Waves of Radios

What was the family entertainment center in the early 1900s? A radio! Trace the growth of this fascinating invention and recreate a colorful slice of communication history.

• 1.

  Picture a family gathered around the radio. In the early 1900s, radios changed society just as TV did later in the century. For the first time, people received news rapidly thanks to radio. Entertainment was also at people's fingertips.

• 2.

  Research the advances in technology that led to the sudden growth and popularity of radio in the 1920s. Follow the growth of radio from the mammoth, cumbersome machines of a century ago to the tiny earphones of today. Find pictures of various styles of radios.

• 3.

  With Crayola® Colored Pencils, sketch a radio tower on construction paper. Use a compass to draw concentric circles emanating from the top of the tower to simulate radio waves. Use Crayola Twistables to color the lines of your circles and the background of your scene.

• 4.

  Color several narrow craft sticks. Use a Crayola Glue Stick to attach the craft sticks to the paper to form a radio tower.

• 5.

  On more construction paper, draw and color various radio styles from different eras of history. Cut them out with Crayola Scissors. Attach them in an aesthetically pleasing arrangement around the tower.

Benefits

• Students grasp the fundamentals of radio/sound communication technology. They research why the size of radios has gotten smaller through advances of technology...from large radio tubes through transistors through microchips.
• Students learn how important and influential radio was in peoples’ lives from 1920 through 1950, and follow changes in the styles and shapes of radios through the last 100 years.
• Students demonstrate their knowledge of radio history by creating a picture showing the changing technology.

Adaptations

• Students with special needs may prefer to draw circles with a template. Provide plenty of pictures or radios. Visit a museum or go to an antique shop to see a variety of radios.
• Trace the history of computers, televisions, or telephones in the same manner.
• Research broadcasting and entertainment historical events. Make a timeline.
• Interview people who have lived through the history of radio. What did they think of the invention as children? What were their favorite shows? How have radio programs changed?
• Listen to recordings of historic radio shows. Write your own script describing a historic event. Reenact the broadcast in the old-fashioned style of radio newscast delivery.