The 1920s: cars, radio, the Harlem Renaissance and Prohibition

Grade 11 Social Studies Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Cards A to E. Card A, a list in our words: the Model T was introduced in 1908 at $850, too costly for most families. The price fell to $490 by 1914 and to $260 by 1924 (Library of Congress). The Smithsonian National Museum of American History says $260 by 1925. Card B, a summary in our words from the Library of Congress: in October 1913 at Highland Park, Michigan, Ford's moving assembly line cut the time to build one car from 12.5 hours to 93 minutes. Card C, a summary in our words from the Smithsonian Institution: in 1920, Prohibition began as the 18th Amendment went into effect on January 17; the 19th Amendment was ratified on August 18; on November 2 KDKA in Pittsburgh became the first radio station to offer regular broadcasts. Card D, exact, the 19th Amendment: "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex." Card E, two summaries in our words. The National Museum of American History says the car gave personal mobility to more than 15 million Americans. The Smithsonian American Art Museum counts 16.5 million cars made from 1908 to 1927.

2. 1.

   Card A has the Model T falling from $850 to $260, about 69 percent. Ari asks what cards A and B support about the assembly line.

   • Output explains the fall, since 16.5 million cars were made over the years
   • The line caused the full fall, since it cut assembly time by 88 percent
   • The price fell about 69 percent, but the cards do not show how much the line caused
   • The line explains the fall to $490 by 1914, since it came first in October 1913
3. 2.

   Card B cut assembly time by about 88 percent, but card A's price fell about 42 percent by 1914. What does Bo infer?

   • Assembly labor was only part of the cost, so the price fell by less than the time did
   • The line was not the cause of the lower price, since the price fell less than the time
   • Higher wages offset the saving, which is why the price did not fall as far
   • The two cards conflict, so one of the numbers must be wrong and cannot be used
4. 3.

   Card A says $260 by 1924 (Library of Congress) and a museum says by 1925. Esme asks how to report it.

   • As about 260 dollars in the mid-1920s, naming both sources
   • As 1925 alone, since the later date must be the more complete of the two
   • As 1924 alone, since the Library of Congress is the more official of the two
   • As 1924, because the price must have reached $260 once the line had run ten years
5. 4.

   Jun reads the 19th Amendment on card D. Which claim does its text support?

   • It gives women the vote in federal elections but leaves state elections alone
   • It guarantees women the vote whatever other rules a state kept
   • It gave women the vote in 1919, the year that the war ended
   • It bars denying the vote because of sex, but does not mention other reasons
6. 5.

   Card C says KDKA was the first station to offer regular broadcasts, on November 2, 1920. Which statement does Kira find supported?

   • KDKA began regular broadcasts on November 2, 1920, the first station to offer them
   • KDKA made the first radio transmission ever heard anywhere in the world
   • KDKA began regular broadcasts after the 19th Amendment, so women voters were its first audience
   • KDKA began broadcasting on January 17, the day that Prohibition began
7. 6.

   Which effect of the cheaper Model T is best supported by the numbers on cards A and E, Milo asks?

   • Many more families could buy a car, since the price fell from 850 to 260 dollars
   • Farm families gave up horses by 1924, since cars were cheaper to run
   • The price fell because 16.5 million cars were made, so output caused the fall
   • Each family in the country owned a car by 1924, since the price had fallen
8. 7.

   Card E gives 15 million Americans and 16.5 million cars. Noah asks if the two figures conflict.

   • Not necessarily: one counts people the car reached and the other counts cars made
   • Yes; they count the same thing, so one museum must have made a mistake
   • Yes; the larger figure is better, since it comes from an art museum with an exact count
   • No; the two agree once the 1.5 million who owned two cars are removed
9. 8.

   Cards A to E mix kinds of source. Pia asks which one is a primary source for the right to vote.

   • Card E, the museum's count of cars made between 1908 and 1927
   • Card D, the 19th Amendment itself, in its exact words
   • Card C, the Smithsonian's summary of the year 1920 that records the ratification
   • Card A, the list of prices that a museum and a library have put together
10. 9.

    Ren wants to write about what the car changed for farm families. Which gap in cards A to E matters most?

    • The cards give too many prices, so the question cannot be answered from them
    • The cards cover cars in cities alone, so farm families are left out by design
    • Farm families' own words; the cards are museum and library summaries
    • The cards come from museums, so their facts cannot be used for the question
11. 10.

    Card B dates the moving line to October 1913, and card A shows $490 by 1914. Which claim does Tala find supported?

    • The price fell first, so the lower price caused the moving line to be built
    • The line was introduced in 1908 with the Model T, so it explains the 1908 price
    • The line came first, so it may have helped cause the lower price, not proven
    • The line cut the price to $260 at once, in the month that it opened