US History B Unit 1 Activity
Evaluation: Your teacher will score this activity using the following rubrics.
Total Points: 100
Task 1: Causes of World War II
Task Points: 15
Fill In the Blank
3
True or False
3
Short Answer (two to three sentences)
9
Task 2: Rosie the Riveter Webquest
Task Points: 20
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Includes an exceptional and thorough explanation of answering the questions
Shows a full understanding of the information
Provides a logical, thorough analysis
Has few, if any, grammatical or spelling errors
8-9
Distinguished
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Includes a clear explanation of answering the questions
Shows a good understanding of the information
Provides logical analysis
Has minor grammatical or spelling errors
5-7 Proficient
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Includes a basic explanation of answering the questions
Shows some understanding of the information
Provides basic or insufficient analysis
Has noticeable grammatical or spelling errors
2-4 Basic
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Includes an incomplete or inadequate explanation of answering the questions
Shows an incomplete understanding of the information
Provides little to no analysis
Has numerous grammatical or spelling errors
0-1 Inadequate
Task 3: World War II Propaganda
Task Points: 25
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Includes an exceptional and thorough explanation of answering the questions
Shows a full understanding of the posters
Provides a logical, thorough analysis
Has few, if any, grammatical or spelling errors
8-9
Distinguished
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Includes a clear explanation of answering the questions
Shows a good understanding of the posters
Provides logical analysis
Has minor grammatical or spelling errors
5-7 Proficient
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Includes a basic explanation of answering the questions
Shows some understanding of the posters
Provides basic or insufficient analysis
Has noticeable grammatical or spelling errors
2-4 Basic
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Includes an incomplete or inadequate explanation of answering the questions
Shows an incomplete understanding of the posters
Provides little to no analysis
Has numerous grammatical or spelling errors
0-1 Inadequate
Task 4: Harry Truman and the Atomic Bomb Writing Activity
Task Points: 40
Write a 250-400 word letter answering which scenario you chose. Make sure it
is in your own words and you write in complete sentences.
Task 1: Causes of World War II
Background
After Germany lost WWI, they were treated very harshly by the Allies, specifically England and
France. The Treaty of Versailles, which is the peace agreement that ended WWI, did many
things to hurt Germany, such as limiting the size of their army, taking land away from Germany,
and forcing Germany to pay large amounts of money to Allied countries. Although many thought
these were appropriate ways to consequence Germany, it also left the German economy in
ruins. The country was out of money and in an economic depression, the citizens were poor and
some were starving, and the government was a mess.
All of this turmoil and chaos in Germany created a perfect situation for a man named Adolf
Hitler to rise to power. Hitler was a soldier for Germany during WWI and, after the war, got into
politics. While in politics, he realized he was extremely good at giving speeches and making
people support what he was saying. This allowed him to rise quickly in the German government.
Hitler presented a clear message to the country: others were to blame for the country's
depression and hard times, not Germany. The citizens of Germany loved this message and
supported Hitler all the way to him becoming the country’s Chancellor and Fuhrer, or leader.
As Hitler was rising to power in the German government, he joined, and soon became the
leader of, the Nazi political party. Hitler and his Nazi government tried allied themselves with
Italy and their leader, Benito Mussolini. Mussolini and Hitler believed in fascist governments
where the leader becomes a dictator, or someone who has complete control over their country.
They also wanted to expand their countries by attacking other countries and taking their land.
Hitler began to rearm Germany, increasing their military power and creating a larger army,
which was against the Treaty of Versailles. In 1935, Italy invaded and took over Ethiopia. Then,
in 1938, Hitler took over Austria. Nothing the League of Nations or any other country did
anything to stop him, so, in 1939, Hitler took over Czechoslovakia.
During this time, Japan was also taking over countries in Asia. Despite all of this aggression
European countries and America did very little to stop it. European countries were tired from
WWI, only 30 years earlier, and did not want to get involved in yet another conflict. As a result,
they took an approach known as appeasement. This meant that, instead of fighting Hitler and
engaging in another war, they would give him what he wanted to keep him happy. The hope
was that once Hitler got what he wanted he would stop and war would be avoided. Instead, this
only made Hitler more confident and gave him more time to build a stronger army. During this
time America was experiencing The Great Depression. This was an extremely difficult time for
America and, as a result, they had no desire to go all the way over to Europe and fight in
another war.
Finally, on September 1st, 1939, Hitler invaded Poland. At this point, Great Britain, France, and
other countries declared war on Nazi Germany, officially starting WWII. America though did not
declare war until 1941 when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, an American naval base. Russia
also did not declare war on Germany until 1941 when Germany broke their non-aggression
agreement, which said they would not attack each other.
Fill-In-The-Blank
Use the information provided about World War II to fill in the blank in each sentence.
Hint: The bold words will help you with this assignment.
1) European countries, specifically England and France took an approach known as
appeasement _when dealing with Germany’s aggression.
2) The Treaty of Versailles left Germany’s economy in _ ruins._.
3) Hitler allied himself with _, Benito Mussolini _, Italy’s Fascist dictator.
4) On September 1st, _1939_ Hitler invaded Poland and World War II officially began.
5) After getting into politics, _ Adolf Hitler _realized he was extremely talented at giving
speeches.
6) After WWI and the treaty of Versailles, Germany was in an economic ___ depression _, some
citizens were starving, and the government was a mess.
7) In 1938, when Hitler took over Austria, the __ League of Nations_ did nothing, so he attacked
Czechoslovakia.
8) America did not join WWI until __ Japan _bombed an American naval base at Pearl Harbor.
9) As Hitler rose to power, he became the leader of the Nazi political party.
10) Russia and Germany had a __ non-aggression agreement which said they would not
attack each other.
True and False
The statements below are false. Cross out the false part of the statement and rewrite that
section to make the statement true.
11) After Germany lost WWI, they were treated fairly by the Allies
12) Hitler had a clear message to all Germans that they were to blame for their country's
problems.
13) After Germany invaded Poland, in 1939, America declared war on them.
14) The Treaty of Versailles limited the Germans army size, made them pay small amounts of
money, and took away land.
15) The policy of appeasement made Hitler stop his attacks and avoided war.
16) The citizens of Germany disliked the message that Hitler and the Nazi party were spreading.
17) America was in a great place when WWII started so they did not want to go over to Europe
and fight in another war.
18) Europeans were tired from fighting in WWI, only 10 years earlier, so they did not want to go
to war to stop Germany and Italy’s aggression.
19) All of the turmoil and problems in America made a perfect situation for Adolf Hitler to rise to
power.
20) During this time, Japan was finding ways to support England and France.
Short Answer
Respond to the following questions in complete sentences. You will write two-three
sentences for each answer. Make sure to write in your own words and use proper
grammar.
21) Using the information provided in the background, infer why the German citizens
loved the message that Adolf Hitler was saying to them?
22) If you lived in France or England, during this time, would you have agreed or disagree
with the idea of appeasement? Explain your reasoning.
23) When France, England, and other European countries declared war on Germany the
United States did not. By comparing and contrasting the different situations these
countries were in, explain why it made sense for the U.S. not to declare war.
Task 2: Rosie the Riveter Webquest
Directions: Complete the following questions using the websites listed below. Make
sure to complete sentences using your own words. Each answer must be two-three
sentences.
http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/rosie-the-riveter
Questions
Answers (two to three sentences)
What did American women do at the homefront during World
War II?
What percent did the female workforce increase between 1940
and 1945?
What was meant by “Rosie the Riveter”? What was the goal of
the campaign?
What industry saw the greatest increase in female workers?
More than ________ women worked in the U.S. aircraft
industry in 1943, making up
____________________________________________
(compared to just 1 percent in the pre-war years). The
Fill in the blanks
munitions industry also heavily recruited women workers, as
illustrated by the U.S. government’s
__________________________________________.
Was “Rosie the Riveter” based on a single person? Explain.
Explain the entry of women into the armed forces during World
War II.
What did Congress institute in May of 1942?
According to the website, what women became the first to fly
American military aircraft?
Task 3: World War II Propaganda
Instructions: Before starting the task, answer this question based on the knowledge
you have about propaganda and the impact it can have. Write at least two sentences,
use proper grammar and your own words.
How much of an effect did propaganda have on the
outcome of the war?
Instructions: After you have looked at these posters you will answer the table belows.
Make sure to write in complete sentences and use proper grammar.
Poster A
Poster B
Poster C
Poster D
Poster E
Poster F
Message and Purpose
● Men: patriotism, revenge, masculinity, volunteer
● Women: fear for family’s safety, take on new role, conserve
● Children: victory gardens, recycle, help ration
● In general: aimed at public’s emotions to warn, plead, encourage, prepare for a
home/battlefield sacrifice
Question
Answer - write in complete sentences
Identify the theme visible in each poster.
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
How well does each poster get its
message across?
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
Who is the intended audience for each
poster?
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
Why were different posters created for the Overall on all Posters:
same audience?
Compare and contrast the emotions you
feel today looking at these posters and
the emotions someone in 1943 would
have felt.
Overall on all Posters:
Who is the enemy and how are they
portrayed?
E.
F.
Instructions: Now that you have looked at and studied the poster you will answer
general questions about propaganda and what you have learned. You will write two to
three sentences for each question. Make sure to write in your own words and use
proper grammar.
Discussion Questions
Questions
Answers (two to three sentences)
What characteristics make a poster’s message more or
less effective?
In what ways can propaganda be positive or negative?
How might your perceived role in the war be changed
or strengthened based on propaganda?
How would the message(s) in propaganda posters
have changed throughout the course of the war?
If there hadn’t been a propaganda campaign, how
might have America’s involvement in the war been
different?
Could a lack of a campaign have led to a different
outcome for the war?
Task 4: Harry Truman and the Atomic Bomb Writing Activity
In Their Shoes
Series… Harry Truman
Some Background:
It is late July 1945. Over 400,000 US servicemen have been killed during America’s four
years at war. Italy overthrew Mussolini and his fascist regime in 1944 and freedom loving
Italians quickly joined the Allies. Hitler’s “Thousand Year Reich” was defeated in May 1945 after
12 years. Japan though was still savagely fighting against the oncoming Americans in the
Pacific.
Japan of course was the country that pulled us directly into this war with their
surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii in Dec. 1941. In the next six months, they were
able to take archipelagos and single islands all within the Pacific rim giving themselves the
empire they desired for so long. Included in this early conquest was the Philippines where
US soldiers became prisoners of the Japanese for the first time. What followed slowly
became public knowledge of how Japan mistreated captured soldiers including torture and
being put to death on a whim (The US did not understand at that time Japan’s culture and
military values which were different from ours).
With Japan having its empire in 1942, it came down to defending it against the
Americans until they grew tired of sacrificing men, money and time against what the
Japanese thought was their three advantages of better men, a better navy and better
planes.
President Franklin Roosevelt stated a goal of “unconditional surrender of the axis
powers” in 1943 according to Admiral Wm. Leahy. At this time, the US was slowly but
successfully regaining territory taken early by the Japanese. The Japanese may have at
this time begun to realize that they underestimated the US’s resolve in defeating the
Japanese completely and not falling prey to “tiring” of the war.
In 1944, as the US “island hopped” closer and closer to mainland Japan, the
desperate Japanese dispensed a new weapon in the form of the kamikaze. While striking
fear into many naval personnel, it did not deter the US’s effort to forge “onward toward
Japan!”
In early 1945 at the battle of Okinawa, an island considered part of Japan,
casualties were horrifying….about 50% of all US forces that invaded the island were
killed or wounded. Bottom line….the closer US forces got to mainland Japan, the more
desperately the Japanese fought and prepared their people for the incoming invasion.
As an example of this desperation…..the Japanese were training small children how to
stab a landing US soldier in the leg with poison spears. In April of 1945, the tragic
news of FDR’s death left the nation feeling uncertain that the heir to his office, Vice
President Harry S Truman could fill the battle tested Roosevelt’s place.
Germany surrendered in May ending the war in Europe. Truman made a speech
meant for the world to hear that the US would not quit the war in the Pacific until Japan
surrendered unconditionally. With no formal surrender from Japan coming after the
speech, it looked like a full scale invasion of the mainland was the destiny of at least
one million servicemen, some of whom had helped to win the war in Europe and
thought they were headed home.
Then while at a conference in Potsdam, Germany, Truman got word that the
United States had successfully exploded an atomic bomb back in Los Alamos, NM.
Harry S Truman from the small town of Independence Missouri then had a decision to
make…..and that decision and a small taste of the consequences of it is now yours!
Your two options:
1. Order the mainland invasion of Japan, secure it with ground troops to force the
surrender of Japan. Estimates from Generals in the Pacific have the number of
casualties starting in the 200,000’s to complete this.
2. Order the dropping of an atomic bomb(s) to force the surrender. Estimates
vary, but dropping an atomic bomb on a city will kill somewhere between
15,000 to 75,000 instantly. While a city that makes munitions for the war will be
chosen, it cannot be helped that many civilians including children are part of
that estimate.
Your Harry Truman in June 1945……..what will you choose?!?!
Invasion _______
Drop the a-bomb ______
Instructions: Now that you have chosen you will write a letter depending on which on
which option you choose. The letter will need to be 250-400 words. Make sure to write in
your own words and use proper punctuation and grammar. Make sure that your
formatting is correct with a letter.
The prompts are listed below.
●
If you chose invasion, then write a response letter to a woman who lost
her husband and one of her three brothers in the invasion. She wants to
know why we had to invade. She states that Japan was already beaten and
was no longer a threat. She asks who will support her three year old girl.
She is devastated.
●
If you chose to drop the a-bomb, then write a response letter to a woman
who lost her entire family, including her husband, her 11 year old son, her 6
year old daughter and her parents, in the bombing of Hiroshima. She was
North of the city on the horrific day the world was changed forever. She
wants to know how you sleep at night. She sent pictures of her killed family
members. She wants to know if this is how America defines liberty and
peace. She is devastated.
Letter (250 to 400 words)