1970s

Apparel for today's class could include, platform shoes, leisure suits, mini skirts and go go boots. We are excited to see what you wear for our 1970s celebration!

Apprentice

Complete all of the following:

1. Read A History of Us, volume 10, chapters 36-37

2. Write the definitions to the following terms from the Dictionary of Cultural Literacy on notecards:

• Khmer Rouge
• Ayatollah Khomeini
• Anwar Sadat
• Margaret Thatcher
• Bakke decision
• Kent State
• Pentagon Papers
• Watergate
• Roe vs. Wade
• Three Mile Island
• boat people
• guerilla warfare

3. On your fold-out timeline in your history binder, look up the dates and label the important political events for the 1970s, including: the Palestinian plane hijacking, Kent State shootings, terrorist attack at Olympic games, Watergate scandal, Roe vs. Wade, 1st Space Station launched, End of Vietnam War, President Nixon resigns, Cambodian genocide, and Three-Mile Island accident.

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 :)

4. Create a notebook page or two for your History binder on the events from the 1970s. Be creative and artistic. Include a summary of the chapters you read and include any applicable pictures and maps. Write a paragraph or two about your conclusions about these events. What do you think about them? Also, print or draw some pictures and write short bios on the following people: Richard Nixon, Margaret Thatcher, Mother Teresa, and Jimmy Carter. (These are also found in The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy.) 

Journeyman

1. Read Roe vs. Wade decision
2. Read UC vs. Bakke decision
3. Write down your opinion on each decision. Can you back your opinion with anything that would make a solid argument? Come prepared to discuss in class.

Master

Read The Help by Kathryn Stockett

1960s

Get out your bell bottoms, John Lennon glasses, and flower power everything! We are having a '60s celebration in Journeyman, so come to class with your favorite hippie costume! 

Apprentice

Complete all of the following:

1. Read A History of Us, volume 10, chapters 17-35

2. Study maps of the Vietnam War and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Print these for your notebook page.

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

• Berlin Wall
• draft
• sit-ins
• de-Stalinization
• Cuban Missile Crisis
• Cultural Revolution
• Bay of Pigs
• Six-day war
• Woodstock
• civil disobedience
• Viet Cong
• Black Panthers
• Civil Rights Act of 1964
• civil rights movement
• freedom riders
• Miranda decision
• My Lai massacre
• new frontier
• Tet Offensive
• Voting Rights Act of 1965
• women's movement
• feminism
• liberalism
• hippies

4. On your fold-out timeline in your history binder, look up the dates and label the important political events for the 1960s, including: the Civil Rights Movement, construction of the Berlin Wall, Bay of Pigs incident, Cuban Missile Crisis, JFK's assassination, Troops sent to Vietnam, Six-day War, MLK assassinated, first man on the moon, Woodstock, and the Tet Offensive.

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 from the 1960s. Be creative and artistic. Include a summary of the chapters you read and include any applicable pictures and maps. Write a paragraph or two about your conclusions about these events. What do you think about them? Also, print or draw some pictures and write short bios on the following people: JFK, Betty Frieden, Malcolm X, Mao Zedong, Neil Armstrong, Fidel Castro, Lyndon B. Johnson, Robert Kennedy, and Ceasar Chavez. (These are also found in The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy.) 

6. Optional: Watch "Forrest Gump". Check with your parents because there are some mature topics in this movie, however, it gives a great sweeping view of the sixties in America.

Journeyman

1. Watch "Thirteen Days" (rent for $2.99) 
For thirteen extraordinary days in October of 1962, the world stood on the brink of an unthinkable catastrophe. Across the globe, people anxiously awaited the outcome of a harrowing political, diplomatic and military confrontation that threatened to end in an apocalyptic nuclear exchange between the United States and the Soviet Union. The alarming escalation of events during those fateful days brought to the fore such public figures as Robert McNamara, Adlai Stevenson, Theodore Sorenson, Andrei Gromyko, Anatoly Dobrynin, McGeorge Bundy, Dean Acheson, Dean Rusk, and General Curtis LeMay. In addition many others -- politicians, diplomats and soldiers -- were on the front line of the showdown. In Thirteen Days, we see all of these people, -- and, above all -- President John F. Kennedy and his brother Bobby, through the eyes of a trusted presidential aide and confidante, Kenneth P. O'Donnell.


 2. Respond to the following question after watching the film:

• Was the United States, the USSR, or Cuba more to blame for the Cuban missile crisis? What impact did the crisis have on U.S.-Soviet relations?

OR

1. Watch PBS documentary The Bomb
Learn how America developed the atomic bomb and how it changed the world.

Master
A Study in Feminism

Ok boys. This class is just as much for you as it is for the girls. It is so important that you learn the history of this movement and that you understand for yourself the positive and negative aspects that have come from it. One day you will be husbands and fathers of women, and you will need to know who God made them to be and what alternate messages the world is trying to send to them. I also believe that if you understand the role of a good woman, you will also understand how to be a good man. 
 

1. Read Steel to Gold, Motherhood and Feminism by Rachel DeMille

2. Watch this clip by Sherrie Dew on what LDS women get


3. Create a collage of images and words that you feel represents what and who a good woman should be.

1950s

It's time for a 1950's sock hop! Girls, wear your poodle skirts and saddle shoes and boys, get out those muscle shirts and biker jackets! Don't be square, we'll see ya there!

Apprentice

Complete all of the following:

1. Read A History of Us, volume 10, chapters 7-16 and Brown vs. Board of Education 

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

• Korean War
• partition
• Zionism
• McCarthyism
• Jim Crow laws
• hydrogen bomb
• Warsaw Pact
• Sputniks
• balance of terror

3. On your fold-out timeline in your history binder, look up the dates and label the important political events for the 1950s, including: Korean War, construction of hydrogen bomb, Stalin dies, segregation ruled illegal, Montgomery bus boycott, Warsaw Pact, Hungarian Revolution, Suez crisis, Sputnik launched, NASA founded.

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 :)

4. Create a notebook page or two for your History binder on the events from the 1950s. Be creative and artistic. Include a summary of the chapters you read and include any applicable pictures and maps. Write a paragraph or two about your conclusions about these events. What do you think about them? Also, print or draw some pictures and write short bios on the following people: Joseph McCarthy, the Rosenburgs, Ray Kroc, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Jr., Thurgood Marshall, Elvis Presley, Ho Chi Minh, Gamal Abdel Nasser, Walt Disney, and Nikita Khrushchev. (These are also found in The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy.) 

5. Optional: Watch one of the following films: "Remember the Titans" or "October Sky"

Journeyman

This may look like a lot of work, everything on this list is really short. Do the work so you can party with us!

1. Read Understanding the House of Israel (online picture book)

2. Read Orson Hyde's 1841 Mission to the Holy Land (Ensign, Oct. 1991)

3. Watch this video on Zionism and the Balfour Declaration

4. Watch this video on the partition of Israel and Palestine 

5. Study maps of Ancient Israel through the time of Christ, from time of Christ to 1947, and a modern map. Print these for your notebook page.

6. Watch this slideshow on the history of Israeli-Palestinian conflict (slides 4-11)

7. Write for 5 minutes from the perspective of an Israeli. How do you feel about the creation of Israel and the war that began the next day? Then, switch sides and write for 5 minutes from the perspective of a Palestinian. How do you feel about the creation of Israel and the resulting war?

8. As an LDS youth, with the perspective of the revelations in the scriptures for the destiny of the Jewish people, what are your thoughts on the formation of the state of Israel?
 

Master

1. Read The Chosen by Chaim Potok 

2. Choose one of the following topics that most interests you and write down some answers that you found in the book. Include quotes and page numbers that back up your answers. Come prepared to discuss your findings in our book discussion.

     • How does Potok weave together personal and political events in his novel? How do   politics and world events contribute to the novel’s plot and character development?

     • How does Potok use silence as a narrative technique?

     • Discuss the meaning of the novel’s title. Who or what is chosen in the book? Which is more desirable: to be chosen or to make a choice?

     • Compare Reb Saunders’s political ideology to David Malter’s. At times, each father feels threatened by the other’s views. At other times, each father displays strong respect for the other. How are the two men different from one another, and how are they are similar? How can they both dislike and respect one another at the same time?

     • Throughout the novel, Potok uses imagery of eyes, glasses, and other items associated with vision and perception. What do these images symbolize? Discuss several examples, including at least two in which eyes reveal a character’s feelings.

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?

Intro to History Class

 WELCOME TO HISTORY!

Welcome back to History everyone! I'm excited for this year and I wanted to give you an overview of what we're going to be doing :) This year we will be studying post World War II through the present. Each month we will be studying a decade of time, as follows:

September: 1940s

October: 1950s

November: 1960s

January: 1970s

February: 1980s

March: 1990s

April: 2000s

Along with our study of political and social change, we will be having some fun remembering our recent cultural fads as well. So, for each Journeyman history class, we will be having a decade party! Make sure you come dressed up for the decade, and we will be doing some TOTALLY RADICAL decade-based activities.  

SUPPLIES

This year you will need a binder for history. We will be creating notebooking pages for each decade, a timeline, and short bios on important people. Your binder will give you a place to keep these items, along with your inspirements so you'll have a record of what you learn this year. We will also be keeping note cards with important terms to remember. Here is a list of items you'll need for this class:

• 1" binder
• index cards
• plastic pages
• paper for your notebook pages (this could be typing paper, cardstock or scrapbook paper)
• Print 1 copy of these pictures and cut out. Keep them in a plastic page until you are ready to use them. Click here to print your historical figures for the year.

QUIZZES

We will be playing games each month to test your knowledge/memory of your note card terms, so make sure you are studying them. There will be some awesome prizes!

World War II

Apprentice & Journeyman

Apprentice and Journeyman will be combined this time in terms of reading and inspirements. If you meet these requirements, you may attend both classes.

Objective: Become familiar with the causes, effects, and events of World War II, and study at least one aspect of the war in deeper detail.

Study/Learn

1. Read A History of US, Volume 9, Chapters 26-44

2. Read How to Kill 11 Million People (This is a quick read. Should only take approx. 20 minutes)

Know/Understand

Your mission is to become an expert on one aspect of World War II and create a dynamic, engaging, multimedia presentation on your topic to give to the class. You will have 5-10 minutes to captivate us and move us by what you have to say. Please email me with your chosen topic at teamhalley@gmail.com.

TIPS: 
• For projects like this, it is important to explore different points of view surrounding your topic.
• Don't just give us dates and general information, but also share how your topic affected people on a personal level. What are the true underlying issues going on within your topic?
• Think about what teaching tools you can use to get your point across to others most effectively. Using simulations, video clips, photos, or individual stories helps to make your presentation memorable and helps us internalize the lessons from your talk.
• Tell us how you feel about your topic and make connections from your topic to anything going on today or if your topic has had far-reaching effects that continue today.
• Create a brief outline for what you have to say on a 3 x 5 card and practice until you feel comfortable speaking without having to read from a paper. Practice speaking in a way that will keep people interested and remember to be sensitive to your topic (ex: it is not appropriate to giggle through a presentation about the Holocaust).

TOPICS:
• Causes of World War II -- RAHEL
• Pearl Harbor -- GRACE
• Propaganda Posters -- CALEB
• Changing Womens' Roles
• Holocaust -- NIC
• Nazi Germany (Master Race, Hitler youth, the gestapo, book burning, etc.) -- HANNAH
• Japanese Internment Camps -- SIS. CLOWARD
• Adolf Hitler -- JAISHA
• Winston Churchill -- RACHEL
• Weapons and battle strategies -- LUKE
• Battle of Britain -- PATTY
• D-Day -- MEGAN
• Battle of Midway -- BEN
• Battle of the Bulge
• Battle of Stalingrad and how the war affected Russia
• Homefront (what was it like for the common people at home?) in U.S. & Britain -- ADRIANNA
• Homefront (what was it like for the common people at home?) in Germany & Japan
• Nuremburg War Criminal Trials -- SAM
• Cryptology in WWII -- EMILY
• Japanese concept of war & honor (kamikaze, harakiri, Bataan death march, Burma Railway, how did their concept of honor affect their treatment of POW's and the way they would fight and not surrender?)
• Atomic bomb -- TARA
• Iwo Jima -- MACK

Master

Objective: Get a glimpse of the war from another perspective through reading one of these true accounts. Try to see the miracle of faith working in the middle of indescribable horror.

Study/Learn
Choose 1 of the following books to read:

To End All Wars, by Ernest Gordon

Waking from a dream, I suddenly realized where I was: in the Death House–in a prison camp by the River Kwai. I was a prisoner of war, lying among the dead, waiting for the bodies to be carried away so that I might have more room.’ When Ernest Gordon was twenty-four he was captured by the Japanese and forced, with other British prisoners, to build the notorious ‘Railroad of Death’, where nearly 16,000 Prisoners of War gave their life. Faced with the appalling conditions of the prisoners’ camp and the brutality of the captors, he survived to become an inspiring example of the triumph of the human spirit against all odds.

And There was Light, by Jacques Lusseyran

When Jacques Lusseyran was an eight-year-old Parisian schoolboy, he was blinded in an accident. He finished his schooling determined to participate in the world around him. In 1941, when he was seventeen, that world was Nazi-occupied France. Lusseyran formed a resistance group with fifty-two boys and used his heightened senses to recruit the best. Eventually, Lusseyran was arrested and sent to the Buchenwald concentration camp in a transport of two thousand resistance fighters. He was one of only thirty from the transport to survive. His gripping story is one of the most powerful and insightful descriptions of living and thriving with blindness, or indeed any challenge, ever published.

3 Against Hitler, by Jerry Borrowman

A compelling true story of three LDS teens fight for freedom.

"Rudi Wobbe: Charged with Preparation to High Treason and Aiding and Abetting the Enemy."
Thus began the trial of Rudi Wobbe and two of his teenage friends as they stood before the justices of the dreaded Voksgerichtshof, the infamous supreme court of Nazi Germany. All the power and indignation of the Third Reich now focused on these three young men who dared to distribute the truth about the war to their neighbors. If found guilty, they faced imprisonment, and perhaps even death.
Why did they do it? Because the teachings of their parents and the Church taught them to respect individual liberty and to rely on their conscience in choosing between right and wrong. Now their naive confidence was shaken by the torture they'd endured at the hands of the Gestapo. Yet, their brilliant young leader, Helmuth Huebener, whose intelligence and conviction stood out like a beacon of truth in the oppressive courtroom, faced his accusers with confidence. It was his finest moment ... would it be his last?

We Were Not Alone, by Patricia Reese Roper

This true account of how one LDS family survived WWII Berlin is more astonishing than many fictional accounts of the era. To those who recognize the Lords hand in our daily lives, however, this inspirational story will become another powerful witness of the truth that faith in the Lord and His purposes can grow even when the world around us is full of darkness and terror.

As I Have Loved You, by Kitty DeRuyter

Like Anne Frank, Corrie ten Boom, and Viktor Frankl, Kitty de Ruyter-Bons endured the terror of man's inhumanity to man during World War II. In this inspiring and powerful true story, Kitty testifies of the triumph of the human spirit.

As both of Kitty de Ruyter's parents were devout Christians, her day started with a hymn and a scripture from the Bible. Kitty was only eight years old when her island paradise of Java, Indonesia, was invaded by Japanese soldiers during WWII.
Members of Kitty's family were taken to different prison camps. Kitty describes how her mother acted with courage in the face of hardship-even torture. Forbidden to pray at the camp, she nevertheless prayed and taught her children all she remembered of the scriptures. She courageously defied the Japanese officials and bravely took upon herself the consequences.
These and countless other incidents, beautifully portrayed, prove that the grace of Christ gives one power in the presence of hatred, evil, pain, and suffering.

The Diary of Anne Frank

Discovered in the attic in which she spent the last years of her life, Anne Frank's remarkable diary has since become a world classic—a powerful reminder of the horrors of war and an eloquent testament to the human spirit. In 1942, with Nazis occupying Holland, a thirteen-year-old Jewish girl and her family fled their home in Amsterdam and went into hiding. For the next two years, until their whereabouts were betrayed to the Gestapo, they and another family lived cloistered in the "Secret Annex" of an old office building. Cut off from the outside world, they faced hunger, boredom, the constant cruelties of living in confined quarters, and the ever-present threat of discovery and death. In her diary Anne Frank recorded vivid impressions of her experiences during this period. By turns thoughtful, moving, and amusing, her account offers a fascinating commentary on human courage and frailty and a compelling self-portrait of a sensitive and spirited young woman whose promise was tragically cut short.

Know/Understand

• Write a 1-2 page short essay on a major theme in your chosen book, including quotes from the text that demonstrate your theme. Be prepared to turn in your essay for feedback. 

The Great Depression

Apprentice

Objective: Become familiar with the causes, effects, and events of the Great Depression.

Study/Learn

1. If you don't understand how stock markets work, watch Stock Markets in Plain English

2. Read the pdf: The Prosperity & Depression Decades (You can skip chapter 2) AND write a paragraph summary after each chapter. Be sure to include important people, key word definitions, and legislation pros and cons in your summaries. I will let you use these notes in class to play jeopardy, so the better they are, the better chance you have of winning :).

Journeyman

Objective: Learn how the Great Depression affected people.

Study/Learn

1. Research a family member that lived through the Great Depression. Find some stories from their life. How did the Depression affect them?

2. Watch either The Grapes of Wrath (1940) or Cinderella Man (2005)


Know/Understand
Complete 1 of the following:

• Find a Depression era recipe and make it. Bring some to share with the class.

• Create a slideshow of impactful photos from the Depression that depict the plight of the people to share with the class.

• Find some Depression era popular music, art or poetry. Bring some samples to share with the class. How were these expressive arts affected by the Depression?

Become/Serve

• Why does the Lord allow trials to happen in our lives? Find some scriptures on adversity and write yourself an explanation.

Master

Objective: Learn how the New Deal legislation succeeded and failed and how it drastically changed government.

Study/Learn

1. Read The Forgotten Man (Graphic Edition), by Amity Shlaes
Note: Read the "Cast of Characters", timeline, and book description at the back of the book before starting. Then you won't be confused like me when I read it :)

Know/Understand
Complete BOTH of the following:

• Become an expert on one of the following New Deal programs and be prepared to teach it to the class. Also develop a list of positive things your program accomplished and negative effects your program caused. In your opinion, was the program successful, why or why not, and if not. And, what, if anything, would you have done differently? Is your program still around today? How is it working now? Please email me and let me know which one you would like to do.

     - Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) -- MACK
     - Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)
     - Public Works Administration (PWA)
     - Social Security Act -- PATTY
     - Works Progress Administration (WPA) -- JEN
     - Federal Deposit Insurance (FDIC)
     - Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

• Find a current economic issue that society is facing, like the cost of healthcare, the number of people in poverty, the federal deficit, or jobs being outsourced overseas. What are people proposing to do about your chosen issue? What do you think should be done? Do you think the government should get involved?

Be the Change

Apprentice

What does it take to make big societal changes come about? For example, if you wanted to institute a new rule saying that teachers in public schools would not be allowed to assign homework, what would you have to do? Would this change happen easily? Would it take a long time? What steps might you take in order to get a new rule like this in place? Can an individual make a difference?
Throughout history, there have been times when people felt so deeply about a political or social issue, they resisted the status quo—the current state of affairs—in some manner. This week, we will be examining different ways people have behaved in an effort to bring about big societal changes.

Be the change you wish to see in the world. --Mohandas Gandhi

Read/Study

1. Watch my background video presentation :)

2. Read Gandhi the Man by Eknath Easwaran 

3. Develop a definition as you read for the terms: satyagraha, ahimsa, and civil disobedience

4. Optional: watch Gandhi (1982) PG Available to rent on Amazon
(This film won 8 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor)

Know/Understand
Choose 1 of the following inspirements:

• Gandhi's life in many ways mirrored Jesus Christ's. Can you find some accounts from Christ's ministry that align with Gandhi's beliefs? What could be a synonym of satyagraha that is used in the Bible?

• Compare and contrast the goals and methods of Gandhi and Stalin. Write a page or two on this topic.

• A paradox is a statement or proposition that, despite sound (or apparently sound) reasoning from acceptable premises, leads to a conclusion that seems senseless, logically unacceptable, or self-contradictory.
Do you see any paradox in Gandhi's beliefs regarding fighting your enemies through making them your friends? Write a page or two on this topic.



Become/Serve

• After reading about Gandhi and his teachings about satyagraha, think of some ways you could try his approach in your own life. Try to be conscious of your own feelings towards others as you go about your week. When a disagreement arises, instead of getting upset, try to remove your personal feelings and see the conflict for what it is. Can you solve the problem with love and kindness? Write about your experience.

• Gandhi had some major weaknesses to overcome in order to follow his path. Why do we have weaknesses? Do you feel like there is anything standing in your way right now? Do you think you can overcome it? How? Set a goal to work on something this week that has been a weakness in the past. Journal about your experience.

 

 

Journeyman

“One has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws.” –Martin Luther King, Jr.

Background:

Martin Luther King, Jr. was the main leader in the African American civil rights movement. I know we are jumping ahead of our history timeline a bit, but MLK was greatly influenced by Gandhi and his methods, so I think it is very fitting to study them alongside each other. The last time we discussed racial issues was when we studied the civil war. A lot happened to the blacks in our country between the Civil War and MLK, so if everyone can do a good job presenting their timeline events below, we should be able to create a clear picture in class of what led up to the civil rights act.

Read/Study

1. Read Letter from Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King, Jr. --Written in April 1963
   Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Letter from Birmingham Jail delivered an important statement on civil rights and civil disobedience. The 1963 racial crisis in Birmingham, Alabama was a critical turning point in the struggle for African American civil rights. Although King's letter was not published until after the crisis was resolved, it is widely regarded as the most important written document of the modern civil rights movement and a classic text on civil disobedience.  

As you read, underline the main idea in each paragraph or summarize the main idea of the paragraph in the margin. Please bring this to class for discussion.

2. We are going to make a class timeline of African American history from the end of the Civil War until 1964. Please choose one segment of years and present the events of those years to the class. Click here for the timeline of events, find your year segment and research the events listed there. Please email me at teamhalley@gmail.com to let me know which one you would like.

1865-1866 - RAHEL
1867-1868
1870 - RACHEL
1877-1879 - TARA
1881-1882 - ADRIANNA
1896 - SUMMER
1905-1909 - MACK
1920's - GRACE
1947-1948 - MEGAN
1954-1955 - SAM
1957-1960 - EMILY
1962-1963 - JAISHA
1964 - CALEB
3. Optional: Watch one or more of the following movies

                  • The Butler (PG-13)- As Cecil Gaines serves eight presidents during his tenure as a butler at the White House, the civil rights movement, Vietnam, and other major events affect this man's life, family, and American society.
                
                  • Remember the Titans (PG) - The true story of a newly appointed African-American coach and his high school team on their first season as a racially integrated unit.
                
                  • Selma -In theaters (PG-13)- A chronicle of Martin Luther King's campaign to secure equal voting rights via an epic march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in 1965.
                 
                   • 42 (PG-13) - The story of Jackie Robinson from his signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers organization in 1945 to his historic 1947 rookie season when he broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball.

                   • The Help (PG-13) - An aspiring author during the civil rights movement of the 1960s decides to write a book detailing the African-American maids' point of view on the white families for which they work, and the hardships they go through on a daily basis.

Written in April 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” delivered an important statement on civil rights and civil disobedience. The 1963 racial crisis in Birmingham, Alabama, was a critical turning point in the struggle for African American civil rights. Although King's letter was not published until after the Birmingham crisis was resolved, it is widely regarded as the most important written document of the modern civil rights movement and a classic text on civil disobedience. - See more at: http://www.mlkonline.net/jail.html#sthash.FYKYNt6S.dpuf

Written in April 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” delivered an important statement on civil rights and civil disobedience. The 1963 racial crisis in Birmingham, Alabama, was a critical turning point in the struggle for African American civil rights. Although King's letter was not published until after the Birmingham crisis was resolved, it is widely regarded as the most important written document of the modern civil rights movement and a classic text on civil disobedience. - See more at: http://www.mlkonline.net/jail.html#sthash.FYKYNt6S.dpuf

Written in April 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” delivered an important statement on civil rights and civil disobedience. The 1963 racial crisis in Birmingham, Alabama, was a critical turning point in the struggle for African American civil rights. Although King's letter was not published until after the Birmingham crisis was resolved, it is widely regarded as the most important written document of the modern civil rights movement and a classic text on civil disobedience. - See more at: http://www.mlkonline.net/jail.html#sthash.FYKYNt6S.dpuf

Written in April 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” delivered an important statement on civil rights and civil disobedience. The 1963 racial crisis in Birmingham, Alabama, was a critical turning point in the struggle for African American civil rights. Although King's letter was not published until after the Birmingham crisis was resolved, it is widely regarded as the most important written document of the modern civil rights movement and a classic text on civil disobedience. - See more at: http://www.mlkonline.net/jail.html#sthash.FYKYNt6S.dpuf

Written in April 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” delivered an important statement on civil rights and civil disobedience. The 1963 racial crisis in Birmingham, Alabama, was a critical turning point in the struggle for African American civil rights. Although King's letter was not published until after the Birmingham crisis was resolved, it is widely regarded as the most important written document of the modern civil rights movement and a classic text on civil disobedience. - See more at: http://www.mlkonline.net/jail.html#sthash.FYKYNt6S.dpuf

Written in April 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” delivered an important statement on civil rights and civil disobedience. The 1963 racial crisis in Birmingham, Alabama, was a critical turning point in the struggle for African American civil rights. Although King's letter was not published until after the Birmingham crisis was resolved, it is widely regarded as the most important written document of the modern civil rights movement and a classic text on civil disobedience. - See more at: http://www.mlkonline.net/jail.html#sthash.FYKYNt6S.dpuf

Know/Understand

• Write one or two pages on how Martin Luther King, Jr. and Gandhi showed perseverance. Also, have you had to use perseverance in your life?  

• There were other minority groups struggling for equality throughout the world during the years of 1850-1945, such as women, Jews, Irish, Native Americans, and black South Africans. Study one of these groups and create a presentation for the class that summarizes their experience. 

• Write a poem or create a piece of artwork that expresses either perseverance or the feelings of being treated badly by an oppressive majority.

Master

“If the machine of government is of such as nature that it requires you to be of injustice to another, then, I say, break the law.” –Henry David Thoreau

Henry David Thoreau (July 12, 1817 – May 6, 1862) was an American author, poet, philosopher, abolitionist, naturalist, tax resister, development critic, surveyor, and historian. A leading transcendentalist, Thoreau is best known for his book Walden, a reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings, and his essay Resistance to Civil Government (also known as Civil Disobedience), an argument for disobedience to an unjust state.

He was a lifelong abolitionist, delivering lectures that attacked the Fugitive Slave Law while praising the writings of Wendell Phillips and defending abolitionist John Brown. Thoreau's philosophy of civil disobedience later influenced the political thoughts and actions of such notable figures as Leo Tolstoy, Mohandas Gandhi, and Martin Luther King, Jr.

Read/Study

1. Read Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau

Know/Understand
Choose a topic to write 1-2 pages on:

• Thoreau believes that people should not participate in injustice but that they do not have to actively promote a more just world. What is the difference between these two concepts, and why does Thoreau make this moral distinction? 

• Is Thoreau's conception of civil disobedience compatible with democratic government? Why or why not? 

• Thoreau asks rhetorically, "Must the citizen ever for a moment, or in the least degree, resign his conscience to the legislator?" How would you answer this question? Is compromise on moral issues a necessary part of living with other people? 

• Many leaders (Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr.) have used Thoreau's ideas on civil disobedience as the guiding force of political movements. Is such a use of these ideas consistent with Thoreau's skepticism about politics? Which (if any) of Thoreau's ideas are valuable in the context of political activism? Which do not pertain?



Become/Serve

Are there any laws that you feel are unjust? Do you feel like civil disobedience would be a good way to help change those laws? Why or why not?

The Portrait of a Dictator

Apprentice

Read/Study

1. Read Stalin: History in an Hour by Rupert Colley
    
    OR

    Watch the documentary Stalin: Inside the Terror (While not graphic, this film does contain dramatized execution scenes)


Know/Understand
Complete one of the following:

• Read Alma 46-50 and do a character study comparing and contrasting Amalickiah and Captain Moroni. Who do you think was the better leader? Why? Do you see any similarities between Stalin and Amalickiah?

• Other Dictators: Read a short life sketch of Benito Mussolini (Fascist Italian dictator that controlled Italy from 1925-1943), or Fransisco Franco (Fascist dictator that controlled Spain from 1939-1975). Prepare a short presentation for the class discussing similarities and differences between him and Stalin.

• In the Topical Guide in your Bibles, look up Pride. Pray for the Spirit to enlighten your understanding as you read some scriptures listed there and see if you can find the definition of pride, why it is so dangerous, and how we can recognize it in ourselves and others. What effects could pride have in the hands of someone with a lot of power? What is the opposite of pride? Please come prepared to discuss your thoughts and inspirations with the class.
 

Become/Serve

• Absolute monarchies are those in which all power is given to or, as is more often the case, taken by, the monarch. Examples of absolute power corrupting are Roman emperors (who declared themselves gods) and Napoleon Bonaparte (who declared himself an emperor). Think about this statement by Lord Acton:

"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men."

Write a page or two about whether or not you agree with this statement. Is it possible to be a great leader without corruption? Can you think of some examples? As a leader what can you do to safeguard yourself from the influences of corruption?

Journeyman

Read/Study

1. Read Animal Farm by George Orwell


Background: Animal Farm is an allegorical and dystopian novel by George Orwell, published in England on 17 August 1945. According to Orwell, the book reflects events leading up to the Russian Revolution of 1917 and then on into the Stalin era in the Soviet Union. Orwell, a democratic socialist, was a critic of Joseph Stalin and hostile to Moscow-directed Stalinism, an attitude that was critically shaped by his experiences during the Spanish Civil War. The Soviet Union, he believed, had become a brutal dictatorship, built upon a cult of personality and enforced by a reign of terror.

2. This book is a satire about the Russian Revolution. Orwell said that almost every detail in the story was inspired by actual events and people. Make a list of the characters in the book and what real-life people they represent, as well as a list of the major events in the story and their corresponding real-life events. (If you need help, you can look it up online).

3. Write 2-3 discussion questions about the book to bring up in our class discussion.


Know/Understand
Complete one of the following:

• In 1946, Orwell wrote of Animal Farm: "Of course I intended it primarily as a satire on the Russian revolution..[and] that kind of revolution (violent conspiratorial revolution, led by unconsciously power hungry people) can only lead to a change of masters [-] revolutions only effect a radical improvement when the masses are alert." In one-two pages, discuss the book and how it relates to this quote. Do you agree? Compare and contrast the differences between the Russian Revolution and the American Revolution. What were the outcomes of each and why do you think they were different?

• What do you think about the ending of the book? Write 1-2 pages on what point you think Orwell was trying to get across when the animals, looking into the kitchen window, could not tell the difference between the pigs and the people?

• Make a poster of the cast of characters. Next to each animal, write what historical person/people they represent, and why you think Orwell chose that particular animal to represent that person. Also analyze the significance of the names of the animals.

Master

Read/Study

1. Read Macbeth by William Shakespeare, I would suggest reading a plot summary if you are unfamiliar with this play, and looking for a copy of the play that has word definitions and phrase explanations to make the language easier to understand.

2. Do a word study on the word: "usurp"

3. Optional: Watch a film version of the play


Know/Understand
Complete one of the following:

• Write 1-2 pages as you characterize the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. If the main theme of Macbeth is ambition, whose ambition is the driving force of the play—Macbeth’s, Lady Macbeth’s, or both?

• One of the important themes in Macbeth is the idea of political legitimacy, of the moral authority that some kings possess and others lack. With particular attention to Malcolm’s questioning of Macduff in Act 4, scene 3, try to define some of the characteristics that grant or invalidate the moral legitimacy of absolute power. What makes Duncan a good king? What makes Macbeth a tyrant?

• Think about the major theme of Macbeth and design a poster for the play that communicates this theme visually.

• Take a scene from the play and create a modern skit based on that scene. You can make this into a group project if you want.

• Create a comic strip for one act from the play.