Going to the Show: Lesson Plans

Conduct your own oral history project

Introduction  |   Activities 1 - 3  |   Activities 4 - 6  |   Oral History Record Packet  |   Learn More

Early 1900s photographs, news clippings and advertisements from the Bijou Theatre (pronounced bye-joe by the locals) in Wilmington, North Carolina, from the UNC DocSouth "Going to the Show" online digital collection: http://docsouth.unc.edu/gtts/map/?city=wilmington

In this unit for grade 8, students will research the experience of going to the movies by conducting background research on the moviegoing experience in the early 20th century and then conducting oral history interviews with contemporary student peers and with family and/or friends representative of older generations.

Students will develop an understanding of the moviegoing experience by:

• conducting background exploration on the moviegoing experience in the early 20th century using the UNC DocSouth "Going to the Show" online digital collection (http://docsouth.unc.edu/gtts/)
• developing and conducting oral history interviews with contemporary peers, to capture the current moviegoing experience, and
• developing and conducting oral history interviews with family and/or friends representative of older generations to capture the moviegoing experience during the early and mid-twentieth century.

They will then compare and contrast the findings from their interviews, and describe how the moviegoing experience has changed and how it remains the same. The oral histories will be collected into a final project and placed in the school's library for students and teachers to reference and/or study in the future.

A lesson plan for grade 8 Social Studies
By Lisa Speaker

LEARNING OUTCOMES

• Students will develop an understanding of the contemporary moviegoing experience through the experience of contemporary peers and fellow students.
• Students will develop an understanding of the moviegoing experience in the early-to-mid-twentieth century through the experience of family and/or friends representative of older generations.
• Students will learn the fundamental elements of recording oral history interviews, including conducting background research, crafting questions, responding to and analyzing the interviewee's experiences, and understanding how cultural influences shape the interviewee's responses.

TEACHER PLANNING

Time Required for Lesson:
Approximately 3-4 weeks. Students will complete several activities including:

1. Reflecting on the contemporary moviegoing experience.
2. Researching the moviegoing experience in the early 1900s.
3. Introduction to and orientation on oral histories.
4. Practice conducting their first oral history interview: interview 1-2 peer students to get perspective on contemporary moviegoing experience.
5. Conducting oral history interviews: interview 3-5 family members and/or friends to get perspective on historic moviegoing experience—recommend focus on their "first" remembered moviegoing experiences (number of interviewees is based on teacher's discretion and available time).
6. Reflecting on the oral histories, comparing and contrasting the moviegoing experience: contemporary (from peers) vs. historic (from family, friends, etc.).
7. Presentations of their key findings.

Teachers might want to conclude each session with a collective wrap-up discussion and ask students to report back on each activity: What did they find? What was most interesting? What was most surprising? Are there any major questions that their explorations generated? Where might they go to get answers to those questions?

Materials / Resources

• Background material on the UNC DocSouth "Going to the Show" (GTTS) online digital collection.
• GTTS Home Page: http://docsouth.unc.edu/gtts/
• Background: "Moviegoing in Early 20th-Century North Carolina": http://docsouth.unc.edu/highlights/moviegoing.html
• Early 1900s photographs, news clippings and advertisements from the Bijou Theatre (pronounced bye-joe by the locals) in Wilmington, North Carolina, from the UNC DocSouth "Going to the Show" online digital collection: http://docsouth.unc.edu/gtts/map/?city=wilmington
• Optionally: GTTS includes information about theaters from some 200 North Carolina communities. Additionally, teachers may want to include a review of the theaters in their locale. However, the historical content such as theater information may be much more limited for smaller communities.
• Oral history background: oral histories from the UNC DocSouth "Oral Histories of the American South" online digital collection. Note: the interviewees of the following oral histories briefly recount or mention their moviegoing experiences within the context of a larger interview—usually life in an early 20th-century North Carolina mill town. These are meant to provide students with a general initial introduction to oral histories rather than an introduction to oral histories related specifically to going to the movies. To find specific excerpts related to movies, search the transcript text for the word "movie."
• Murphy Yomen Sigmon: http://docsouth.unc.edu/sohp/H-0142/
• Excerpt: Moviegoing in Hickory, North Carolina: http://docsouth.unc.edu/sohp/H-0142/excerpts/excerpt_5342.html
• George and Tessie Dyer: http://docsouth.unc.edu/sohp/H-0161/
• Margaret Skinner: http://docsouth.unc.edu/sohp/H-0278/
• Ethelene McCabe Allen: http://docsouth.unc.edu/sohp/C-0316/
• Viola Turner (segregated theaters): http://docsouth.unc.edu/sohp/C-0015/menu.html
• Excerpt: Challenging Jim Crow segregation and perception of race: http://docsouth.unc.edu/sohp/C-0015/excerpts/excerpt_2574.html
• Transcripts of oral history excerpts for each student (available at the links above).
• Computer and Internet connection and speakers, or a CD player if you have burned your own CD.
• Print and online sources about early moviegoing experiences for student research.
• Oral history student packet for each student.
• Examples of oral histories and oral history collections online (see "Additional Websites" below).
• Several tape recorders.
• High-quality cassette tapes.
• Extra batteries.

Technology Resources

• Computer lab with high-speed Internet access. Students could work independently or in small groups depending on computer availability and teacher preference.
• Technology to display oral history examples from the UNC DocSouth "Oral Histories of the American South" online digital collection, and background information on the moviegoing experience in the early 20th century from the UNC DocSouth "Going to the Show" online digital collection.

NORTH CAROLINA CURRICULUM ALIGNMENT
Social Studies - Grade 8
Goal 5: The learner will evaluate the impact of political, economic, social, and technological changes on life in North Carolina from 1870 to 1930.
Objective 5.02: Examine the changing roles of educational, religious, and social institutions in the state and analyze their impact.
Objective 5.04: Identify technological advances and evaluate their influence on the quality of life in North Carolina.

Social Studies - Grade 12
Goal 7: The Progressive Movement in the United States (1890-1914) - The learner will analyze the economic, political, and social reforms of the Progressive Period.
Goal 7.03: Evaluate the effects of racial segregation on different regions and segments of the United States' society.
Goal 7.04: Examine the impact of technological changes on economic, social, and cultural life in the United States.

PRE-ACTIVITIES

In this lesson, students will be presented with several example oral histories and some general background information on going to the movies in the early 20th century. Students will use this preliminary orientation and preparation to conduct their own oral history interviews. They will conduct interviews that a) capture the contemporary moviegoing experience, and b) capture the moviegoing experience from the early to the mid-twentieth century, depending on age and availability of family members and/or friends that they can interview.

Key skills for this lesson include:

• Preparing to conduct oral history interviews.
• Conducting oral history interviews.
• Transcribing oral history interviews.
• Analyzing findings from several oral history interviews. Comparing and contrasting experiences from several interviewees. Summarizing and reporting on findings.

Teacher preparation includes:

• Previewing the background information on moviegoing in the early twentieth century:
• Moviegoing in the Early 20th-Century North Carolina
• Robert Allen's Wilmington, NC Case Study
• Going to the Show: About the Collection: Background: Why a Digital Library Devoted to Moviegoing?
• Going to the Show: About the Collection: Why North Carolina?
• Going to the Show: About the Collection: What is a Venue?
• Reviewing the photographs, news clippings, and advertisements for the Bijou Theatre in Wilmington, NC that are referenced in Activity 2.
• Optionally: select another city in addition to Wilmington that might be closer to the school's location.
• Reviewing the Learn NC "Ten Questions for Planning an Oral History Project": https://www.ncpedia.org/anchor/anchor/
• Listening to the oral histories listed above and identifying the excerpts related to going to the movies. Identifying what excerpts should be used for student orientation. Preparing printouts of transcripts as needed.
• Determining if, in preparation, teachers want to conduct more extensive research/exploration into the early 20th-century moviegoing experience through the Bijou Theatre lesson.
• Previewing the Conducting an Oral History student packet and customizing if desired.
• Reviewing the Release Form (included in the Conducting an Oral History student packet) and modifying if necessary for your own purposes.

Introduction  |   Activities 1 - 3  |   Activities 4 - 6  |   Oral History Record Packet  |   Learn More