Secretary of Commerce

Secretary of Commerce
Lou Hoover: Law, Politics and Govt

Skill: Middle School
Time Required:

Standards Compliance

NCSS Strand 6
Power, Authority, and Governance

NCTE Standard 8
Students use a variety of technology and information resources to gather, synthesize, and communicate knowledge.

NCTE Standard 7
Students conduct research by generating ideas, questions, and problems. They gather, evaluate, and synthesize data.

NCSS Strand 10
Civic Ideals and Practices

ISTE Standard 5
Technology research tools

Introduction:

In 1921 First Lady Lou Hoover was overseeing the construction of her long-planned home in Palo Alto when her husband was appointed Secretary of Commerce. Called “wonder boy” by President Calvin Coolidge, Hoover turned the Commerce Department into a powerful and effective branch of the executive office of the federal government. As her husband served in this role, Lou Hoover gained knowledge regarding the Washington society and served as the national president of the Girl Scouts of America.

Objectives:

In this lesson students will gain an understanding of economic history of the United States in the twentieth century by examining the role of the Department of Commerce.

Materials Required:

Access to the Internet and/or access to a public library.

Procedures:

Provide students with a brief history of the economic history of the United States.

Divide the class into four groups.

Each group is responsible for analyzing one quarter of the twentieth century by researching the role of the Department of Commerce during those twenty-five years.

Each group will also be responsible for creating a pictorial timeline of the economic history of the United States. To locate images for their timeline, students can use Google Images.

Extending the Lesson:

To expand this lesson, have students add to their timeline events that might fall into the following categories:

Law, Politics, Government, and War
Science, Medicine, Inventors, and Technology
Education, Arts, Letters, and Ideas
Economics, Discovery, and Daily Life
Sports and Popular Culture
Religion, Social Issues, and Reform

When student have completed their pictorial timeline have them compare their final product to the timeline on the First Ladies’ Educational Timeline.

Sources & Resources:

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