• Login
  • Register
  • FAQ
  • Contact Us
  • Home
  • Documents
  • Activities
  • Activity Tools
    • All Tools
    • Analyzing Documents
    • Discussion Topic
    • Compare and Contrast
    • Zoom/Crop
    • White Out / Black Out
    • Spotlight
    • Finding a Sequence
    • Making Connections
    • Mapping History
    • Seeing the Big Picture
    • Weighing the Evidence
    • Interpreting Data
  • Popular Topics
    • See All
    • National History Day
    • The Constitution
    • Sports: All-American
    • Rights in America
    • American Indians
    • Women's Rights
    • American Revolution
    • The Civil War
    • World War I
    • World War II
    • The Vietnam War
    • 1970s America
    • Congress
    • Amending America
    • Elections
    • What Americans Eat
    • Signatures
    • Nixon and Ford Years
  • Resources
    • Getting Started
    • Document Analysis
    • Activity-Creation Guide
    • Manage Assignments
    • iPad App
    • Presentation Materials
    • Webinars
      • Recorded Webinars
      • Live Webinars
MENU
DocsTeachThe online tool for teaching with documents, from the National Archives National Archives Foundation National Archives

The Greatest Female Athlete: Babe Didrikson

Analyzing Documents

Print
Created by the National Archives
Bookmark this Activity in My Activities:
Copy this Activity to My Activities for editing:
The Greatest Female Athlete: Babe Didrikson

About this Activity

  • Created by:National Archives Education
  • Historical Era:Across Historical Eras
  • Thinking Skill:Historical Analysis & Interpretation
  • Bloom's Taxonomy:Understanding
  • Grade Level:Middle School
Start Activity
Please use a tablet or desktop computer to use this activity.
In this activity, students will view and analyze a short newsreel about the life of athlete Mildred Ella "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias, more famously known as Babe Didrikson--widely considered one of the greatest athletes in US history. 
https://docsteach.org/activities/student/analyzing-a-newsreel-about-babe-didrikson

Suggested Teaching Instructions

This activity can be used as a short activity for Women's History Month or to explore the history of female athletes. For students in grades 4-8. Approximate time needed is 15-20 minutes. 

Before beginning the activity, organize students into small groups. Ask students what the word athlete or athletic means. Ask students to take 30 seconds to read the word silently and write down any thoughts or words that come to mind. 

After sharing and creating a definition, give students 60 seconds to write as many famous athletes as they can list.  Ask students to share several of their specific examples and ask them to explain why that person is considered an athlete.  

Explain to students that they will view a short newsreel about one of the greatest female athletes: Mildred Ella "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias, more famously known as Babe Didrikson. 

Share the following historical details about Universal Newsreels: 
This clip comes from a series consists of the newsreel stories released by Universal Pictures. One of five major U.S. newsreels, Universal Newsreel was released in theaters from 1929 to 1967, making it the last theatrical newsreel series released in the United States. It consisted of edited stories released twice weekly as issues arranged in annual "volumes," averaging ten minutes per issue initially and six or seven minutes in later years with each newsreel containing several stories.
Students can complete the activity individually, in small groups, or as a complete class.  Prior to watching the film clip, direct students to the "Anticipate" section based on the title and the thumbnail displayed. As students watch the recording, direct students to complete the video recording analysis. If necessary, play certain aspects of the recording several times.  Model document analysis:
 
  • Anticipate
  • Meet the Video
  • Observe its Parts
  • Try to Make Sense of It
  • Use it as Historical Evidence 
 
After students have viewed the recording and completed the analysis, direct students to complete the "When You’re Done" question.  

  • Based on the newsreel segment, write a short epitaph for Babe Didrikson. How would you describe Babe and her accomplishments?  Explain your answer.

Documents in this activity

  • Babe Didrikson Star Athlete, 42, Dies of Cancer

CC0
To the extent possible under law, National Archives Education has waived all copyright and related or neighboring rights to "The Greatest Female Athlete: Babe Didrikson".

  • Explore Primary Source Documents
  •  
  • Discover Activities You Can Teach With
  •  
  • Create Fun & Engaging Activities
Follow us on Twitter:twitter
Follow us on Facebook:facebook
Please enter a valid email address

View our webinars:youtube

Get our iPad app:apple
New Documentsshare
New Activitiesshare

The National Archives

DocsTeach is a product of the National Archives education division. Our mission is to engage, educate, and inspire all learners to discover and explore the records of the American people preserved by the National Archives.

The National Archives and Records Administration is the nation's record keeper. We save documents and other materials created in the course of business conducted by the U.S. Federal government that are judged to have continuing value. We hold in trust for the public the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights — but also the records of ordinary citizens — at our locations around the country.
  • All Education Programs
  • Student Visits
  • Distance Learning
  • Professional Development
  • National Archives Museum
  • Presidential Libraries
  • Archives.gov
  • National Archives Foundation




Creative Commons License

Except where otherwise noted, DocsTeach is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Primary source documents included on this site generally come from the holdings of the National Archives and are in the public domain, except as noted. Teaching activities on this site have received the CC0 Public Domain Dedication; authors have waived all copyright and related rights to the extent possible under the law. See our legal and privacy page for full terms and conditions.