War Theme Page

Helpful Links

War Theme Review:

Text or PPT
 

Team Page

State Standards Covered in this Theme

Requirements of the Propaganda Project

Class Grades for Fourth / Fifth

e-mail Mr. Swanson

e-mail Mrs. Beaudoin



Important Dates for the War Theme: 
Propaganda Projects due Tuesday, November 14th
War Theme Test on Thursday, November 16th (review games will be posted the night before the test)

This theme will evaluate war and its impact on humanity. We will focus on:

  • why war happens
  • how war impacts the lives of both combatants and non-combatants
  • the ways that war has benefited and harmed the United States as a nation
  • the impact of war on society (politically, economically, socially, etc.)

This study will cover many of the major wars in United States history, including: (the name of each war is linked to a quality website on that particular war)

State Standards covered in this unit include:

  • Examine the effects of the Civil War and Reconstruction and of the industrial revolution, including demographic shifts and the emergence in the late nineteenth century of the United States as a world power.
  • Describe the Spanish-American War and U.S. expansion in the South Pacific.
  • Examine the origins of American involvement in the war, with an emphasis on the events that precipitated the attack on Pearl Harbor.
  • Explain U.S. and Allied wartime strategy, including the major battles of Midway, Normandy, Iwo Jima, Okinawa, and the Battle of the Bulge.
  • Identify the roles and sacrifices of individual American soldiers, as well as the unique contributions of the special fighting forces (e.g., the Tuskegee Airmen, the 442nd Regimental Combat team, the Navajo Code Talkers).
  • Analyze Roosevelt’s foreign policy during World War II (e.g., Four Freedoms speech).
  • Discuss the constitutional issues and impact of events on the U.S. home front, including the internment of Japanese Americans (e.g., Fred Korematsu v. United States ofAmerica) and the restrictions on German and Italian resident aliens; the response of the administration to Hitler’s atrocities against Jews and other groups; the roles of women in military production; and the roles and growing political demands of African Americans.
  • Describe major developments in aviation, weaponry, communication, and medicine and the war’s impact on the location of American industry and use of resources.
  • Discuss the decision to drop atomic bombs and the consequences of the decision (Hiroshima and Nagasaki).
  • Analyze the effect of massive aid given to Western Europe under the Marshall Plan to rebuild itself after the war and the importance of a rebuilt Europe to the U.S. economy.
  • Understand the role of military alliances, including NATO and SEATO, in deterring communist aggression and maintaining security during the Cold War.
  • Trace the origins and geopolitical consequences (foreign and domestic) of the Cold War and containment policy, including the following:
    • The era of McCarthyism, instances of domestic Communism (e.g., Alger Hiss) and blacklisting
    • The Truman Doctrine
    • The Berlin Blockade
    • The Korean War
    • The Bay of Pigs invasion and the Cuban Missile Crisis
    • Atomic testing in the American West, the “mutual assured destruction” doctrine, and disarmament policies
    • The Vietnam War
    • Latin American policy
  • List the effects of foreign policy on domestic policies and vice versa (e.g., protests during the war in Vietnam, the “nuclear freeze” movement).
  • Analyze the role of the Reagan administration and other factors in the victory of the West in the Cold War.
  • Describe U.S. Middle East policy and its strategic, political, and economic interests, including those related to the Gulf War.

Basic Requirements of the War Propaganda Project

  • Each group will be assigned one war, you will be creating a propaganda campaign for that war
  • Your project will be made up of:
  • A PPT that lays out their research, shows posters, explains posters and other pieces
  • 3 posters – each for different audience - create these on an 8.5x11 sheet of paper and then scan them into your PPT
  • radio ad (30 seconds)
  • newsreel video (patterned after United News Reels from WWII)
  • We will be collecting all of your research - keep your notes, etc. organized throughout
  • Each piece of the project (posters, ad & video) should address one particular aspect you wish to focus on (recruitment, morale, evil enemy, etc.)
  • Remember that you can edit your video in D-1, but you should have your footage ready by 11/9