First the teacher and class, if possible, should go to the following website: http://digitaljournalist.org/issue0309/lm25.html or look through the book identified above. This website provides 28 of the 100 pictures Life magazine has identified as changing the world; the book contains all 100 photos. The following list contains the titles of the 28 photos on the website (The Cuban Missile Crisis is listed twice because two separate photos tied to this event were included):
1. Anne Frank (Holocaust)
2. Dead American Soldiers WWII (World War II)
3. Biafra 1969 (Famine)
|4. Birmingham 1963 (Civil Rights Movement)|
5. Nagasaki 1945 (World War II)
6. Breaker Boys 1910 (Progressive Era and Child Labor)
7. South of the DMZ 1966 (Vietnam)
8. The Crimean War 1855
9. Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962
10. Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962
11. Michael Dukakis, 1988 (Media and Politics)
12. Earthrise, 1968 (Apollo Missions and the Moon)
13. Execution of Viet Cong Guerilla, 1968 (Vietnam)
14. Betty Grable, 1942 (World War II)
15. Johnson is Sworn In, 1963 (Assassination of President Kennedy)
16. Kent State, 1970 (Protest and Photojournalism)
17. Elizabeth Eckford, 1957 (Civil Rights Movement)
18. Clarence Hailey Long, 1949 (Commercialism)
19. Lynching, 1930 (Civil Rights Movement)
20. Migrant Mother, 1936 (The Great Depression)
21. Galloping Horse, 1878 (History of Photography)
22. Pigeon House and Barn, 1827 (History of Photography)
23. How Life Begins, 1965 (History of Photography)
24. Promontory Point, 1869 (Transcontinental Railroad)
25. Triangle Shirtwaist, Factory 1911 (Child Labor)
26. Tiananmen Square, 1989 (Protest and Photojournalism)
27. Flight 1903 (History of Photography)
28. First Human X-Ray 1896 (History of Photography)
While examining the photos, little commentary should be given or allowed. When all photos have been examined, divide the photos evenly among students with each student having one or more photos.
Once each student has been assigned a photo, explain to the students that they must do research on the photo they have been assigned and will report to the class the findings of their research. If students have not previously engaged in research, the teacher should provide an explanation regarding finding sources on the Internet or in a library. The teacher might also want to pair or group students with photos that are tied in some way together. For example, “Galloping Horse,” “Pigeon House and Barn” are photos tied to the history of photography; “Lynching 1930,” “Elizabeth Eckford,1957” and “Birmingham 1963” are all connected with the Civil Rights Movement.
In their oral presentations, students should put together a PowerPoint or poster presentation. If other photos of the event researched are available, they should be provided in the presentation. Students should also be advised that their presentations must include a discussion of the role the photo had in changing history.
Sullivan, Robert (ed.), Burrows, Barbara Baker (Photo Ed.). 100 Photos that Changed the World. Life, 2003.
Anne Frank: Enzer, Hyman A., Solotaoff-Enzer, Sandra (ed.). Anne Frank: Reflections on Her Life and Legacy. Board of Trustees the University of Illinois, 2000.
Holocaust: Dwork, Debra, Pelt, Robert Jan. Holocaust. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 2003.
Americans in World War II: Keegan, John. World War II: A Visual Encyclopedia. New York: Sterling Publishing Company, 1999.
Famine and War: Forsyth, Fredrick. The Biafra Story. Penguin Books, 1969.
Civil Rights Movement: Riches, William Terrence Martin. The Civil Rights Movement: Struggle and Resistance, 2nd ed. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004.
Nagasaki: Goldstein, Donald M. Rain of Ruin: A Photographic History of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Dulles: Prange Enterprises, 1999.
Child Labor Laws and the Progressive Movement: McGerr, Michael. A Fierce Discontent: The Rise and Fall of The Progressive Movement in America, 1870-1920. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2003.
Vietnam War: Dillon, Katherine V, Goldstein, Donald M., Wenger, J. Michael. The Vietnam War: The Story and Photographs. Herndon: Brassey, Inc., 1999.
The Crimean War: Sweetman, John. The Crimean War. Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2001.
Cuban Missile Crisis: Kennedy, Robert. Thirteen Days. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 2000.
Media and Politics: Kuypers, Jim A. Press Bias and Politics: How the Media Frame Controversial Issues. Westport: Praeger Publishers, 2002.
Apollo Missions and the Moon: Lindsay, Hamish. Tracking Apollo to the Moon. Springer, 2001.
The Assassination of President Kennedy: The staff of the New York Times. Fours Days in November: The Original Coverage of the John F. Kennedy Assassination. New York: The New York Times, 2003.
Protest and Photojournalism: Morris, John G. Get the Picture. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1998.
Commercialism: Cross, Gary. An All-Consuming Century: Why Commercialism Won America. New York: Columbia University Press, 2000.
The Great Depression: McElvaine, Robert S. Down and Out in the Great Depression: Letters from the Forgotten Man. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1983.
History of Photography: Goldberg, Vicki & Silberman, Robert. American Photography: A Century of Images. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1999.
Transcontinental Railroad: Houghton, Gillian. The Transcontinental Railroad: A Primary Source History of America’s First Coast-to-Coast Railroad. New York: The Rosen Publishing Group, 2003.
Flight: Berliner, Don. Aviation: Reaching for the Sky. Minneapolis: The Oliver Press, 1997.
America’s World War II:
Civil Rights Movement:
Child Labor Laws and the Progressive Movement:
The Crimean War:
Cuban Missile Crisis:
Media and Politics:
Apollo Missions and the Moon:
The Assasination of President Kennedy:
Protest and Photojournalism:
The Great Depression:
History of Photography:
This lesson was written by Debra L. Clark, Kent State University.