New Deal: AAA - Agricultural Adjustment Administration

This outstanding and fully resourced lesson helps students evaluate how successful the New Deal was at tackling unemployment and revitalising the US economy, with a particular focus on the problems facing farmers and the role of the Agricultural Adjustment Administration (AAA).

Designed to bring the topic to life, the lesson combines historical enquiry, critical thinking, and active learning. Students explore the aims of the New Deal, analyse FDR’s leadership, and assess whether the AAA achieved its goals of stabilising prices and restoring confidence in American agriculture.

When you purchase this resource, you will receive a 29-slide PowerPoint and a differentiated card sort, complete with information, primary sources, video links, and a range of stimulating activities. The lesson begins with a snowballing starter to recap prior knowledge before moving into a class discussion based on FDR’s inaugural speech and the aims of the New Deal. Students then examine an animated diagram showing how consumer fear deepened the Great Depression, followed by a source analysis and discussion task exploring the idea of ‘pump priming’ and the opposition it faced.

Further activities encourage students to consider FDR’s views on the role of agriculture in the nation’s recovery and to investigate both the achievements and limitations of the AAA. The lesson culminates in a card sort evaluation, helping students reach a balanced judgement on how successful the AAA was in solving the problems facing American farmers. Finally, students analyse a political cartoon, supported by a clear mark scheme that allows for self or peer assessment.

This resource is ideal for GCSE History students studying the USA 1929–1941 (AQA, Edexcel, OCR, or Eduqas) and can also be adapted for KS3 or A Level introductory lessons on the New Deal.

The aims and objectives of this lesson are:

Theme: How successful was the New Deal 1933 – 1939?
Know: What were the aims of the New Deal?
Understand: How did the AAA try to help the problems facing farmers?
Evaluate: How successful was the AAA?

WILF – What Am I Looking For?
Can You Describe: What action did FDR take to end the Depression?
Can You Explain: How did the AAA try and help farmers?
Can You Analyse: How successful was the New Deal 1933 – 1939?

This resource has been designed as a flexible teaching aid. It is provided in Microsoft PowerPoint format and is fully editable, allowing you to adapt and customise every element to meet the needs of your students or your scheme of work. It has also been uploaded in a PDF format for additional convenience.

If you enjoy using this lesson you can find many more high-quality resources on similar topics and the New Deal on our TES shop. You can also follow the History Academy on social media via our facebook page, where release news about our latest updates. We are always delighted to hear how our resource have been used across the country and welcome feedback or question