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American History: A Stitch in Time

I. Introduction - rationale, goals, target audience
Wear your team colors proudly in this chronological look back at history through the button hole of a baseball jersey. Using textiles and clothing styles, students will learn about many social and technological changes since the early 1900s. Here is an exciting unit that connects each decade of the last century by highlighting major milestones as reflected in the ever-evolving baseball uniform. From benchmarks to the batter's box, fashion trends lead the way to a dyed-in-the-wool study of how the fabric of American society has changed one stitch at a time.

II. Objectives - in completing this lesson, students will:
A. Examine and observe the evolution of baseball uniforms in the 20th century.

B. Analyze the changes in the baseball uniform and identify historical benchmarks that coincide with these changes.

C. Understand, through dialogue and discussion, how the evolution of baseball uniforms relate to advances in transportation, technology, communication and significant historical events such as World Wars, the Great Depression and the Space Age.

III. Preparing the Students
A. Background
Clothing styles often reflect what is happening in society or a community, either by what the textile represents or how it is produced. The cut of the pattern, an emblem sewn on a sleeve, or the selected fabric can be an indicator of a particular belief, mode of self expression or reaction to something that has occurred. When studied as a type of clothing and popular fashion, changes in baseball uniforms provide a meaningful baseline for measuring important events in U.S. history.
B. Necessary Classroom Materials
Teacher should provide photographs of the following historical events and figures:

Wright Brothers' 1903 flight
Ford assembly line
Titanic
WWI trench warfare
Suffragette
Charles Lindbergh/Spirit of St. Louis
1929 stock market crash
Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Jesse Owens
Pearl Harbor/USS Arizona
WWII era female factory worker
WWII/Iwo Jima
Sputnik
1960's astronauts
Neil Armstrong
Vietnam war scene or anti-war demonstration
1970's gas crisis
Space shuttle Challenger explosion
Berlin Wall being torn down
Map of the USSR
The Persian Gulf War (Desert Storm)

Historical baseball photographs referenced throughout the lesson are available through active links.

C. Vocabulary
Assembly Line
Benchmark
Century
Chronological
Communication
Cotton
Decade
Emblem
Evolution
Fabric
Information
Manufacturing
Mass Production
Patch
Polyester
Satin
Synthetic
Technology
Textiles
Timeline
Transportation
Uniform
Wool

D. Suggested Pre-Program Activities
1) Discuss with the students the concept of chronology and emphasize the different parts of a timeline and how it is used. Familiarize the students with the following words: timeline, chronological, century, decade.

2) Have students select a familiar item such as a radio, an airplane, or an automobile. Consider how this item may have changed over the course of time. Draw four pictures illustrating how this item may have changed. Students may also project what these items may look like in the future.

3) Have students bring in clothing representing a wide range of materials. Have students identify the materials. Have students classify themselves according to the materials they are wearing. Discuss the origins and characteristics of these items. How and when were the materials used?

4) A professional baseball team will be moving to your hometown. Create your own design of uniform to be worn by this team. Choose the colors, fabrics, emblems as well as a team name.

IV. Presentation
If you are participating in a school visit or videoconference please do not review this section with your students. It will be taught as part of the presentation.

A. Opening
1) Engage students in conversation about uniforms. Who wears a uniform and why? What types of uniforms do the students wear?

2) Engage students in conversation about emblems. Why are they worn? What is their purpose?

INSTRUCTOR NOTE: Instructor may want to wear a post September 11th uniform jersey showing the American flag emblem on the neck. Note this was not the first time the American flag was worn in response to world events. Involve students by taking a poll about who among them is wearing a particular type of emblem on their everyday clothing.

3) Show the 1917 Chicago White Sox uniform with the American flag patch on the sleeve. Explain that we will explore the past century and how uniforms often reflect changes occurring in society.

INSTRUCTOR NOTE: Show the 1917 uniform and ask students why the flag patch was worn at that time. The flag appeared the year that the United States became involved in WWI.

4) Discuss the 1917 wool uniform in contrast with the present day uniforms with which the students are familiar. From what fabric are present day uniforms made? Why weren't they available at the beginning of the century? What would it be like to wear a wool uniform? What changes have occurred in the past century, which enabled us to produce polyester uniforms?

INSTRUCTOR NOTE: Be sure to reference both types of uniforms. Involve the students by having them raise their hands, or stand up to indicate which fabric they are wearing.

B. Lesson*
Brief Explanation of the Game. Students will create a timeline of events from 1900 to present that coincide with the development of the baseball uniform.

1900-1910
Ball 1:
Elementary - "The Wright Brothers first flew in the same decade that the baby Bear appeared on the Chicago Cubs Uniform."

Secondary - "Who first flew in the same decade that the baby bear appeared on the Chicago Cubs Uniform."

INSTRUCTOR NOTE: Show 1910 dark blue wool Chicago Cubs Uniform, Photos: Wright Brothers, player of the decade.

Questions/Discussion (Dependent on age of students)

• Were the Wright Brother trapeze artists? Birds? (Invented and built the first successful power engine airplane.)
• When and where did the flight take place? (1903, Kitty Hawk, North Carolina)
• How long did the first airplane flight stay in the air? (12 seconds)
• How far did it go? (120 ft.)
• How did baseball teams travel? (Train)

• Model T's original price was $850, too high for many customers, so Ford started the assembly line to reduce production costs. This reduced assembly time from 12.5 hrs. to 1.5 hrs.
• Model T prices dropped to $500 in 1913, and then to $260 by 1925, so most families could afford a car.
• How much do cars cost today? How have they changed?

• What other type of transportation could the passengers on the Titanic have used to travel to America? (none)
• How did the Titanic call for help? (Morse code/no radio)
• 1,517 people died; 705 were saved.
• The New York Highlanders later became the New York Yankees.

• When was WWI? (1914-1918; U. S. entered in 1917).
• Was our country involved? Where was it fought? How did we get there?
• Did we use airplanes in WWI? (Yes. The last time we heard about airplanes they could barely get off of the ground; now used for surveillance/bombs dropped from cockpit door).

• Black men had the right to vote before women. (15th Amendment @1869, 19th Amendment @1920). People opposing women's suffrage thought that women's participation in politics would lead to the end of family life.
• During WWI many women contributed to the war effort, and this increased support for women's voting.

• Where did Charles Lindbergh fly? (France, near Paris) From? (Long Island, New York)
• What year did his flight take place? (1927)
• How long did it take him? (33.5 hrs/ 3600 miles)
• How long does the average flight take today? (About 7 hrs.)
• What was the name of Lindbergh's plane? ("The Spirit of Saint Louis")
• The plane can be seen in the National Air and Space Museum in Washington D.C.

• When did the stock market crash occur?


• What does radio broadcasting have to do with a number on a uniform?
• Yankee Stadium was a large stadium; easier to recognize players with numbers on their uniforms.
• First numbers were assigned according to batting order.

• What was the Great Depression? (A worldwide business slump with the worst and longest period of high unemployment in modern times).
• What caused the Great Depression? (The stock market crashed and many people lost money and their jobs.
• Rural Electrification began this year. 1933 REA first official action (Tennessee Valley Authority)

• Who was Jesse Owens? (African-American track and field star)
• "Where were the Olympics played in 1936? (The Olympic games were played in Berlin, Germany. They were awarded to Berlin before Hitler came to power).
• Who was the leader in Germany at this time? (Hitler)
• What did Hitler think of black people? What did he think of people of Jewish descent? (He hated Negroes and Jewish people. Hitler and the Nazi regime actively promoted the Aryan race - white people of non-Jewish descent). Jesse Owens fouled on his first two qualifying long jumps. If he did so on his third jump, he would not qualify for the final round. Hitler and Nazi officials were in the stands throughout the stadium. In a daring move, German long jumper Luz Long told Jesse Owens to start his long jump earlier so he would qualify. Owens took Long's advice and qualified for the finals. Owens went on to win his second gold medal making a new Olympic record. Luz Long, who received the bronze medal, was the first to congratulate Jesse Owens after the jump.

• Where is Pearl Harbor? Who bombed us there? (Hawaii/Japanese)
• The bombing of Pearl Harbor was the event that got the U.S. involved in WWII, which had started in Europe in 1939.
• Lights in the stadiums were dim compared to today's stadiums. Why didn't we use Halogen lights then? (Didn't have the technology).
• Players wore silk uniforms because the silk reflected light, and made it easier to see the players during night games.

• Which war was being fought? (WWII)
• Who fought whom? (The "Allies" chiefly: the United States, England, and USSR fought the "Axis" powers chiefly: Germany, Italy, and Japan).
• Did we use airplanes in WWII? (Bombers, especially B-17's "Flying Fortresses", with heavy armor and guns).
• While airplanes improved so did radar, guided missiles, and aircraft carriers.

• Showed support for men and women serving in the Red Cross.
• Now 10 million volunteers.
• During WWII the Red Cross collected more than 13 million pints of blood.

• What was Sputnik? (A series of unmanned Soviet satellites).
• It was launched in October 1957. The US launched its first satellite, Explorer 1, in January 1958.
• This is an appropriate time to mention that we were in the "Cold War" with the Soviet Union during this decade, leading to the "Space Age."
• Where did the Giants go? (California)
• How did they get there? (Last planes we discussed were WWII bombers; commercial airliners were developed right after WWII).

• Why would uniforms soon need names on them if we already had numbers? (So fans watching this new technology TV could identify players).
• What were the first TV's like? (black and white)

• What is a person called that goes into space? (Astronaut)
• What team sounds like the Astronauts? (Astros)
• The Houston Astros were formerly the Colt 45's, but changed their name to show support for the space program based in Houston.
• What country did we race to get into space? (Soviet Union)
• Who won the race? (Soviet Union)
• Why did we want to be the first in space? (Surveillance)

• Who won the race to walk on the moon? (United States)
• Who was the first person to walk on the moon? (Neil Armstrong)
• Computers, materials, and foods all changed dramatically to keep pace with the space technology.

• Vietnam War started in 1957, ended 1975. American troops were there from 1965-1973.
• Controversy about our involvement in the war sparked protests all over America in the late 60's to early 70's.
• Approximately 58,000 Americans died in Vietnam.
• Technological advancements in machines that produced clothing, led to first knit uniforms in 1970.

• How did uniforms change after we had color TV? (Added color to uniforms).
• Why were we waiting in long lines (Energy Crisis) " How did the gasoline shortage change automobiles? (Became smaller/more efficient).
• Are we having an energy crisis now? Will we see changes in technology?
• What part of the world controls most of the oil supplies? (Middle East)
• What country uses the most oil? (U.S.)

• What is the Cy Young Award? (Prestigious award given to best pitcher in the National and American Leagues).
• What is the MVP Award? (Prestigious award given to most valuable player in the National and American Leagues).
• Improvements in medical technology have extended the number of years that players like Roger Clemens (in his 20th season that year) could play the game. He went on to win a total of six Cy Young Awards in his career.
• Who was aboard the Challenger Space Shuttle? (7 people, including a school teacher).
• Are we still going up into space? (Yes, for much longer periods of time).
• 100th space shuttle was recently launched.

• Germany was divided in two in 1949.


• The Berlin Wall symbolically divided East and West Germany for 28 years.
• Berlin Wall came down November 9-11, 1989, contributing to the demise of Soviet control of Eastern Europe
• Live broadcasting of the World Series game brought the events of the earthquake into the homes of millions of Americans as it was happening.

• When and where was Desert Storm fought? (1991, Middle East: Iraq and Kuwait)
• Why are we concerned about conflicts in the Mid East? (oil interests)
• "The Persian Gulf War" is the official name of the conflict.
• Four new expansion teams are: Arizona Diamondbacks, Colorado Rockies, Florida Marlins, Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

• How many years between women playing professional baseball? (40 years)
• Which team was playing? (Colorado Silver Bullets)
• Are they still playing? (No, they lost sponsorship).
• USSR President Mikhail Gorbachev resigned, ending the USSR, as it existed.
• Leaders of eleven former Soviet republics signed a declaration forming the Commonwealth of Independent States.
• Boris Yeltsin becomes President of Russia.

• Baseball more global (both players and where the game is played).
• Satellites made this possible (refer to 1957 Sputnik, Explorer 1).
• People all over the world can now watch baseball on television.

• Baseball play suspended for one week.
• Baseball continues to honor our American heritage.

C. Conclusion
1) Walk through the century asking students to identify one key event from each decade. Recap the highlights of the century by decade.

2) Review how changes in the baseball uniform over the past century reflect events that have happened in history.

If you are participating in a school visit or videoconference please do not review this section with your students. It will be taught as part of the presentation.

V. Enrichment and Assessment Activities
A. Discuss evolution of transportation, communication, and a sequence of historical events over the century and make a poster, or power point presentation.

B. Student travels through time to a particular decade in the 20th century. Write a story or skit exploring how their lives would be different. Use as many vocabulary words as possible.

C. Divide students into groups and assign them a decade in which they have to establish a baseball team. Students must decide which type of marketing, mode of communication, transportation, uniform, and location for each team. Provide evidence to support your decisions in each one of these areas. Each team will present their conclusions to the class.

VI. Additional Resources
A. Literature
Garner, Joe. "Jesse Owens Wins Four Gold Medals." And the Crowd Goes Wild. Sourcebooks, Inc., 1999.

Lucent Books, eds. A Cultural History of the United States. Lucent Books, 1999.

National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Baseball As America. National Geographic Books, 2002.

Okkonen, Marc. Baseball Uniforms in the 20th Century. Sterling Publishing Co, Inc., 1991.

B. Web Links
http://villagevoice.com/news/0123,lukas,25337,3.html
Uni Watch by Paul Lukas "Hosiery History"

ssur.org
The Society for Sports Uniforms Research

VII. Relevant National Learning Standards
A. U.S. History
1) Students understand how the US changed from the end of WWI to the eve of the Great Depression.

2) Students understand that the United States has influenced other nations and other nations have influenced American politics and society.

3) Students understand how the American role changed in the early twentieth century.

4) Students understand how a modernist capital economy emerged in the 1920s.

5) Explain how principles of scientific management and technological innovations, including assembly lines, rapid transit, household appliances and radio continued to transform production, work and daily life.

6) Students can assess the effects of women's suffrage on politics.

7) Students understand the crash of 1929 and the Great Depression.

8) Students understand the international background of WWII.

9) Students understand the effects of WWII at home

10) Explain how the US mobilized its economic and military resources during WWII.

11) Explore how the war fostered cultural exchange and interaction while promoting nationalism and American identity.

12) Evaluate how minorities organized to gain to wartime jobs and how they confronted discrimination.

13) Students understand the women's movement for civil rights and equal opportunities.

14) Identify the major social and economic, and political issues affecting women and explain the conflicts these issues engendered.

15) Students understand contemporary American culture.

16) Explore the international influence of American culture.

17) Explain the reasons for the increased popularity of pro sports and examine its influence on popular culture.

18) Students understand major foreign policy initiatives.

19) Examine the US role in political struggles in the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America.

B. Language Arts
1) Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).

2) Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.

3) Students use a variety of technological and information resources (e.g., libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge.

4) Students use spoken, written and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion and the exchange of information).

C. Technology
1) Students demonstrate a sound understanding of the nature and operation of technology systems.

2) Students are proficient in the use of technology.

3) Students understand the ethical, cultural and societal issues related to technology.

4) Students practice responsible use of technology systems, information and software.

5) Students develop positive attitudes toward technology uses that support lifelong learning, collaboration, personal pursuits and productivity.

6) Students use technology tools to enhance learning, increase productivity and promote creativity.

7) Students use technology to locate, evaluate and collect information from a variety of sources.

8) Students use technology tools to process data and report results.

9) Students evaluate and select new information resources and technological innovations based on the appropriateness for specific tasks.

VIII. Planning a Videoconference?
A. Videoconference Checklist (PDF)