World War II

Day 1 -2 (1/6-1/7): Introduction to the Second World War and the Rise of Hitler

• The Rise of Totalitarianism (text 772-778)
• 1939-1945
• Axis (Germany, Italy, Japan)
• Allies (USA, Great Britain, Soviet Union)

Day 3 (1/8): View and discuss The Century: America's Time-- Over the Edge 1936-40.

Day 4-5 (1/9-10) Prelude to War Questions (in class)

• Tuesday 1/10 -- WWII Quiz #1

Days 5-6 (1/13-1/14) The attack on Pearl Harbor

• After concluding discussion of the "Prelude to War" questions above, we turn our attention to the attack on Pearl Harbor on the morning of December 7, 1941.
• Analyze the resources below
  • Map of Pearl Harbor today (note the USS Arizona Memorial)
  • National Geographic Pearl Harbor Attack Map
  • First 4 minutes of the documentary "The Century - America's Time: Homefront"

Days 7-8 (1/15-1/16): WWII -- The Homefront

• The attack on Pearl Harbor mobilized a nation previously committed to isolation in a unifying way that we have not seen before or since. Locally, WWII transformed Manitowoc County as industry of all types converted to war production, including the famous 28 freshwater subs that were produced locally, the majority of which saw action against the Japanese and is responsible for sinking 10% of all Japanese tonnage during the war.
• In class, we examined various types of primary sources, from school yearbooks to propaganda posters to ration books.
• Consult text pages 809-814 for further information.

QUIZ #2

Days 9-10 WWII Turning Points -- Battle Research

Day 13 -- The US In WWII

• The focus of today's class is on the early stages of America's involvement in WWII and our efforts to turn the tide against the Japanese and German advance. Special attention will be paid to events such as Stalingrad and operations in North Africa, as well as Midway and Guadalcanal in the Pacific.

Day 14:

After completing a review of the early stages of WWII (1942-43), complete the questions associated with text pages 818-827 entitled Victory in Europe and the Pacific for class on Tuesday.

Day 15: D-Day, The Battle of the Bulge, and the Fall of Germany

The invasion of Normandy France on June 6, 1944, was the largest amphibious operation in all of human history and began the liberation of western Europe from Nazi oppression.

Day 16 - 18:

• WWII Quiz #3
• During the Second World War, all of the main belligerents intentionally targeted civilians in the name of the war effort. We will examine some of the questions related to the idea of "Total War", specifically the ferocity of the Pacific war and the firebombing and atomic bombing of Japan.
• Together, we will view selected portions of the documentary films below.

Days 19-22:

To begin to culminate our study of the Second World War we are viewing the film Flags of our Fathers. Based on the book of the same title by James Bradley - author and son of Iwo Jima veteran John Bradley - this film focuses on the struggle for the small island critical to the final assault on Japan. It also tells the story of the famous flag raising Joe Rosenthal photograph from that battle, and analyzes our often misguided perceptions about conflict as civilians. After the film, we will analyze and discuss information from the following sources:

Days 23-24

Review for Exam / WWII Scrapbook Project Work

Days 24-25

Exam Review and WWII Era Unit Exam

Mini Unit: The Holocaust

• Monday -- Holocaust research questions from www.ushmm.org
• Tuesday -- Video: The Century: America's Time -- Civilians at War (04:00-32:00)
• Wednesday -- Discussion -- the process of the Holocaust/Quiz