American History

3rd Quarter Research Project - 2015

Mrs. Butterfield
Objective:
American History research projects are designed to develop students skills in using the library,
Internet, researching, writing and thinking critically. These skills enable students to succeed in
high school and college.
Instructions:
Your task is to research information and data on one of the following areas of American History;
analyze the information; summarize the information and present it in the following manner.
1. You will write an ABSTRACT (400-500) summarizing your topic. (APA format)
2. You will create a REFERENCE page (APA format) including a minimum of 4 sources
that you used to gather information about your topic. Two sources must be PRIMARY
and two sources may be SECONDARY.
3. You will create a TITLE page (APA format) for your abstract and reference page.
4. Your research should answer the following questions:
* What is my topic about?
* What is the historical backdrop of topic (put the topic in historical perspective)?
* Who are the important people in relation to my topic?
* What were the key events that took place?
* What was the historical significance or consequences regarding my topic?
* How did the topic impact or change America?
5.

Create a digital presentation (NOT PowerPoint) and teach topic to the class. May be a
video, webpage, etc. You will have 15-20 minutes to present your information.

6.

Please refer to the attached rubric for project expectations.

Due Date: Friday, Feb. 27, 2015 (you will present your topics Mon Wed, March 2-4, 2015)

Total Points: 100 points (*Remember this is a research project and projects are 25% of grade)

Topics:
Modern (1950 1968) Civil Rights Movement: Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott;
Jackie Robinson and Integration of American Society; Martin Luther King Jr. and the March in
Selma, Alabama & Washington D.C. AND the significant outcomes as a result of these events.
John F Kennedy: (1960-1963) Peace Corps/Bay of Pigs/the Cuban Missile Crisis in the context
of the Cold War.
LBJ and the Great Society: (1964-1968) Elementary and Secondary Education Act, Head
Start, Medicaid, Housing and Urban Development, Food Stamp Act, Job Corps AND the
significant impact these programs had on American lives.
The Cold War: (1950-1974) Containing Communism in Korea & Vietnam; Impact on the
American home front Duck and Cover; Protests against war in Vietnam; increase military
spending
The Conservative 1950s: (1950-1959) Eisenhower, Baby Boom, The Growth of American
Suburbia, Interstate Highway Act, TVs social impact, Rock and Roll, GI Bill, and the Rise of
Consumerism
The Technological Boom: (1950 1975) The development of scientific and medical
advancements AND their impact on American society. Including: computers, NASA, satellites,
hydrogen bomb, power plants, vaccines, organ donations and transplants, cell phones, etc.
Can I trust you Mr. President?: (1963 2000) Kennedy Assassinations Conspiracies, Nixon
Watergate Scandal, Ford pardoning Nixon, Iran-Contra Scandal, Monica Lewinsky Scandal and
how each of these changed American public opinion about politics
Minority Counterculture Movements: (1960 1980) Brown Movement (Hispanic); Red
Movement (Native Americans); Pink Movement (Feminist); Rainbow Movement (Gay Rights);
Green Movement (Environmentalist) AND the goals, tactics, and achievements of each of these
groups to see progress in American society.