Happy+Days



That's a great question, don't you think? We will answer it in class on Thursday in a (hopefully) fun activity, but to prepare, we should do a little background reading and watching. R**ead "The Fifties" in __Creating America__ (28-3, pp. 800-803), read over the ABC-CLIO links posted below, and w****atch the videos below.** 
 * FOR HOMEWORK, CREATE A LIST (IN YOUR ONLINE NOTEBOOK) OF POSITIVES AND NEGATIVES CONCERNING LIFE IN THE FIFTIES FOR CLASS ON THURSDAY. WE WILL USE IT TO WRITE SOME DIALOGUE ...**

[|The Cold War at Home]  / [|The Economy Booms] / [|The Sky is the Limit] / [|Boom-Time for Babies and Houses]

Yes >
 * Eisenhower: increased minimum wage for workers, created department of health, education and welfare
 * Economy was booming- U.S. faltering great depression
 * Pop Culture and Rock'n' Roll great entertainment
 * housing industry exploded during postwar years
 * Technological advances- missiles, rockets
 * American sciences of many kinds boomed during a time of great economic prosperity.
 * doctors began to use antibiotics more often in the treatment of disease
 * November 1958 the United States to get into space with von Braun's Explorer I

Middle
 * Congress passed Highway Act of 1956- provided 32 billion to build 41,000 miles of highway- comes from taxes
 * baby boom- sharp increase in U.S. birthrate following WWII
 * suburbs- great location to raise family, good schools, safe, parking easy but many critics worrid that Americans were being forced to fit into suburban life- felt pressured to conform- to agree with the beliefs and ideas of the majority

No
 * 1/5 Americans lived in poverty
 * Mexicans crossing border illegally
 * U.S. embarrassed that Soviets beat them into space
 * worried of overpopulation