Exploring America in the 1970s

Celebrating the Self (Grades 6-8)

Molly Sandling, Kimberley Chandler

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2021
• Print ISBN:
  9781618211446
• eBook ISBN:
  9781000492842
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

Exploring America in the 1970s: Celebrating the Self is an interdisciplinary humanities unit that looks at literature, art, and music of the 1970s to provide an understanding of how those living through the decade experienced and felt about the world around them. Through the lens of "identity," it explores life in America and the myriad groups that coexisted in harmony and, often, with friction. Cultural movements like disco and the punk are examined alongside larger issues such as Watergate, post-Vietnam stagflation, and the birth of the women's liberation, Chicano, and gay pride movements.

The unit uses field-tested instructional strategies for language arts and social studies from The College of William and Mary, as well as new strategies, and it includes graphic organizers and other tools for analyzing primary sources. It can be used to complement a social studies or language arts curriculum or as standalone material in a gifted program.

Grades 6-8

Lesson 1
"It Seems the Good Die Young": The 70s Begin

DOI: 10.4324/9781003235088-3

Alignment of Unit Goals

• » Goal 1: To understand the concept of identity in 1970s America.
• » Goal 2: To develop skills in historical analysis and song and artwork interpretation.
• » Goal 3: To develop analytical and interpretive skills in literature.
• » Goal 4: To develop an understanding of historical events occurring in the United States during the 1970s.

Unit Objectives

• » To describe how the American identity changed during the 1970s.
• » To describe how changes in American identity in the 1970s were revealed in the music, art, and literature of the decade.
• » To define the context in which a song or piece of art was produced and the implications of context for understanding the artifact.
• » To describe a writer's or artist's intent in producing a given song or piece of art based on understanding of text and context.
• » To describe what a selected literary passage means.
• » To describe major historical events during the 1970s that affected the American identity.
• » To describe music, art, and literature of the 1970s that reflected the American identity.

Resources for Unit Implementation

• » Handout 1.1: Breakfast of Champions Q & A
• » Handout 1.2: Music Analysis Model
• » Handout 1.3: Music of the Early 1970s
• » Handout 1.4: Identity Chart
• » Handout 1.5: Identity Generalizations
• » Handout 1.6: Pet Rocks Unit Project
• » Read: The opening pages (up to p. 20) of Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut (1973/1999). An online excerpt is available at http://www.ereader.com/servlet/mw?t= book_excerpt&bookid=6542&si=59.
• » Listen:"Abraham, Martin, and John" (Holler, 1968) by Dion. The song is available on YouTube.
• » Listen:"Piano Man" by Billy Joel (1973); "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" (Gaye & Nyx, 1971) by Marvin Gaye; "Born to Run" by Bruce Springsteen (1975); "I'm a Worried Man" (Cash & Cash, 1974) by Johnny Cash; and "What's Going On" by Marvin Gaye (1971). All songs are available on YouTube.
• » Listen: "Let It Be" by The Beatles (McCartney, 1970), "Bridge Over Troubled Water" by Simon & Garfunkel (Simon, 1970), ""I'll Be There" by The Jackson 5 (Gordy, West, Davis, & Hutch, 1970), "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" (David & Bacharach, 1969) by B. J. Thomas. All songs are available on YouTube.

Key Terms

• » Assassination: the murder of a political figure, often by a surprise attack
• » Recession: a time of reduced economic activity, varying in scope and duration

Learning Experiences

1. Explain to students that during the 1970s, the United States went through economic, international; and cultural changes that affected Americans' perceptions of themselves, of the country, and of their role in the world. In order to understand how the events of this decade shaped the views of the average American, students are going to examine the music, literature, and art that was produced and consumed in the U.S. at the time.
2. Tell students that one of the popular authors of the 1970s was Kurt Vonnegut (1973/1999). Have students read the opening pages of his novel Breakfast of Champions. Have them complete Handout 1.1 (Breakfast of ChampionsQ & A). Ask: What is your reaction to this excerpt? Why? What type of lives do the characters seem to lead? How do these characters feel about their country? What criticisms do they make of their country? Why? What do they seem to be searching for? To understand these attitudes, let's review what's went on during the time the book was written.
3. Ask: What events do you remember from 1968? (e.g., assassinations of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, Tet Offensive in Vietnam, violent clash at the Democratic National Convention, etc.) Give students a copy of Handout 1.2 (Music Analysis Model). Play Dion's song "Abraham, Martin, and John" (Holler, 1968). Together, complete the analysis of the song. Ask: Based on this song, what was the mood of the U.S. at the end of 1968?
4. Explain to students that 1969 seemed to restore some hope in the American people as Neil Armstrong walked on the moon and the Woodstock music and art festival took place without violence. But, as the 1960s ended and the 1970s began, events took place that affected the American people. Using your textbook, review with students President Nixon's plan for Vietnamization and the invasion of Cambodia, the protest and violence at Kent State University that resulted, the recession of 1970, the Watergate crisis, and the 1973 Yom Kippur War, which led to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) putting an embargo on oil to the U.S. Ask: What do you think the effect of these events were on people in the U.S.? Why? How might these events explain the attitudes in the Vonnegut reading you started with at the beginning of the lesson?
5. Tell students that to try to understand how the ordinary American felt, they will look at some of the songs being produced during this time. Put students in groups of five, give each student Handout 1.3 (Music of the Early 1970s) and one of the following songs to analyze: "Piano Man" by Billy Joel (1973); "Inner City Blues" (Gaye & Nyx, 1971) by Marvin Gaye; "Born to Run" by Bruce Springsteen (1975); "I'm a Worried Man" (Cash & Cash, 1974) by Johnny Cash; and "What's Goin' On?" by Marvin Gaye (1971). Have students analyze their assigned song and lyrics.
6. Then, have students in their group share their findings and complete Handout 1.3 together. Provide students with access to the lyrics of the following songs while in their groups: "Let It Be" (McCartney, 1970) by The Beaties; "Bridge Over Troubled Water" (Simon, 1970) by Simon & Garfunkel; "I'll Be There" (Gordy, West, Davis, & Hutch, 1970) by The Jackson 5; and "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" (David & Bacharach, 1969) by B. J. Thomas. The lyrics to each song can be found through a Google search. Discuss student r...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Acknowledgement
• Unit Overview
• Implementation Guide
• Lesson 1: "It Seems the Good Die Young": The 70s Begin
• Lesson 2: Women's Liberation
• Lesson 3: De Colores: The Chicano Movement
• Lesson 4: AIM: The American Indian Movement
• Lesson 5: Beyond Civil Rights: African Americans in the 1970s
• Lesson 6: The Me Decade
• Lesson 7: Lines at the Gas Station: The Oil Crisis
• Lesson 8: 1976: The Bicentennial
• Lesson 9: Saturday Night Fever: The Age of Disco
• Lesson 10: That 70s Show: The 1970s Come to an End
• References
• Appendix: Unit Glossary
• About the Authors
• Common Core State Standards Alignment