 11-12.5).