Early Days of Route 66

Lesson Plan Overview: The history of Route 66 intersects with the histories of a diverse group of Americans and with many important historical events of the twentieth century. In this lesson plan, students will learn about the early history of the Route with a particular emphasis on the women who migrated to and set up businesses in the cities and towns along the historic highway. Using the first episode of the three-part documentary, Route 66: The Untold Story of the Mother Road, along with primary and secondary sources, students will analyze how individual people were affected during the route’s early history. The lesson also includes two assessment options; a creative project and a creative writing assignment.  

All materials available in Google Drive and PDF formats.

MATERIALS

  1. Presentation for Lesson Plan

  2. Secondary Source Presentation: A Brief History of Route 66

  3. Pre-watching activity

  4. Episode Summary: Route 66: The Untold Story of the Mother Road: The Early Days on Route 66

  5. Note taking Worksheet for The Early Days on Route 66

  6. Primary Source Analysis

  7. Creative Writing Assignment: Early Days on Route 66 Narrative

  8. Early Days on Route 66 Business Project

    ACTIVITIES

    Day 1: Introduction to Route 66

    • Warm Up:

      • Have you taken a road trip? What makes a road trip different from other types of travel? 

      • What are the reasons that people move to a new city or state? 

      • What do you know about Route 66? 

    • Present the Slide deck about the early history of Route 66 with optional note taking worksheet. 

    • Discussion: 

      • What places does Route 66 go through? 

      • What makes it famous? Why? 

      • What would you like to see along the Route? 

    Read a secondary source about the route. Recommended secondary sources: 

    • National Parks Service

    • Library of Congress

    • National Museum of American History

    • Time Magazine

    • Discussion questions: 

      • What does the car symbolize in American culture or history? 

      • What are some major events that occurred in the first half of the twentieth century that affected most Americans?

      • How did segregation affect different groups of people in the United States? 

    Days 2-3: Route 66: The Untold Story of the Women on the Mother Road 

    • Warm Up: Complete the Pre-watching worksheet.

    • Watch the documentary and take notes on the episode.

      • Note: We recommend pausing the documentary every 10-15 minutes to review the worksheet and answer questions

    • Discussion questions: 

      • How were different groups of people affected by Route 66? 

      • What places did you learn about in the documentary? 

      • How were indigenous lands affected by Route 66? 

      • How did Route 66 change the lives of women? 

      • What did Route 66 symbolize for the people who drove and lived on the route? 

      • What were historical events that had a major impact on people living on and traveling through Route 66? 

    Days 4: Primary Sources & Assessment

    • Warm Up: 

      • What are some of the stories you remember from the documentary?

      • How were women affected by the Route? 

      • What specific challenges did they face? 

    • Analyze the primary source set connected to the documentary by using the analysis tool.

    • Discussion questions: 

      • What was driving across the country like before the establishment of the highway?

      • How did Route 66 reflect racist and segregationist practices at the time? 

      • What questions did you have while looking at the sources?

    • Begin the Business Project or the Creative Writing Assignment.

EXTENSION ACTIVITIES

  • Gender Studies: Explore how the women on Route 66 challenged stereotypes about gender along the Route or how women’s intersectional identities impacted their experience 

  • Research Project: Pick one of the towns along Route 66 and research a business that opened in the town. Find at least two primary sources related to the business. 

  • Map-making Project: After hearing the stories of women along the route, create a map that shows where each one of them lived, the year that they or their family moved there, and what business or project they worked on

RESOURCES FOR TEACHERS

Learn more about the history of the route and the stories in the documentary at the website, Route66Women.

Websites with information about the history of Route 66:

A number of states have information related to the Route in their state: 

ALIGNMENT WITH STANDARDS

ELA Common Core Standards:

  • 9-10.W.3: Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.

  • 9-10.W.4: Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.

  • 9-10.W.5: Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research. 

  • 9-10.L.2: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing. 

  • 9-10.RH.1: Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, attending to such features as the date and origin of the information.

C3 Social Studies Standards: 

  • D2.His.3.9-12: Use questions generated about individuals and groups to assess how the significance of their actions changes over time and is shaped by the historical context. 

  • D2.His.5.9-12. Analyze how historical contexts shaped and continue to shape people’s perspectives.

  • D2.Eco.5.9-12. Describe the consequences of competition in specific markets.

  • D4.6.9-12. Use disciplinary and interdisciplinary lenses to understand the characteristics and causes of local, regional, and global problems; instances of such problems in multiple contexts; and challenges and opportunities faced by those trying to address these problems over time and place