What is this? 1: Write two details that you see in this picture. 2: What do you think this is a picture of? 3: What is it used for?

What is this?• 1: Write two details

that you see in this picture.

• 2: What do you think this is a picture of?

• 3: What is it used for?

It’s a

Computer

White Suburbia

In the

1950s

Post World War II:

• After the war, soldiers were given benefits under the “GI Bill” which helped pay for college and gave low-interest loans to buy houses or set up businesses.

The Economy after WWII

• Food and other goods were unavailable or rationed during the war.

• People had earned or saved money because luxury items were unavailable and the workforce increased to provide support for the war.

• After the war, this money was now available for houses, cars, and other consumer goods.

NEW HOMES!

To meet the new demand for homes, William Levitt designed a plan to build homes that were pre-cut and pre-assembled materials in a factory to go up faster. His company produced over 17,000 new and affordable homes in the suburban areas around large cities (the first was Levittown, outside of Long Island, New York).

In the 1950s,

75% of new home construction was in the

suburbs

Levittown, 1948

Highway Act of 1956

• To connect the suburbs to the main cities

• To tie the nation together• To improve the transport

of military vehicles• The federal government

built 40,000 miles of highways

Automobile Designs

• In the suburbs, cars were necessary to transport the people (mostly working fathers) to jobs

• Highways promoted travel by car to “See America”

• Spurred growth of the automobile and oil industries

Cars in 1950s

Another Form of Transportation

The growth of the airline industry offered fast transportation coast-to-coast and to other countries.

Technology rapidly advanced to improve airline safety, speed, and comfort.

Airplanes were beginning to replace trains for long distance trips (IF you could afford it!)

BABY BOOM!!

• Higher income, more tranquil times, better healthcare and vaccines, better nutrition = MORE BABIES

• Children born between 1946-1964 are called Baby Boomers

Population Growth

• During the 1950s, the U.S. population grew from 150 million to 179 million.

• That is about a 20% increase in ten years!!

The “Ideal” of White Suburban Family Life

And….

Suburban Backyard Barbeques!

Children in the 1950s:

• Popular shows for children included: the Mickey Mouse Club, Howdy Doody, Lassie, Lone Ranger, and Davy Crockett.

Teenagers in the 1950s

• The teenagers had spending money, new clothing styles, new dancing styles, and new music, including…….

PAT BOONE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8dx0oE--VI

AND

To REALLY scare their parents!

Elvis Presley!!

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mc5sDt4ppnE

Student Work:

Take five minutes to discuss with your partner:

• The vocabulary words

• What life might have been like in the 1950s

• How would your life be different if the car and television had not been invented?

DAY 2• 1: What is an advertisement?

• 2: List TWO reasons to create an advertisement? (What is their goal?)

• 3: How can an advertiser affect people?

Ads in the 1950s

• Focused on the “ideal” family (husbands buying their wives the newest gadget, or trying to out-do the neighbors)

• The rise of the teenager as a means of selling products

• Technology and new “convenience” products: Minute Rice (1950), Corn Pops (1950), Tupperware (1951),McDoanlds and Kentucky Fried Chicken (1955), TV Dinners (1954)

What is this an ad for?

Washing machine

Davy Crockett Items for Children

Entertainment Center, 1951

• 12’’ television screen!• Phonograph (record

player)!!• Radio!!• Speakers!!• All in an attractive wood

cabinet!• ONLY $299! (the average

household income was 3,000 to 5,000)

Tape recorder/player

“Come out of the Shadows”with our new cosmetics

“Does your husband look younger than you do?”

Swimsuits!

1950s Commercials

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1BxyJ-Yc5E4

Student Work:

• Students will discuss in groups:What ethnic groups did the advertisements

leave out?What did the 1950s consumer culture

promote as the “ideal”?How do you think the advertisements

affected the life of the white suburban housewife? Did the standards of cleanliness and role of women change?

Wrap-Up Activity:

• Students will choose a technological device and create an advertisement that may have been in a 1950s magazine or on a television show:

• Students must include illustrations, color, a white housewife (appropriately dressed for the time period) and other details that would appeal to a 1950s audience.