4-H on the home front

In this lesson plan, secondary students will analyze a variety of primary source textual materials to investigate how young rural people were encouraged to support the war effort during World War II.

A lesson plan for grades 8 and 11–12 Social Studies

By Pauline S. Johnson

Provided by North Carolina State University / D.H. Hill Library and Special Collections

(North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service. 4-H Youth Development. 1943. Provided by the Green 'N' Growing collection at the North Carolina State University Libraries Special Collections Research Center. More about the illustration)

Learn more

• World War II: The Homefront Take a simulation that follows a typical American family through a school year during WW II. While this site doesn't give in-depth reasons for the war, it does cover day-to-day life and period culture, such as television, movies, and toys. The pictorial timeline is thorough, covering events that led to the war right up through the defeat of Japan. Artifacts, posters, and graphics make the site a compelling history from the homefront. Student-built website.
• Green 'N' Growing Digital reproductions of over 10,000 items, including photographs and pages from pamphlets, reports, and other materials, that document the history of 4-H and Home Demonstration in North Carolina from the 1900s to the 1970s. From the Special Collections Research Center at North Carolina State University.
• National 4-H Headquarters Information about the program. Includes history and lore.

Related pages

• Effects of civil action: In this lesson, secondary students will analyze primary source materials to investigate how 4-H clubs made an impact on the home front in completing projects that supported the war effort during World War II. This lesson should be taught at the end of a World War II unit.
• Edith Vanderbilt's relationship with estate families: George Vanderbilt’s marriage to Edith Stuyvesant Dresser in June 1898 precipitated a special celebration...
• 82nd Airborne Division War Memorial Museum: A visit to this museum will tell students the story of the 82nd Airborne Division from World War I to present.

Related topics

• Learn more about 4-H clubs, American history, North Carolina, World War II, and history.

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Introduction

Secondary students will analyze a variety of primary source textual materials from North Carolina provided by the Green ‘N’ Growing collection at the Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Library. They will investigate how rural young people were encouraged to support the war effort during World War II. This lesson uses an inquiry question to allow students to build their own understanding of what it was like during the war years in North Carolina and how 4-H Clubs encouraged students to choose projects with the war effort in mind. This lesson should be taught before the end of a World War II unit and before students have discussed the war at home.

Learning outcomes

Students will:

• examine, analyze, and interpret primary sources
• answer an inquiry question
• evaluate how the lives of children and young adults in North Carolina were affected by World War II
• develop historical empathy as they put themselves in the roles of students during the 1940s
• work cooperatively in groups/come to group consensus

Teacher planning

Time required for lesson

One and a half class periods

Materials/Resources

• chalkboard or white board or chart paper
• transparency of inquiry question
• blank transparency sheet and markers
• copies of the brainstorming sheet for each group of 5 students
• copies of various texts from the Green ‘N’ Growing site as listed in the Pre-activities section
• copies of the document analysis sheet for each group

Technology resources

overhead projector or another form of presentation

Pre-activities

This activity should be completed during a unit on World War II. It is important that students have not already studied life on the home front before doing this lesson.

The teacher needs to make copies of the following textual material from the Green ‘N’ Growing collection at the Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Library.

Make the required copies of the following textual material.

• 4-H for Security On The Homefront:
  • one transparency of the first page
  • enough copies of pages 2 and 4 for about half of your students (they will be in groups of 5)
• Copies of the following texts for use in Activity Two. You need to make enough copies so that each group of 5 has at least copies of one text or, if possible, five copies, so that each student has his own.
  • Join the 4-H Club in the Food and Freedom Fight
  • 4-H Leaders in the Victory Program
  • Additional Help For the 4-H Mobilization for Victory Program (pages 1 through 5 only)
  • The 4-H Victory Garden
  • 4-H Mobilization for Victory February 6–14, 1943 (pages 1 through 3 and 5 through 6 only)
• transparency of Winners in North Carolina Feed a Fighter Program (You may want to cut and paste this so that it fits on one transparency because you will only need the first, second, and last paragraphs.)

To access the textual material and see other texts:

1. Go to the Green ‘N’ Growing collection.
2. Click on the Browse by Subject section on the bottom of the page.
3. All of the textual material is found in the subject World War, 1939–1945 — North Carolina.

Activities

Activity one

Preview (5–8 minutes)

1. Recognizing that this may be a sensitive issue, ask the students how we in North Carolina have been and continue to be affected by the War on Terror. Put the list on the board or chart paper. Some answers will probably include friends and relatives who are in Iraq and Afghanistan, writing letters to soldiers, and news reports. Some students may know someone who has been wounded or killed as a result of their service. Acknowledge that all these answers are important to those who are affected.
2. Now ask them to imagine how World War II might have affected North Carolinians. Again, write these on the board or chart. Students will most likely begin with some of the same answers. Through continuing probing questions, lead the students to include more effects, but don’t discuss whether the students are correct or not. Examples of questions: Which war (War on Terror or World War II) had more soldiers serving? Do you think that World War II affected the availability of supplies in North Carolina? What are some examples of that? How did the war affect the economy?
3. The students should have built a curiosity as well as a working list of the effect on life on the home front during World War II.

Procedure

1. Put the students into groups of 5.
2. Ask students if they have ever heard of the 4-H Club. Some students may be members of the group. Allow a couple of them to share their experiences as a 4-H member. If no student knows about 4-H, explain that it was a club for rural children and young people.
3. Put the transparency of the first page of the pamphlet “4-H for Security on the Homefront” on the overhead. Ask the following questions:
   • What does the symbol at the top left mean? (Head, hands, heart, health are the four Hs. The clover shape symbolizes good luck and achievement.)
   • What important information is included on this page? (Students should see the words “homefront” and “security.” If someone does not notice the date (August 1944), lead them to see this.)
   • What is significant about the date of this pamphlet? (World War II was going on.)
4. Put the following inquiry question on the board or overhead: How did 4-H Clubs encourage young people to support the war effort?
5. Give each group two copies of the second page of pamphlet “4-H for Security On The Homefront” called Your Parent Should Know. Have them read this to get background on 4-H clubs.
6. Give each group a copy of the Day One - Brainstorming Sheet.
7. Ask each group to take a few minutes to brainstorm ways that these club members could support the war effort. After they have listed several, have them choose what they consider the best three.
8. Put a blank transparency sheet on the overhead and have a member of each group share their three best ideas. The groups may have some of the same ideas. This is fine.
9. Now give each group two copies of the Requirements for Completing Project Offered in 4-H Club Work, which is page 4 of the pamphlet “4-H for Security On The Homefront.” Have each group decide which of the projects they believe would best support the war effort and rank them 1 through 3. They should indicate why they believe these would be the most effective. Each group must come to a group consensus.
10. Tell the class that they must come up with a class consensus. Each group should share their ideas with the whole class and be prepared to defend their ranking. Allow class discussion so that students can come up with a class decision on what might have been the best projects to support the war effort. Have them explain their reasoning.

Homework

1. The students are to imagine that they are living in 1944. In what ways would they choose to help the war effort? These can be ideas that were discussed in class or they could include some others that occurred to them during the lesson. Which of the 4-H projects they would most like to complete?
2. They will write a letter to a family member who is fighting in World War II explaining how they are doing their part at home.
3. Remind the students that in 1944 the war was still going on and that people at the time did not how the war was going to end. They should be sure to write from this perspective. This important historical skill is often difficult for students to grasp.

Activity two

Preview

1. Ask a few of the students to share portions of their homework assignment.
2. Have students share how successful they felt they were in assuming the character of someone who didn’t know the end of the war. Was it difficult?

Procedure

1. Put students back into the groups (or you could choose to make new groups).
2. Put the inquiry transparency back on the overhead.
3. Ask the students to review the inquiry question. What are some of the answers they hypothesized from yesterday’s discussion and the homework assignment? Talk within the group and then share some of their ideas in a short class discussion.
4. Explain that today the students will analyze actual documents that will help them to learn specific ways the 4-H encouraged members to support the war effort.
5. Give each group one of the primary sources and analysis sheets that were prepared ahead of time (see the Pre-activities section). Give them up to 15 minutes to investigate their source material and fill in the analysis sheet.
6. Have each group report to the class about their source and explain how it helped to answer the inquiry question.
7. The final component is to share with the students the results of the 1943 Feed a Fighter program. Put up the transparency of Winners in North Carolina Feed a Fighter Program. Read with the students the first, second, and last paragraph. Discuss with students the transparency.
8. Have the students write (or you may discuss instead):
   • Do you believe the 4-H Clubs made a positive impact in the war effort during World War II?
   • Why do you think it was important to involve the young people in the war effort? Support your ideas with specific examples.

Assessment

Assessment will be from teacher observation of student discussion and understanding of concepts discussed in class. Students will also complete a brainstorming sheet in groups and should be able to articulate at least three ways that the 4-H Clubs of North Carolina supported the war effort during World War II.

The homework assignment addresses the skill of historical empathy. Students should list several ways in which they would help. An important component of this assignment is that they write as if they do not know the outcome of the war.

For the second activity, groups will fill in a document analysis sheet. The teacher should observe student understanding from the class and group discussions.

The final writing can be done in a journal style assignment or a short essay.

Extension activities

Another lesson using materials from the Green ‘N’ Growing collection can be used in conjunction with the above lesson. In The Effects of Civic Action: 4-H Clubs during World War II, students will investigate the impact 4-H clubs from various North Carolina counties had on the war effort. This could be used after completing the 4-H on the Home Front lesson and finishing a World War II unit.

Modifications

This lesson is a cooperative learning activity and involves active learning so all students should be included. Students who have difficulty reading should be put into groups with stronger readers.

Critical vocabulary

4-H clubs

The foundation for 4-H began in the late 1800’s with various agricultural projects geared at ensuring the future of rural youth. Today 4-Hers participate in hands-on learning activities supported by the latest research of land-grant universities that are focused on three areas: healthy living, citizenship, and science, engineering and technology.

Extension workers

People that worked for land grant colleges and universities to improve life and bring information to rural people.

Home front

What the home country is called during a time of war. During World War II, life in the United States was greatly affected.