Enduring Understandings - important ideas that students should carry with them years beyond the instruction received this year.

• Chronology organizes history and increases understanding of historical relationships.
• Using historical data, events in history can be analyzed from multiple perspectives.
• Societies are diverse and change over time.
• Political power has been acquired, maintained, used and/or lost among various cultures throughout history
• Religious and philosophical ideas have been powerful societal forces.

• Human and physical systems interact and impact one another.

Essential Questions - most important “big picture” questions students should be able to answer after completing learning activities.

• What were the political, economic, military causes of WW II?
• How do maps increase understanding of the events of WWII?
• How can major events of WWII be organized chronologically?
• How has power been acquired, maintained, used and or lost since World War II?
• How have religious and philosophical ideas impacted societies since WWII?

Standards and Benchmarks

History 1: Students understand the chronological organization of history and know how to organize events and people into major eras to identify and explain historical relationships.    
Benchmark B: Students use chronology to organize historical events and people.
History  2: Students know how to use the processes and resources of historical inquiry.
Benchmark 2ormation (e.g., letters, diaries, literature, text, newspaper, art, music, technology, oral history, interviews).
History 3: Students understand that societies are diverse and change over time.
Benchmark  B: Students understand the history of social organization in various societies.
History 4: Students understand how science, technology, and economic activity have developed, changed, and affected societies throughout history.
Benchmark  A: Students understand the impact of scientific and technological developments on individuals and societies.
History  5: Students understand political institutions and theories that developed and changed over time.
Benchmark C: Students know how political power has been acquired, maintained, used and/or lost throughout history.
History 6: Students know that religious and philosophical ideas have been powerful forces throughout history.
Benchmark  C: Students know how various forms of expression reflect religious beliefs and philosophical ideas.
Geography 1: Students know how to use and construct maps, globes, and other geographic tools to locate and derive information about people, places, and environments.
Benchmark  A: Students know how to use maps, globes, and other geographic tools to acquire, process and report information from a spatial perspective.
Geography  2:  Students know the physical and human characteristics of places, and used knowledge to
Benchmark B:  Students know how and why people define regions.
Geography  4:  Students understand how economic, political cultural, and social processes interact to shape patterns of human populations, interdependence, cooperation and conflict.
Benchmark E: Students know how cooperation and conflict among people influence the division and control of the earth's surface.
Geography 5: Students understand the effects of interactions between human and physical systems and changes in meaning, use, distribution, and importance of resources.
Benchmark  B: Students know how physical systems affect human systems.

D-11 Social Studies Indicators 

History

1. Chronology/Cause & Effect: Determine cause and effect relationships based on organizing major historical and/or current events chronologically.

2. Historical Inquiry: Utilizing multiple perspectives, analyze and question historical data from primary and secondary sources during major historical eras.

3. Diverse and Changing Societies: Evaluate the impact of interactions and contributions of diverse peoples and cultures on past and current societies.

4. Science, Technology, and Economic Activity:  Evaluate the impact of economic, scientific and technological developments on human interactions.

5. Political Institutions and Theories: Analyze how political power has been acquired, maintained, used and/or lost among various cultures throughout history. 

6. Religious and Philosophical Ideas: Determine how societies have been affected by religious and philosophical ideas.

Geography

7. Use and Construction of Geographic Tools: Analyze maps, globes, charts, graphs, and databases to acquire, process and report information about people, places and environments. [G1]

8. Characteristics of Place and Region: Use physical and human characteristics to define regions important in human history.[G2]

9. Patterns of Human Population and Interaction: Analyze the physical and cultural impact of human migration.[G4]

10. Human and Physical Systems:  Evaluate how human and physical systems interact and impact one another.[G5]

District 11 Diamond Units/Lessons Overview - includes information about the purpose, goals and structure of these sample instructional units:

Differentiation - This project includes multiple entry points for the learner based on his or her interest. Students can select starting points to uncover the history of World War II by approaching it from the eight multiple intelligences. Each student can investigate the topic from one of his or her identified strengths as an independent study project.  Each students adds his or her slides to the Living Through Conflict PowerPoint. Students all present their information in the final class project presentation.

Lessons from Social Studies Helps
Lesson Why the US Entered WWII
Lesson Why the US Won WWII
Lesson Korematsu vs. United States

Resources
Authentic History Center's Songs of the World War II Era - Play one each day as students enter the classroom.
Authentic History Center's Song: When the Atom Bomb Fell  (1:45) 1945
Authentic History Center's Song: Win the War Blues (1:41) 1944
Authentic History Center's Song: Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B
WWII Veteran discusses his personal experiences as a Tuskegee Airman - 1.3M Quicktime Movie
Famous Women During the 1940s
Scholastic Research Starters on World War II Topics
http://www.racebridgesforschools.com/lessons.html  A lesson plan and four story excerpts (MP3) addressing the Japanese American Internment experience.
http://www.nationalww2museum.org/education/for-teachers/giant.html Awakening The Giant- Pearl Harbor Lesson Plan

Lesson 1:  
     
Duration: 
Standard:  
District Indicator: 
Enduring Understanding:  
Essential Questions: 
Assessment: 

Parent Resources

This unit presents a powerful opportunity for you to share stories from your family history. Share stories you recall hearing about your grandparents or other family members' experiences during  World War II. How did going through that era influence their world view?  If you have any old photo albums with pictures of relatives during the time, sharing these would help personalize this unit for your high school student.