How to run Dust and Drought, 1935 as Problem-Based Learning: your role, the pre-planning maps, pacing, role cards, sources, and debrief prompts. The golden rule — guide, don't tell. In PBL the students should feel they, not you, planned the investigation.
| Phase | What you do | What you resist |
|---|---|---|
| ① Surface | Teach vocabulary and facts efficiently; run the jigsaw; check acquisition. | Rushing to the problem before facts are secure. |
| ② Deep | Facilitate the cause–effect map and source routine; model claim + evidence. | Giving your own interpretation of the sources. |
| ③ Transfer | Read the problem well; hold the KWHL chart; answer questions with questions; point to sources. | Answering the “Need to know” questions yourself. |
The Surface phase uses a four-topic jigsaw (How the Dust Bowl happened) — a high-leverage move (d ≈ 0.92) because every student must teach. The flow: expert groups each study one topic and take notes → students re-mix into home groups with one expert per topic → each expert teaches → an individual check for understanding holds everyone accountable.
The per-expert-group source links (articles) live on the Surface page, one set per topic. Confirm access through your district before class.
Before teaching, brainstorm every direction the Dust Bowl problem could branch — so you can steer discussion and decide, in advance, which threads are productive and which are too sensitive or off-topic for your class and community.
| If students investigate… | They are working toward… |
|---|---|
| the Great Depression and its impact on 20th-century Texas life | §113.19(c)(6)–(c)(7) |
| how people's farming choices damaged the land and how they adapted | §113.19(c)(9) |
| the High Plains region, population distribution & the migration west | §113.19(c)(8), (c)(10) |
| the agrarian economy, physical-geographic factors, limited resources & transportation | §113.19(c)(11)(A–D) |
| using and questioning sources; points of view; claim + evidence; geographic & data tools | §113.19(c)(16), (c)(20), (c)(21) |
| defining the problem, weighing options, choosing & evaluating a solution | §113.19(c)(23)(B) |
Confirm access through your district's approved catalog before class. Vetted, free, Texas-focused starting points:
Aligned to (not reproduced from) 19 TAC Ch.113 §113.19.