Tillie Olsen "I Stand Here Ironing" Inquiry   Dorothy Minor Tulsa Community College

Inquiry Activities

Inquiry Activity One

Prepare for Focus Activity One:  Discussion

Research the Internet to locate resources available to women, especially women with children, from 1930 - 1950.  Locate information about child care, especially day care for mothers who had to work outside the home.  Did churches and businesses provide child care?  What governmental resources were available?

Return to top

Inquiry Activity Two

Prepare for Focus Activity Two:  Governmental Programs of 1930-1950

Research sites dealing with programs such as the WPA and other sites chronicling the Great Depression.  Students should look particuarly for information on how people coped with the lack of money and other resources.  Students may wish to make comparisons between people who lived in cities and those who lived on farms to see if wide differences existed in their experiences.

Return to top

Inquiry Activity Three

Focus Activity Three provides students with an opportunity for peer reviews of their essays.  The instructor should supply students with peer evaluation guidelines in order to encourage helpful discussions on the essays.  A sample peer evaluation review sheet can be found at the following URL:  http://depts.washington.edu/pswrite/peerrev.html.

Return to top