Transcript “Dirt on Their Skirts” Ashley Ravo Capstone 2009

“Dirt on Their Skirts”
Ashley Ravo
Capstone 2009
Core Question
How can a Coventry High
School sophomore show
eighth graders how the AllAmerican Girls Professional
Baseball League has had an
effect on society?
Why did I choose this topic?
• I am interested in baseball.
• I want to learn more baseball history.
• I wanted to choose a topic I could
work into my National History Day
project.
• “A League of Their Own”
Learning Stretch
• I will learn how to create an organized presentation for a
group of students and a panel of judges.
• I will learn how to compile and organize the research
necessary to educate others about a specific topic.
• I will learn how to present a formal presentation with
confidence.
• I will learn about my core question which is, “How can a
Coventry High School sophomore show eighth graders
how the All-American Girls Baseball League has had an
effect on society?”
• I will learn how to stay organized and on a schedule.
General League History
• The idea for a league came about when minor league teams
disbanded because players were going to fight in WWII.
• Philip Wrigley was worried this would happen to MLB teams
as well, so he told Ken Sells to come up with an idea on how
to save the parks from possible closure.
• In 1943, the AAGPBL began their first season with 108 games
and 4 teams.
• Over time, the league was sold to Arthur Meyerhoff when it
was realized major league teams would not disband.
• The league climaxed with 10 teams and then began to lose
popularity.
• The league disbanded in 1954 when MLB games were
broadcasted on TV and AAGPBL games were not.
Lesko, Jeneane. "League History." All-American Girls Professional
Baseball League. Sept.-Oct. 2008
<http://www.aagpbl.org/league/history.cfm>.
Rosie the Riveter
• Rosie the Riveter was a
1940s icon that was an
inspiration to women during
the war.
• She inspired women to take
jobs a man would normally
have in order to help out
with the war.
• This helped encourage
women to join the league
and leave their typical
housewife duties.
"Prelude to Women's Baseball, WWII." Open-Site Free Internet
Encyclopedia. 24 Sept. 2008 <http://opensite.org/sports/baseball/history/all_american_girls_baseball_league>
Salary and Lifestyle
Improvements
• Player salary was about $75 a week.
• The league gave women better
opportunities to increase their education
and quality of life.
• The AAGPBL lead to the formation of
women’s professional golf (LPGA)
Pierman, Carol J. The All-American Girls Professional
Baseball League: Accomplishing Great Things in a Dangerous
World. 97-101
Teams
• The number of teams in the league ranged from 4
to 10 teams.
• Teams were added and disbanded depending on
finances and advertisement.
• The league started and ended with 4 teams.
• The league had 10 teams during two seasons.
• The amount of teams peaks when advertisement
was strongest and dwindles when the league
loses popularity.
"Teams of the AAGPBL." 10 Oct 2008
<http://www.nocryinginbaseball.com/women/teams.html
Charm School
• All players had to attend Charm School.
• Players were given beauty kits and beauty
routines they had to follow so they would
always look presentable.
• Players had to have a proper etiquette that
portrayed the image of the “All-American
Girl.”
"AAGBPL Charm School Pamphlet." 1 Oct 2008
<http://baseball-fever.com/archive/index.php/t-27483.html>.
“Belles of the Ball Game”
• Teams played about six games a week.
• The league started with underhand pitching
and switched to overhand in 1948.
• League proved the women didn’t have to
sacrifice their femininity to do things in a
man’s world.
• Players worked out and practiced all day and
then attended Charm School at night.
Fincher, Jack. ""The 'Belles of the Ball Game' were a hit with their
fans"." July 1989 88-97. 17 Oct 2008
<http://www.aagpbl.org/articles/general.cfm?ID=2>.
Manager’s Point of View
• Managers sometimes got frustrated with players
because sometimes married players got pregnant
during the season.
• By the 7th season, 17 managers had quit because
there was no future in managing women’s
baseball.
• At the time the managers thought someday they
would be able to play in MLB parks while the major
league teams were playing away games.
"Belles of the Ball Game": Women's Professional Baseball League
Thrives in the 1940s." 8 Oct 2008
<http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6251>.
Player’s Point of View
•
This interview was between Jeanie Des Combes
Lesko, a pitcher from the Grand Rapid Chicks, and
Leanna Kamrath.
Lesko found out about the league
when a boy’s father on her
baseball team told her about a
news article he read.
• At the time women playing sports
was considered being a “tomboy.”
• Players felt patriotic during games
but they didn’t know at the time
why the league was formed.
• It allowed people to forget about
the war and depression for a
while and was cheap
entertainment.
The V for victory before each
game was a way for players
and fans to be patriotic.
Combes Lesko, Jeanie. "Interview with Jeanie Des Combes Lesko, Pitcher,
Grand Rapids Chicks, 1953-54 By Leanna Kamrath, San Dimas, CA,." Interview
with Leanna Kamrath. All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
Sports and Economy
• Studies show that local sports events attract large
amounts of people that are willing to spend their
money at these events.
• This allows businesses to earn money which helps
the economy.
• Ballparks were able to earn money from people
coming to games.
• Players in the league were able to earn a living from
playing in the league and have a better life.
“Developing Local Markets Through Sport." International Platform on
Sport and Development/ Sport as a Means to Build Skills for
Employability. 3 Oct. 2008
<http://www.sportanddev.org/learnmore/sport_and_economic_developme
nt/sport_as_a_means_to_build_skills_for_employability/index.cfm>.
“A League of Their Own”
• This movie portrays a
good idea of what the
league was like.
• None of the characters
in the movie were
based on players in the
league.
• Players did not do the
“flashy” things on the
field like the characters
did.
"AAGPBL FAQ." All-American Girls Professional
Baseball League. 17 Sept. 2008
<http://www.aagpbl.org/faq.cfm?qid=7>.
Pictures From Presentation
Completed Crossword Puzzles
Completed Final Surveys
Obstacles and Solutions
• Trying to find different sources that
provided me with accurate information that
was related to my project was a challenge.
• I overcame this by searching every
website that had potential information I
could use in my PowerPoint.
• I had to be patient and reading everything
in order to find what I needed.
Obstacles and Solutions (cont.)
• Trying to get accurate information on what
exactly it is I need to do my project.
• I kept looking online and trying different
websites until I finally found everything I
needed to make the PowerPoint.
• After presenting to the eighth grade, the
teacher of the class I presented to made
suggestions of what could possibly make
the presentation better.
Obstacles and Solutions (cont.)
• Trying to find a time when I could come
and present to the eight grade that fit my
schedule and the teacher’s schedule.
• My mom had to take the day out of work to
take me to the middle school to present.
• I was almost late because the office did
not call me down when my mom arrived at
the school even though they told her they
would.
Obstacles and Solutions (cont.)
• The class had lunch in the middle of class, so it
was hard to get the kids to focus and pay
attention to the presentation.
• The kids aren’t quite aware of the importance of
Capstone, so some of them did not feel as
though this was important and therefore they did
not put effort into the worksheets.
• Middle school classes are not organized into
levels so the kids in this class were of mixed
abilities. This meant not all of the worksheets
would be completed to the best of each students
abilities.
Final Reflection Summary
• Students were able to learn about the AllAmerican Girls Professional Baseball
League through my presentation.
• Students preformed better on the
crossword puzzle than on the final survey
questions.
• Dealing with different abilities is
challenging but it is something you have to
overcome.
Answer to Core Question
A CHS sophomore can teach 8th graders about the AAGPBL by…
• Gathering research about the league.
• Finding important facts within the research.
• Using facts to design an educational slide show
at an 8th grade level.
• Making activity sheets for students to fill out
during and after the presentation to enforce
learning and keep students engaged in the
presentation.
• Grading papers to prove students learned new
information from the presentation.
Learning Stretch
I will learn how to create an organized
presentation for a group of students and a
panel of judges.
• I was able to successfully design a
presentation suitable for a class of eighth
graders that flowed well and was not
confusing.
• I was able to create this slide show in an
organized manner appropriate for its
viewers.
Learning Stretch (cont.)
I will learn how to compile and organize the
research necessary to educate others about a
specific topic.
• I was able to find 10 sources containing
information about my topic.
• I was able to read through each source
and highlight the most important and
necessary facts within the sources.
• These facts were organized into a slide
show.
Learning Stretch (cont.)
I will learn how to present a formal
presentation with confidence.
• I was able to present to a class of 26
students in the eighth grade.
• I was able to present this slide show in
front of my Capstone class and teacher.
• I am presenting it right now in front of a
panel of judges who will determine whether
or not I pass or fail this project.
Learning Stretch (cont.)
I will learn about my core question which is, “How can a
Coventry High School sophomore show eighth graders
how the All-American Girls Baseball League has had an
effect on society?”
• Before I could teach others about the
AAGPBL, I had to learn more about it
myself.
• By using a variety of sources I was able to
gain more knowledge about the league.
• By teaching others about the AAGPBL I
was able to prove my knowledge.
Learning Stretch (cont.)
I will learn how to stay organized and on a schedule.
• This entire process requires a
schedule of dates for journals,
reflections, presentation dates, ect.
• I had to keep on schedule to make
sure this project got done.
• Organization was key to make sure
each component was in my binder
and in both slide shows I made.
So what did I learn?
• Of course, I learned about the AllAmerican Girls Professional Baseball
League.
• I learned the reasons it began,
addition of teams, why the league
disbanded, and the lasting affects the
league had on society.
Dealing with people’s differences
• I learned that people have different
abilities and can only help you to a certain
extent.
• Sometimes you have to be independent
and find the answer to your problems
yourself if no one can help you.
• I learned the challenges of being a teacher
and having to deal with students that might
not always cooperate in situations.
Procrastination gets you nowhere.
• This is not a project you can still complete
successfully if you procrastinate.
• Waiting until the last minute to finish
anything, even just a journal, can be very
stressful.
• I would recommend to other students
completing their Capstone to use every
minute of time to their advantage to stay
ahead and be ready for each deadline.
Independence
• I learned I need to rely on myself to ask
questions and get answers.
• I learned that if I can not get answers when
I ask for them I need to use other sources
to find the answers for myself.
• Its up to me to make sure I get everything
done that I need to do. I am my own
responsibility.
Thank you to…
• Mr. Kiley, my Capstone teacher, for guiding
me through this process.
• Mr. Mitchell, an 8th grade social studies
teacher at the Coventry middle school, for
allowing me to present to his class.
• The students of the class I presented to for
listening to my presentation and filling out the
worksheets.
• My friends and family that helped me through
this process and encouraged me to do my
best.
Any questions?