East Meadow U.F.S.D
Gr. 11 & 12 THE WORLD AT WAR
2011
Curriculum Area Project
US History & Global History
GRADE 11 & 12 Elective Class
William Brenner - Coordinator
W. Tresper Clarke High School
Mr. Louis DeAngelo - Superintendent
Mr. Tim Voels – Principal
TABLE OF CONTENTS
SUBJECT/LESSON / PAGE #ABSTRACT & RATIONALE / 3
WORLD WAR I:
THE START OF WWI / 4-5
THE LAST VOYAGE OF THE LUSITANIA / 6-8
THE ZIMMERMAN TELEGRAM / 9-12
KEY BATTLES OF WWI / 13-15
WWI DIARIES- “THE LOST BATTALION” / 16-17
WEBQUEST- ARMENIAN GENOCIDE / 18-20
THE RAPE OF NANJING / 21-23
WORLD WAR II:
KEY PLAYERS OF WWII / 24-25
THE ALLIED ADVANCE IN EUROPE / 26-28
THE MANHATTAN PROJECT / 29-31
THE TRIAL OF HARRY TRUMAN / 32-33
THE COLD WAR:
THE KOREAN WAR / 34-35
VIETNAM- THE COUNTER CULTURE MOVEMENT / 36-37
EVENTS OF THE COLD WAR / 38-41
PRESIDENTS OF THE COLD WAR / 41-43
WORKS CITED / 44-46
ABSTRACT & RATIONALE
ABSTRACT:
The “World at War” class will focus on 20th century history, with the main focus of the class being World War I, World War II, and the Cold War. For each, the students will be able to get a more in depth analysis on the cause and effects of each of these events, as well as the time necessary to create projects and analyze media from both primary and secondary sources about these events.
The class will be available as an elective for the Social Studies curriculum and will be available for students in grade levels 11 and 12. The breakdown of the class will be World War I and World War II for the 1st quarter, and then the Cold War for the 2nd quarter. The class will incorporate and adhere to the newly formed Common Core Standards on a variety of issues on the 11th and 12th grade standards; such as:
-Evaluate various explanations for actions or events and determine which explanation best accords with textual evidence, acknowledging where the text leaves matters uncertain.
-Integrate and evaluate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media.
-Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary that makes clear the relationships among the key details and ideas.
-Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources, assess the credibility and accuracy of each source, and integrate the information while avoiding plagiarism.
RATIONALE:
The goal of the class will be for students to comprehend and analyze the impacts of these events on both the US and the World. With a class solely dedicated to these events, students will be able to further comprehend these major events that have impacted the US and the World through the 20th and into the 21st century, and analyze how these events impact world affairs today.
Due to the constrictions in 10th and 11th grades, these events are sometimes not discussed in great detail. This class will allow students who would like to study and research these events further to have an outlet to do so.
TOPIC: The Start of WWI
THESIS: World War I was an event in history that cannot be contributed to a single event, but rather a series of events. However, are any of these events more influential in starting the war than others?
OBJECTIVES:
-Students will be able to use internet resources to complete a timeline of events that led to the start of WWI
-Students will be able to analyze the importance and influence of the various events that led to the start of WWI
PROCEDURE:
-Students will read through the “WWI Begins: the Powder Keg Explodes” handout and define the task
-Students will use internet resources to match the dates with the corresponding events
-Students will analyze which of these events had the most impact in leading to the outbreak of WWI
Name:______Date:______
World At War Period:______
WWI BEGINS: THE “POWDER KEG” EXPLODES
Despite their being many causes for World War I, the official “Spark” that sets off the war is the assassination of an Austro-Hungarian Archduke and his wife. Below is a list of dates in Chronological order and in the opposing column are key events that led to the outbreak of WWI. Using your resources, match the dates to the key events.
THE “BLAME GAME”:
Time for your opinion: Who or what is the most at fault for the start of WWI. There is no shortage of people or nations to point a finger at, but what in your opinion is the real “instigator” of the war?
______
TOPIC: The sinking of the Lusitania
THESIS: The sinking of the British vessel H.M.S Lusitania helped lead US public opinion against Germany, and eventually into WWI. The Germans charged that the ship was smuggling weapons which made it a target. What happened with the Lusitania?
OBJECTIVES:
-Students will be able to analyze why the Lusitania sunk as quickly as it did.
-Students will be able to analyze the use of German “unrestricted Submarine Warfare” and how it led to US involvement in WWI
-Students will be able to analyze US public reaction and opinion to the sinking of the Lusitania
PROCEDURE:
-Students will discuss why the United States did not want to enter WWI, and discuss why the US remained neutral
-Students will watch the video “Last Voyage of the Lusitania” and answer the questions as the documentary progresses.
-After answering the questions and completing the video, the students will answer the Critical Thinking question.
-Discussion will take place regarding who is to blame for the events surrounding the Lusitania
Name:______Date:______
World At War Period:______
AIM: How did the sinking of the Lusitania lead to eventual US involvement in World War I?
LAST VOYAGE OF THE LUSITANIA
1) Which nation sank the Lusitania? ______
2) Why do some people say the Lusitania was not “blameless” for what happened? What was their possible “Secret Cargo”? ______
______
3) How long did it take the Lusitania to sink? Why is this so unusual? ______
______
4) Why did Churchill seem indifferent about the use of “unrestricted Submarine Warfare?” What could German attacks against shipping lead to? ______
______
5) In what Channel was the Lusitania sunk in? How deep is it? ______
______
6) What did the German government do to try and stop Americans from going on the Lusitania? Why did Americans go on the ship anyway? ______
______
7) How fast could U-20 go above water? How fast below water? ______
______
8) What did the captain of the Lusitania order people to do in order to prevent a U-Boat or enemy vessel from spotting it? ______
______
9) Why was the captain of the U-Boat “lucky” that the Lusitania turned towards Liverpool? ______
______
10) Even people who escaped the ship when it sank began to die in the water. What was killing them? ______
______
11) Instead of munitions exploding and sinking the boat, what is their new theory about what sunk the Lusitania? ______
______
Critical Thinking: Who is most to blame for the sinking of the Lusitania and the deaths that it caused? Why can it be blamed on more than just Germany?
______
TOPIC: The Zimmerman Telegram
THESIS: Although beginning World War I as a neutral nation, the United States would enter World War I in 1917 on the side of the allies. The main reason was because the US felt their neutrality was violated by Germany, in which the Zimmerman Telegram played a key part.
OBJECTIVES:
-Students will be able to develop “code breaking” skills by using a cypher and “cracking” the Zimmerman Telegram
-Students will be able to interpret and analyze what the Germans were attempting to do with the “Zimmerman Telegram” and why they felt they had to explore these kinds of options
-Students will be able to analyze the reaction of the US public & government
PROCEDURE:
-Students will read through the handout “The Zimmerman Telegram: Prelude to War” and take notes
-The students will then learn the formula for the Cypher and use that formula to decipher the Zimmerman Telegram Code.
Name:______Date:_____
World At War Period:____
THE ZIMMERMAN TELEGRAM: PRELUDE TO WAR
By 1917, Anti-German sentiment in the United States was running high. The sinking of both the Lusitania and the Sussex in previous (1915) had led the US Public to openly support the allies during a time of neutrality. With Germany following the outline of the “Sussex Pledge” in which they abandoned unrestricted submarine warfare, German officials were seeing an increase of “neutral” US supplies heading to the Allies. Seeing this as the act of an aggressor nation rather than a neutral one, Germany planned on re-instating the use of Unrestricted Submarine Warfare to cut off US supplies to Britain. However, doing so would bring the full power of the US into the war, and Germany looked to find a way to limit US influence in WWI.
What did the “Zimmerman Telegram” do? It was intended to be delivered to the Government of Mexico and instruct them to attack the United States.
Why Mexico? Mexico shared a Southern Border with the US and already had a history of tension with the US. Mexico had previously lost a massive amount of land to the US & the US and Mexico were engaged in a military conflict from 1916 through 1917.
Bad Idea? With Mexico embedded in a Civil War, the Mexican Government and economy could not support a war with a foreign nation. Once it was intercepted by the British, decoded, and given to the Americans, it made US opinion favor war.
Deciphering the Telegram: Cryptex
1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10A / B / C / D / E / F / G / H / I / J
11 / 12 / 13 / 14 / 15 / 16 / 17 / 18 / 19 / 20
K / L / M / N / O / P / Q / R / S / T
21 / 22 / 23 / 24 / 25 / 26
U / V / W / X / Y / Z
Formula: Cryptex # + 6 = New Cryptex #
1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10U / V / W / X / Y / Z / A / B / C / D
11 / 12 / 13 / 14 / 15 / 16 / 17 / 18 / 19 / 20
E / F / G / H / I / J / K / L / M / N
21 / 22 / 23 / 24 / 25 / 26
O / P / Q / R / S / T
Directions: Using the Template above, see if you can “Break the Code” of the message below.
311 152026112010 2621 811131520 2120 262411
We Intend To Begin on The
1215242526 2112 121182417245 1202411252624159261110
First of February Unrestricted
251819724152011 37241272411. 311 251471818
Submarine Warfare We Shall
11201011722124 1520 2522152611 2112 26141525
Endeavour In Spite Of This
2621 17111122 261411 12015261110 25267261125 2112
To Keep The United States of
71911241597 201112624718. 1520 261411 112112026 2112
America Neutral In The Event Of
26141525 202126 251991111101513 311 1971711 1911415921
This Not Succeeding We Make Mexico
7 222421222125718 2112 7181815720911 2120 261411
A Proposal Of Alliance On The
12211818213152013 87251525: 1971711 3724 2621131126141124
Following Basis Make War Together
1971711 22117911 2621131126141124 131120112421125
Make Peace Together Generous
121520720915718 2512222212426 72010 720
Financial Support And an
120101124252672010152013 2120 21124 2272426 2614726
Understanding On Our Part That
1911415921 1525 2621 2411921202311124 261411
Mexico Is To Reconquer The
18212526 26112424152621245 1520 26114715 20113 1911415921
Lost Territory In Texas New Mexico
72010 72415621207
And Arizona
TOPIC: Key Battles of WWI
THESIS: The new fighting styles and technology associated with World War I helped lead to a conflict that saw new levels of brutality and devastation in war. What were these battles like and how did they impact the war?
OBJECTIVES:
-Students will be able to use research skills on both the computers and print materials to research their battle.
-Students will be able to analyze and interpret the impact that their battle had on World War I.
-Students will be able to create a presentation that will allow them to share their findings with the class.
PROCEDURE:
-Students will discuss and review the weapons and tactics used in combat during World War I.
-Students will read through the handout “Key Battles of WWI” and comprehend what is to be done with regards to the task.
-Students will research their battle using internet resources and print materials in order to create their PowerPoint presentation.
-Students will present their PowerPoint to the class.
Name:______Date:______
World at War Period:______