Alicia is writing an informative text on the topic of the Pack Horse Library initiative, a mobile library program created during the Great Depression. Alicia gathered the following facts from her initial research:
During the Great Depression, librarians rode on horseback into the Appalachian region of Kentucky and distributed reading material to the people otherwise isolated from schools and libraries. This program was called the Pack Horse Library initiative.
In 1936, packhorse librarians served 50,000 families and, by 1937, 155 public schools.
During the Great Depression, food, education, and jobs were scarce for people living in the Appalachian region of Kentucky.
In 1930, up to 31 percent of people in eastern Kentucky couldn’t read.
Electricity and highways in Kentucky were not as advanced as those in neighboring states.
Libraries for the Pack Horse program were housed in any facility that was available, from churches to post offices.
Librarians staffed these libraries, giving books to carriers who then rode their horses or mules and brought books to those living in the mountains.
Carriers rode out at least twice a month, with each route covering 100 to 120 miles a week.
Riders used their own horses and mules.
Riders earned $28 a month.
The books and magazines they carried usually came from outside donations.
Roads could be dangerous and impassable.
Health, strength, and reliability of the horses were a problem.
Some mountain families initially resisted the librarians, suspicious of outsiders/intruders.
1. How could Alicia organize these ideas for her report?
2. What headings could she use?
(4 points)
1. Alicia could organize these ideas for her report by grouping related facts together and creating paragraphs or sections for each group. She could start by introducing the Pack Horse Library initiative and its purpose, then provide information about the librarians, the serving statistics, and the challenges they faced. She could also discuss the impact of the program on the Appalachian region of Kentucky and its legacy.
2. Possible headings she could use are:
- Introduction to the Pack Horse Library initiative
- Serving the people during the Great Depression
- Challenges and obstacles
- Impact and legacy of the program
1. Alicia could organize these ideas by grouping them according to related topics or themes. For example, she could group facts related to the purpose and impact of the Pack Horse Library initiative, facts about the logistics and challenges faced by the librarians, and facts about the societal and cultural context of the initiative in the Appalachian region of Kentucky during the Great Depression.
2. Alicia could use the following headings for her report:
- Introduction
- Purpose and Impact of the Pack Horse Library Initiative
- Logistics and Challenges of the Pack Horse Library Initiative
- Societal and Cultural Context of the Appalachian Region during the Great Depression
- Conclusion
1. To organize the ideas for her report, Alicia can start by grouping related information together. For example, she can group the facts about the Pack Horse Library initiative, such as its purpose and the number of families and schools it served, under one section. She can then group the facts about the conditions during the Great Depression in the Appalachian region of Kentucky, such as the scarcity of food, education, and jobs, under another section. Additionally, the facts about the logistics of the program, such as the routes taken by the librarians, the mode of transportation, the payment of the carriers, and the source of the reading material, can be grouped together. Finally, she can include a section about the challenges faced by the program, such as the dangerous roads, the health of the horses, and the initial resistance from some families.
2. Based on the organization suggested above, Alicia could use the following headings for her report:
- Introduction: Pack Horse Library initiative during the Great Depression in Kentucky
- The Pack Horse Library initiative:
- Purpose and background
- Reach and impact: Serving families and schools
- Conditions during the Great Depression in the Appalachian region of Kentucky:
- Scarcity of food, education, and jobs
- Illiteracy rates in eastern Kentucky
- Challenges of infrastructure: Electricity and highways
- Logistics of the Pack Horse Library initiative:
- Libraries and facilities
- Role of librarians and carriers
- Frequency and distance of routes
- Use of personal horses and mules
- Carriers' payment and source of reading material
- Challenges faced by the program:
- Dangerous and impassable roads
- Health and reliability issues with horses
- Initial resistance from some families
- Conclusion: Impact and legacy of the Pack Horse Library initiative