Placement in Curriculum/Subject Areas - Social studies and History

Organization of Classes - Individual and small groups for interviews. Small groups for profile and advertising activities.

Materials Needed - "alternative" press publications - Mother Earth News, Utne Reader, ???

Radio Activity - Determine the social, economic, and personality characteristics and develop a profile or several profiles of "typical" persons who participated in the "Back to the Land" movement. What motivations can you suggest for their influx? What local services, groups, and businesses might appeal to these newcomers?

Examine the demographic changes in the area. Chart the population figures by age, income, rate of birth, etc.

Interview Activity - Oral history recollection is not the exclusive domain of the over-50 crowd! Contact a ? [younger] person who you know has moved into the area. Follow the techniques detailed in this guide to gather an oral history. Analyze their story in relation to those that you heard on the radio broadcast. What similarities and differences can you identify? How do you account for the similarities/differences that you named? What themes emerged in their stories [see themes in guide]? Do their stories fit the "typical" profiles you developed? How are they different/similar to the stories of older residents in the radio series and the oral history archives?

Additional Activities - Review the "alternative press" materials as gathered by teachers and students. [Internet sites may be available, too] What patterns of interests are noticed in the articles and advertisements? How might these publication compare to local newspapers or magazines. Small groups can work to create mock advertisements, chamber of commerce brochures, or bulletins that should attract the attention of "Back to the Landers."

Assign an essay to students to write about why or why not  "Back to the Land" is in their futures.