Dictator Speech

Be prepared Friday to deliver your speech to your fellow dictators as well as a huge crowd of your countrymen!

World War II Story

February 18, 2014

Your February 18th blog, next Tuesday, consists of you writing a story about WWII to a 12-year old middle school student. This assignment forces you to THINK critically about your audience and how you will explain this war (and the vocabulary words you are required to use) to someone in that age group. Remember, a 12-year old is unlikely to be familiar with such terms as ally, axis, appeasement, etc. It is YOUR responsibility to use ALL of those terms in your story and explain them to an individual at that age level. BE CREATIVE!

There are 34 terms that MUST be used for this assignment. PLEASE be sure to bold or highlight each term in your story so that it stands out. I will hand these terms out in class for you to have. You will see the phrase Sig in your definitions – this term refers to Internet slang.

A rubric will be provided to you in class as well for this particular blog. Also, please remember that this blog MUST be uploaded to Turnitin.com and is due on Sunday, February 23rd at 9:00 p.m.

Debate Reflections

February 11, 2014

Your blog this week is to reflect on the debates conducted in class over the past few days. Take time to consider the debate you participated in as well as the debates you watched. Your assignment is to write TWO reflections: one on your own actual participation in the debate and the other reflection is on the debates conducted by your classmates - so it is a reflection as you as a member of the audience. Your reflections should be honest and respectful. One-sentence answers are NOT acceptable. Use the seven bullet points below as a guide to reflect on yourself and your colleagues/you as an audience member. The due date for this blog is Sunday, February 16th by 9:00 p.m. 

• All statements, body language, and responses were respectful and were in appropriate language.
• All information presented in this debate was clear, accurate and thorough.
• All counter-arguments were accurate, relevant and strong.
• Every major point was well supported with several relevant facts, statistics and/or examples.
• All arguments were clearly tied to an idea and organized in a tight, logical fashion.
• The team clearly understood the topic in- depth and presented their information forcefully and convincingly.
• The Team consistently used gestures, eye contact, tone of voice and a level of enthusiasm in a way that kept the attention of the audience.

This particular blog does not need to be uploaded to Turnitin. 

The Great Debate!

WWII: Beginning and End

Be sure to upload to turnitin by Sunday night at 9:00 p.m. These questions can be answered via research so please be sure to include your works cited page! Here are some pictures from today!!! Great Job to Erick, Jack, Dinnia, and yes...Junior!!!

1. When did WWII begin in Europe: who was defeated, invaded, attacked to spark war?
2. Describe the Battle of Britain.
3. Analyze Mussolini’s invasion of Egypt.
4. Describe Hitler’s first move in 1941 when Hitler (driving Britain out of Libya and then invading Greece).
5. Analyze the German invasion of Russia (Operation Barbarossa) that began on June 22, 1941.
6. Discuss how the United States enters the war in 1941.
7. Why was declaring war on the United States Hitler’s biggest mistake?
8. Compare the inhumane and brutal behavior displayed by Germany and Japan.
9. Discuss the Battle of El Alamein.
10. Describe the role of allied naval forces during the war.
11. Allied air power defeated the Axis – what contributions did they make to be so successful? Be sure to include the bombing of German and Japanese cities.
12. The Axis powers were defeated over a two-year time period – describe the following: The fall of Italy; The invasion of France; Germany retreating in France and Russia; The assault in Germany; and the Defeat of Japan.
13. List the reasons as to why the Axis powers lost the war?

WWII Issues Debates

Next week you will be debating with your partner on major WWII issues. Most of these topics have been hotly debated in the years since WWII and now it is your chance to get involved in the discussion.

Place your team's debate topic on this blog - there will be one pro comment and one con comment for each team. Further instruction will be given to you in class!

Ruhr, Locarno, Manchuria, and Abyssinia

Most of these questions appear in your packet. Remember to upload to turnitin.com!

1. How does Gustav Stresemann view the Locarno Treaty of 1925?
2. Refer to pages 64 and 65 in your handout (sources A-D) and answer the following question: What different attitudes towards the outcome of Locarno does Sources A-D demonstrate?
3. Why did Japan embark on this course of action (invasion of Manchuria)?
4. What response did the international community make to this flagrant act of aggression (Japan’s invasion of Manchuria)?
5. Discuss the impact their action or inaction had on international relations in subsequent years (Japan’s invasion of Manchuria)?
6. Economic sanctions depended on the willingness of nations to undertake a boycott or other economic action against the aggressor. It also meant that all nations would have to participate. Why wasn’t this a realistic option? Discuss in relation to the vested interests of the League and non-League members.
7. Did Manchuria encourage the aggressive action of neighboring states? Create pro’s and con’s to the resolution that “self-defence is the only justification for war.”
8. What was the purpose of the Hoare-Laval pact? Why is it referred to as an example of Realpolitik?
9. Discuss the pro’s and con’s to the following statement: sacrificing Abyssinia was less important than maintaining the Stresa Front.
10. Use Source C on page 75 along with your knowledge from this reading and analyze the following statement: the Abyssinian crisis was a task imposed upon the League of Nations that it was impossible to fulfill.