We have used the bomb against those who attacked us without warning at Pearl Harbor,  against those who have starved and beaten and executed American prisoners of war, against those who have abandoned all pretense of obeying international laws of warfare.  We have used it in order to shorten the  agony of war, in order to save the lives of thousands and thousands of young Americans.   
     -Harry S. Truman   
    
    
   
I don't believe that the big men, the politicians and the capitalists alone are guilty of the war. Oh, no, the little man is just as keen, otherwise the people of the world would have risen in revolt long ago! There is an urge and rage in people to destroy, to kill, to murder, and until all mankind, without exception, undergoes a great change, wars will be waged, everything that has been built up, cultivated and grown, will be destroyed and disfigured, after which mankind will have to begin all over again.   
     -Anne Frank   
   

   
"Sleeping here a brave air-hero who lost youth and happiness for his mother land."    

World War II has left its mark on almost every aspect of the twentieth century.  It was, without a doubt, a major event in the history of the world, triggering change across our country and many others.  It was the first time that interracial marriages entered the mainstream as G.I'.s brought their foreign brides home.  The Civil Rights Movement was born as returning black soldiers refused to be segregated after fighting alongside white soldiers.  The Women's Movement began to take shape; they began to wear pants and perform traditional male jobs as the men were off fighting, and were reluctant to assume their old roles after the war ended.  Technology took its effect on the world; new communications, radar, sonar, air trave and the atomic bomb changed the way people viewed their environment.  Who can argue that the events of the Holocaust and the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki did not make people stop and examine their values?   

Students know very little about World War II, and it is an immense topic to thoroughly understand.  We begin with an overview of the war: the composition of the Allied and Axis powers, large maps to pinpoint major countries involved and outlines of the major causes of the war.   

Objective:   

• To understand the far-reaching effect World War II had on countries and their inhabitants.
• To better comprehend the events of the Holocaust and its devasting effects on the Jewish people.

Social Studies: The use of Daniel's Story as a  source for studying the Holocaust.   

• Writing: "A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words".  Students receive a picture and are asked to describe in detail what they see using their  five senses.  They then explain any emotions these pictures evoke.

• Journal: Sample reflective questions include:
• Can an event such as the Holocaust happen today?
• Daniel's father refused to leave Germany until it was too late. Why?
• Is it important that we remember the horrors that affected the Jewish community? Explain.

• Speaker: Rabbi to explain Jewish beliefs and discuss the effects of the Holocaust

• Literary Groups: Students choose a WWII novel from the Media Center or Reading Consultant; a list is provided.

• Each student is provided with a Reading Response Log which includes: a vocab list, recording of events, main characters, personal responses for each chapter.
• Student presentation at the end of each chapter. 

• Research Groups: Four students each.

• Student groups are each presented with a topic, i.e. concentration camps, political leaders, the Gestapo, Pearl Harbor.
• Pertinent information must be included, such as maps, graphs and diagrams.

• Projects: Games, a tape of songs, propaganda newsletters, recruitment posters, skits created by students and evaluated on creativity and accuracy.  

• Warfare techniques : Students create large charts comparing the weapons used in World War l  with those used in World ll.  Brainstorm with students how weather can also be used as a weapon.
• Sonar
• Radar
• Atomic bomb: The study of the Manhattan Project.  After dropping the second atomic bomb on Nagasaki, President Harry S. Truman justified his decision in the statement shown to the left.  Have students write an essay stating how they feel about the use of atomic weapons in war.  Do they feel that Pres. Truman was justified?  Why?  If they had been  Pres. Truman would they have made the same decision?  Why or why not?

Evaluation:   

• Preparation and work recorded in log.
• Individual group evaluation
• Projects developed in groups
• Responses in journal