Cascade High School-Western Dubuque County Community School District

Summer 2009

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.mn0274

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

Collection

Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)

The WPA was an ambitious public works project undertaken during the “Second New Deal.” Many communities owe infrastructure and public works to the program. By examining the WPA and New Deal, the learner can begin to comprehend the consequences and issues that resulted from creation and implementation of this program.

Overview/ Materials/Historical Background/LOC Resources/Standards/ Procedures/Evaluation/Rubric/Handouts/Extension

Overview Back to Navigation Bar
Objectives	Students will: · Understand the importance of mobilizing labor during the Great Depression · Recognize the need and justification for the program · Identify the positive and negative consequences of the program · Analyze primary source documents detailing the progress of various projects · Gain the ability to relate and compose current community issues in relation to those found during the New Deal
Recommended time frame	7–9 class periods
Grade level	7–12
Curriculum fit	American History, American Government, Geography, Economics
Materials	· *REFER TO PRIMARY SOURCE TABLE FOR COMPLETE LIST OF MATERIALS AND SOURCES* · Lecture notes · Projector and Computer w/speakers · Copy of lecture notes · Colored Pencils · Rulers · Crayons · Construction Paper · Computer Lab · Directions sheet · PowerPoints on The New Deal and WPA · Blueprints of WPA building construction · Building plans for WPA construction · Photo of WPA Construction
Cascade High School-Western Dubuque County Community School District Learning Standards Back to Navigation Bar
	· Standards: Understands and knows how to analyze chronological relationships and patterns. 1.1- Apply key concepts such as time, chronology, causality, change, conflict, and complexity to explain, analyze, and show connections among patterns of historical change and continuity. 1.2- Investigate, interpret, and analyze multiple historical and contemporary viewpoints within and across cultures related to important events, recurring dilemmas, and persistent issues, while employing empathy, skepticism, and critical judgment. Understands how events are influenced and interrelated to each other. Describe and assess ways that historical events have been influenced by, and have influenced, physical and human geographic factors in local, regional, national, and global settings. 2.1- Analyze and evaluate social and economic effects of environmental changes and crises resulting from phenomena such as floods, storms, and drought. 2.2- Examine the interactions of ethnic, national, or cultural influences in specific situations or events. Knows different types of primary and secondary sources and the motives, interests, and bias expressed in them (eyewitness accounts, letters, diaries, artifacts, photos, magazine articles, newspaper accounts, hearsay). 3.2- Analyze and evaluate conditions, actions, and motivations that contribute to conflict and cooperation within and among nations. Understands how U.S. History is interconnected to all other aspects of Social Studies (Government, Economics, Sociology, Psychology, Geography & Current Events). 4. 1- Describe relationships among various economic institutions that comprise economic systems such as households, business firms, banks, government agencies, labor unions, and corporations. 4.2- Apply social concepts and reasoning when evaluating historical and contemporary social developments and issues.
Procedures
	Day One: · Introduce the New Deal and the goals of its programs/projects · Show examples of New Deal programs and projects Day Two: · Debate merits of New Deal programs based on archived arguments for or against the New Deal · Show examples of local projects and programs · Possible field trip to local projects/programs Day Three: · Introduce local New Deal Project Assignment · Divide into team groups consisting of three to four students · Hand out directions for project · Students begin to create proposal for a WPA project in their community, create a WPA poster promoting the project, write a letter to a newspaper editor as to why project should occur and be supported, create a model of project, construct a timeline of completion, and prepare a PowerPoint/video showing highlights of construction · Print out copies of blueprints and building plan proposal for group reference. One per group only Days Four through Seven: · Research and teamwork on projects Days Eight and Nine: · Present projects to mock city/county government board · Vote on approval or rejection of projects
Evaluation Back to Navigation Bar
	Evaluation for all components will be based on rubrics. There will be seven components to grade with this project. Two rubrics will be used, one for the project work and one for the oral presentation. Teacher may change point values on rubrics.
Extension Back to Navigation Bar
	Possible extension activities could include the creation of a video or photograph scrapbook of remaining local New Deal/WPA sites, or the development of a recorded diary of local workers on WPA activities and community member memories.

Historical Background

Back to Navigation Bar

Birth of the “New Deal”

The term New Deal was coined during Franklin Roosevelt’s 1932 Democratic presidential nomination acceptance speech when he said, “I pledge you, I pledge myself, to a new deal for the American people.” Roosevelt summarized the New Deal as a “use of the authority of government as an organized form of self-help for all classes and groups and sections of our country.”

At his inauguration in March 1933, Roosevelt declared in his lilting style, “Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is, fear itself — needless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.” In his first 99 days, he proposed, and Congress swiftly enacted, an ambitious “New Deal” to deliver relief to the unemployed and those in danger of losing farms and homes, recovery to agriculture and business, and reform, notably through the inception of the vast Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). The New Deal effects would take time; some 13,000,000 people were out of work by March 1933, and virtually every bank was shuttered.

The “Hundred Days”

The president called a special session of Congress on March 9. Immediately he began to submit reform and recovery measures for congressional validation. Virtually all the important bills he proposed were enacted by Congress. The 99-day (March 9–June 16) session came to be known as the “Hundred Days.”

On March 12, 1933, Roosevelt broadcast the first of 30 “fireside chats” over the radio to the American people. The opening topic was the Bank Crisis. Primarily, he spoke on a variety of topics to inform Americans and exhort them to support his domestic agenda, and later, the war effort. During Roosevelt’s first year as president, Congress passed laws to protect stock and bond investors.

Among the measures enacted during the first Hundred Days were the following:

 Emergency Banking Act (March 9), provided the president with the means to reopen viable banks and regulate banking;

 Economy Act (March 20), cut federal costs through reorganization of and cuts in salaries and veterans’ pensions;

 Beer-Wine Revenue Act (March 22), legalized and taxed wine and beer;

 Civilian Conservation Corps Act (March 31). Three million young men, between the ages of 18 to 25, found work in road building, forestry labor, and flood control through the establishment of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC);

 Federal Emergency Relief Act (May 12), established the Federal Emergency Relief Administration to distribute $500 million to states and localities for relief. Administered by Harry Hopkins for relief or for wages on public works, that federal agency would eventually pay out about $3 billion;

 Agricultural Adjustment Act (May 12), established the Agricultural Adjustment Administration to decrease crop surpluses by subsidizing farmers who voluntarily cut back on production;

 Thomas Amendment to the Agricultural Adjustment Act, permitted the president to inflate the currency in various ways;

 Tennessee Valley Authority Act (May 18), allowed the federal government to build dams and power plants in the Tennessee Valley, coupled with agricultural and industrial planning, to generate and sell the power, and to engage in area development. The TVA was given an assignment to improve the economic and social circumstances of the people living in the river basin; and the

 Federal Securities Act (May 27), to stiffen regulation of the securities business.

The “Second Hundred Days”

Congress also enacted several important relief and reform measures in the summer of 1935 — sometimes called the Second Hundred Days.

During the Second Hundred Days, those measures enacted included:

 Joint resolution to abandon the gold standard (June 5);

 National Employment System Act (June 6), to create the U.S. Employment Service;

 Home Owners Refinancing Act (June 13), to establish the Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC) to refinance nonfarm home mortgages;

 Glass-Steagall Banking Act (June 16), to institute various banking reforms, including establishing the Federal Bank Deposit Insurance Corporation, that insured deposits up to $5,000, and later, $10,000;

 Farm Credit Act (June 16), to provide for the refinancing of farm mortgages;

 Emergency Railroad Transportation Act (June 16), to increase federal regulation of railroads; and the

 National Industrial Recovery Act (June 16), to establish the National Recovery Administration and the Public Works Administration.

Following Roosevelt's lead, the government launched a relief program, the Civil Works Administration (CWA), in the winter of 1933–1934. The CWA provided funds to such authorities as mayors and governors for public projects including road, bridge, and school construction; park restoration; and others. Critics castigated the CWA as make-work, much of it useless.

After a few months, Roosevelt terminated the CWA, but other programs enjoyed longer lives. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) lasted from 1933 until 1942. Its members produced notable and lasting results with flood control, soil conservation, and forestry programs. The Works Progress Administration (WPA) was established in 1935 to provide work for the unemployed. Between that year and 1941, the WPA employed an average of two million people a year. The WPA went on to spend billions on reforestation, flood control, rural electrification, water works, sewage plants, school buildings, slum clearance, student scholarships, and other projects. Their crowning achievement came in the completion of the Bonneville Dam on the Columbia in 1937.

http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1851.html 7/30/09

Works Progress Administration (WPA)

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) was instituted by presidential executive order under the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act of April 1935 to generate public jobs for the unemployed. The WPA was restructured in 1939 when it was reassigned to the Federal Works Agency.

By 1936 over 3.4 million people were employed on various WPA programs. Administered by Harry Hopkins and furnished with an original congressional allocation of $4.8 billion, the WPA made work accessible to the unemployed on an unparalleled scale by disbursing funds for an extensive array of programs. Hopkins argued that although the work relief program was more costly than direct relief payments, it was worth it. He averred, “Give a man a dole, and you save his body and destroy his spirit. Give him a job and you save both body and spirit.”

While responsibility for such unemployable people as children, the elderly, and the handicapped was remanded to the states, the WPA provided literally millions of jobs to employable people, enrolling on average about two million a year during its eight-year stint. Far fewer women were enrolled than men. Just 13.5 percent of WPA employees were women in 1938, its top enrollment year.

The WPA was charged with selecting projects that would make a real and lasting contribution — but would not vie with private firms. As it turned out, the “pump-priming” effect of federal projects actually stimulated private business during the Depression years. The WPA focused on tangible improvements: During its tenure, workers constructed 651,087 miles of roads, streets, and highways; and built, repaired, or refurbished 124,031 bridges, 125,110 public buildings, 8,192 parks, and 853 landing fields. In addition, workers cleaned slums, revived forests, and extended electrical power to rural locations.

Work was provided for nearly a million students through the WPA National Youth Administration (NYA). The Federal One projects employed 40,000 artists and other cultural workers to produce music and theater, sculptures, murals and paintings, state and regional travel guides, and surveys of national archives. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a program designed to address the problem of jobless young men between 18 and 25 years old. CCC camps were set up all around the country.

The WPA’s positive results for the public good and its popularity helped Franklin D. Roosevelt to garner a thumping electoral victory in 1936, even though the agency employed no more than about 25 percent of the nation’s jobless.

Meanwhile, New Deal critics in Congress accused the program of waste, political maneuvering, and even subversive activity; they took their chance to prune the program when unemployment figures dipped a little in 1937. When unemployment rose again the following year, funding was brought back to previous levels. However, 1939 saw more cutbacks. The Emergency Relief Appropriations Act of June 30 eliminated the Federal Theater Project, cut back WPA pay, and limited enrollment to 18 months. Reacting to charges of politicking by WPA employees during the 1938 congressional races, the Hatch Act of August 1939 prevented federal workers from participating in a broad array of political activities.

With wartime prosperity rising in the 1940s, the WPA became more difficult to justify, and on June 30, 1943 the agency was terminated by presidential proclamation. All told, the WPA had employed more than 8,500,000 individuals on 1,410,000 projects with an average salary of $41.57 a month, and had spent about $11 billion.

http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1599.html 07/30/09

Primary Resources from the Library of Congress

Image

Description

Citation

URL

WPA poster design showing the head and hands of a woman holding flowers and wheat above a blank banner

CALL NUMBER
POS - WPA - NY .01 .W08, no. 1a

REPRODUCTION NUMBER
LC-USZC2-5358 DLC

REPOSITORY
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

http://memory.loc.gov and search for:

[WPA poster design showing the head and hands of a woman holding flowers and wheat above a blank banner]

WPA Project Blueprints -Moorhead American Legion Building, 700 First Avenue North, Moorhead, Clay County, MN

Survey number HABS MN-127

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.mn0274

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

Collection

Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/mn/mn0200/mn0274/sheet/00001a.gif

WPA Project Blueprints -Moorhead American Legion Building, 700 First Avenue North, Moorhead, Clay County, MN

Survey number HABS MN-127

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.mn0274

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

Collection

Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/mn/mn0200/mn0274/sheet/00004r.tif

WPA Building Proposal - Greenbelt Community Building, 15 Crescent Road, Greenbelt, Prince George’s County, MD

Collection

Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.md1174

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/md/md1100/md1174/data/003.gif

Greenbelt Community Building, 15 Crescent Road, Greenbelt, Prince George’s County, MD

Collection

Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.md1174

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/md/md1100/md1174/photos/043303pt.gif

Greenbelt Community Building, 15 Crescent Road, Greenbelt, Prince George’s County, MD

Collection

Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.md1174

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/md/md1100/md1174/photos/043310pt.gif

Greenbelt Community Building, 15 Crescent Road, Greenbelt, Prince George's County, MD

Collection

Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.md1174

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/md/md1100/md1174/photos/043311pt.gif

WPA Building Proposal - Greenbelt Community Building, 15 Crescent Road, Greenbelt, Prince George's County, MD

Collection

Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.md1174

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/md/md1100/md1174/data/004.gif

WPA Building Proposal - Greenbelt Community Building, 15 Crescent Road, Greenbelt, Prince George's County, MD

Collection

Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.md1174

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/md/md1100/md1174/data/005.gif

WPA Building Proposal - Greenbelt Community Building, 15 Crescent Road, Greenbelt, Prince George's County, MD

Collection

Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.md1174

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/md/md1100/md1174/data/006.gif

WPA Building Proposal - Greenbelt Community Building, 15 Crescent Road, Greenbelt, Prince George's County, MD

Collection

Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.md1174

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/md/md1100/md1174/data/007.gif

WPA Building Proposal - Greenbelt Community Building, 15 Crescent Road, Greenbelt, Prince

George’s County, MD

Collection

Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.md1174

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/md/md1100/md1174/data/008.gif

WPA Building Proposal - Greenbelt Community Building, 15 Crescent Road, Greenbelt, Prince George’s County, MD

Collection

Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.md1174

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/md/md1100/md1174/data/009.gif

WPA Project Blueprints -Madison County Fairgrounds, U.S. Highway 41, Twin Bridges, Madison County, MT

Collection

Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.mt0094

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/mt/mt0000/mt0094/sheet/00001r.tif

Plains farms need trees : Trees prevent wind erosion, save moisture ... protect crops, contribute to human comfort and happiness / J. Dusek.

CALL NUMBER
POS - WPA - ILL .D87, no. 3

REPRODUCTION NUMBER
LC-USZC2-815 DLC (color film copy slide

REPOSITORY
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA DIGITAL ID
(color film copy slide) cph 3b48715 http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cph.3b48715

http://memory.loc.gov/service/pnp/cph/3b40000/3b48000/3b48700/3b48715t.gif

Pet show - WPA recreation project, Dist. No. 2.

CALL NUMBER
POS - WPA - ILL .01 .P48, no. 1

REPRODUCTION NUMBER
LC-USZC2-5202 DLC (color film copy slide)

REPOSITORY
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGITAL ID
(color film copy slide) cph 3f05202 http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cph.3f05202

http://memory.loc.gov/service/pnp/cph/3f00000/3f05000/3f05200/3f05202t.gif

Pond Creek Bridge, Spanning Pond Creek at Bear Lake Road (State Route, Thornhurst vicinity, Lackawanna County, PA

Collection

Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.pa3670

Call Number

HAER PA,35-THORN.V,1-

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/pa/pa3600/pa3670/photos/361563pt.gif

Pond Creek Bridge, Spanning Pond Creek at Bear Lake Road (State Route, Thornhurst vicinity, Lackawanna County, PA

Collection

Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.pa3670

Call Number

HAER PA,35-THORN.V,1-

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/pa/pa3600/pa3670/photos/361565pt.gif

WPA Building Proposal - Pond Creek Bridge, Spanning Pond Creek at Bear Lake Road (State Route, Thornhurst vicinity, Lackawanna County, PA

Collection

Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.pa3670

Call Number

HAER PA,35-THORN.V,1-

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/pa/pa3600/pa3670/data/003.gif

WPA Building Proposal - Pond Creek Bridge, Spanning Pond Creek at Bear Lake Road (State Route, Thornhurst vicinity, Lackawanna County, PA

Collection

Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.pa3670

Call Number

HAER PA,35-THORN.V,1-

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/pa/pa3600/pa3670/data/004.gif

WPA Building Proposal - Pond Creek Bridge, Spanning Pond Creek at Bear Lake Road (State Route, Thornhurst vicinity, Lackawanna County, PA

Collection

Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.pa3670

Call Number

HAER PA,35-THORN.V,1-

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/pa/pa3600/pa3670/data/005.gif

WPA Building Proposal - Pond Creek Bridge, Spanning Pond Creek at Bear Lake Road (State Route, Thornhurst vicinity, Lackawanna County, PA

Collection

Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.pa3670

Call Number

HAER PA,35-THORN.V,1-

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/pa/pa3600/pa3670/data/006.gif

WPA Building Proposal - Pond Creek Bridge, Spanning Pond Creek at Bear Lake Road (State Route, Thornhurst vicinity, Lackawanna County, PA

Collection

Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.pa3670

Call Number

HAER PA,35-THORN.V,1-

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/pa/pa3600/pa3670/data/007.gif

WPA Building Proposal - Pond Creek Bridge, Spanning Pond Creek at Bear Lake Road (State Route, Thornhurst vicinity, Lackawanna County, PA

Collection

Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.pa3670

Call Number

HAER PA,35-THORN.V,1-

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/pa/pa3600/pa3670/data/008.gif

WPA Building Proposal - Pond Creek Bridge, Spanning Pond Creek at Bear Lake Road (State Route, Thornhurst vicinity, Lackawanna County, PA

Collection

Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.pa3670

Call Number

HAER PA,35-THORN.V,1-

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/pa/pa3600/pa3670/data/009.gif

WPA Building Proposal - Pond Creek Bridge, Spanning Pond Creek at Bear Lake Road (State Route, Thornhurst vicinity, Lackawanna County, PA

Collection

Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress)

Repository

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

DIGID

http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hhh.pa3670

Call Number

HAER PA,35-THORN.V,1-

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/pa/pa3600/pa3670/data/010.gif

Rubric

Back to Navigation Bar

50 Point Project

Student Name: ________________________________________			Project:
CATEGORY	10	8.5	7	5.5
Organization and Neatness	Information is very organized with well-constructed paragraphs and lists. Requirements are extremely neat and clear.	Information is organized with well-constructed paragraphs and lists. Requirements are neat and clear.	Information is organized, but paragraphs and lists are not well-constructed. Requirements are somewhat neat and clear.	The information appears to be disorganized. Information is not very neat or clear.
Amount of Information	All topics are addressed and all questions answered. No questions remain.	All topics are addressed and most questions answered. Some questions remain.	All topics are addressed, and few questions are answered. Many questions remain.	One or more topics were not addressed. No questions answered.
Quality of Information	Information clearly relates to the main topic. It includes several supporting details and/or examples.	Information clearly relates to the main topic. It provides 1–2 supporting details and/or examples.	Information somewhat relates to the main topic. No details and/or examples are given.	Information has little or nothing to do with the main topic.
Sources	All sources (information and graphics) are accurately documented in the desired format.	All sources (information and graphics) are accurately documented, but a few are not in the desired format.	All sources (information and graphics) are accurately documented, but many are not in the desired format.	Sources are not accurately documented.
Mechanics	No grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors.	1–3 grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors.	4–6 grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors.	7+ grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors.
		*Teacher reserves the right to award less than 5.5 points*
TOTAL POINTS:		/50
25 Point Project

Student Name: ________________________________________			Project:
CATEGORY	5	4	3		2
Organization and Neatness	Information is very organized with well-constructed paragraphs and lists. Requirements are extremely neat and clear.	Information is organized with well-constructed paragraphs and lists. Requirements are neat and clear.	Information is organized, but paragraphs and lists are not well-constructed. Requirements are somewhat neat and clear.		The information appears to be disorganized. Information is not very neat or clear.
Amount of Information	All topics are addressed and all questions are answered. No questions remain.	All topics are addressed and most questions are answered. Some questions remain.	All topics are addressed, and few questions are answered. Many questions remain.		One or more topics were not addressed. No questions answered.
Quality of Information	Information clearly relates to the main topic. It includes several supporting details and/or examples.	Information clearly relates to the main topic. It provides 1–2 supporting details and/or examples.	Information somewhat relates to the main topic. No details and/or examples are given.		Information has little or nothing to do with the main topic.
Sources	All sources (information and graphics) are accurately documented in the desired format.	All sources (information and graphics) are accurately documented, but a few are not in the desired format.	All sources (information and graphics) are accurately documented, but many are not in the desired format.		Sources are not accurately documented.
Mechanics	No grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors.	1–3 grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors.	4–6 grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors.		7+ grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors.
		*Teacher reserves the right to award less than 2 (two) points*
TOTAL POINTS:		/25

Oral Presentation Rubric : WPA Project
Student Name: ________________________________________
CATEGORY	5	4	3	2
Content	Shows a full understanding of the topic.	Shows a good understanding of the topic.	Shows a good understanding of parts of the topic.	Does not seem to understand the topic very well.
Preparedness	Student is completely prepared and has obviously rehearsed.	Student seems pretty prepared but might have needed a couple more rehearsals.	The student is somewhat prepared, but it is clear that rehearsal was lacking.	Student does not seem at all prepared to present.
Speaks Clearly	Speaks clearly and distinctly all (100–95%) the time, and mispronounces no words.	Speaks clearly and distinctly all (100–95%) the time, but mispronounces one word.	Speaks clearly and distinctly most ( 94–85%) of the time. Mispronounces no more than one word.	Often mumbles or cannot be understood OR mispronounces more than one word.
Vocabulary	Uses vocabulary appropriate for the audience. Extends audience vocabulary by defining words that might be new to most of the audience.	Uses vocabulary appropriate for the audience. Includes 1–2 words that might be new to most of the audience, but does not define them.	Uses vocabulary appropriate for the audience. Does not include any vocabulary that might be new to the audience.	Uses several (5 or more) words or phrases that are not understood by the audience.
Uses Complete Sentences	Always (99–100% of time) speaks in complete sentences.	Mostly (80–98%) speaks in complete sentences.	Sometimes (70–80%) speaks in complete sentences.	Rarely speaks in complete sentences.
Stays on Topic	Stays on topic all (100%) of the time.	Stays on topic most (99–90%) of the time.	Stays on topic some (89–75%) of the time.	It was hard to tell what the topic was.
Posture and Eye Contact	Stands up straight, looks relaxed and confident. Establishes eye contact with everyone in the room during the presentation.	Stands up straight and establishes eye contact with everyone in the room during the presentation.	Sometimes stands up straight and establishes eye contact.	Slouches and/or does not look at people during the presentation.

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