1940s

Come to class in your best 1940s inspired attire, because we will be having our first decade day in Journeyman!


Apprentice

Complete all of the following:

1. Read A History of Us, volume 10, chapters 1-6

2. Study the map of post World War 2 Europe.
 

3. Write the definitions to the following terms from the Dictionary of Cultural Literacy on note cards:

• iron curtain
• cold war
• Marshall Plan
• communism
• United Nations
• Yalta Agreement
• NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)
• containment
• Berlin airlift
• East Germany
• West Germany
• Eastern bloc
• reparation
• atomic bomb
• apartheid
• Soviet Union or USSR (summarize)
• Kremlin

4. On your fold-out timeline in your history binder, look up the dates and label the important political events for the 1940s, including: World War 2, Berlin Blockade, Gandhi assassinated, Apartheid begins, Israel founded, China becomes communist, NATO established, Soviet Union has atomic bomb.
CONTEST: See if you can find important events for your timeline in other areas like science, entertainment, sports, etc. We will vote on the best or most unique one found! There will be a prize :)

5. Create a notebook page or two for your History binder on the events after World War 2 that led to the beginning of the Cold War. Be creative and artistic. Include a summary of the chapters you read and include any applicable pictures and maps. Also, print or draw some pictures and write short bios on the following people: Harry Truman, Joseph Stalin, Mahatma Gandhi, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Albert Einstein, Charles deGaulle, Winston Churchill, and Jackie Robinson. (These are also found in The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy.) Write a paragraph or two about your conclusions about these events. What do you think about them?

Journeyman

Since the beginnings of America, foreign policy has been a hot topic. How do we maintain relationships with other countries that do not share our values and beliefs, but also ensure liberty for ourselves and others? Read the Wikipedia article on the History of U.S. Foreign Policy, and trace the shifts in America's outlook on foreign policy through the years. You will probably want to print it out and underline the main points. 
Also, there were several telegrams and speeches given after World War 2 which shaped foreign policies between America and the USSR, leading to the Cold War. These documents include:

• George Kennan's "Long Telegram"
• "Novikov Telegram"
• Churchill's "The Sinews of Peace" speech
• Truman Doctrine
• Marshall Plan
• Molotov Plan
• NSC-68

I don't expect you to read these, but research each of them and summarize their main points. Then, using your notes, write a few paragraphs about how American foreign policy has changed and why. How did these post World War II documents lead to the policy of containment that the U.S. adopted? Do you think, that given the circumstances, that this was the best course of action? Would you do anything differently? How do you think this policy will affect our future relations with other nations?

Master

1. Read The Berlin Candy Bomber 
As you read, please look for tidbits about how the people of Berlin were affected by post-war conditions and the Russian blockade. Also, trace the theme of personal mission in the author's life. How did 2 sticks of gum save the world? In the beginning and ending chapters of the book the author talks a lot about his life and details of airplanes and flight. If these don't interest you, please feel free to skim these parts until you get to the pertinent things we are studying this month. 

2. Journal for 10 minutes on the following question:
Can you think of a time when a small decision in your life ended up having a big impact on you or others?