Mr. Kramer's United States History 2013-2014

Thursday, May 22, 2014

The Final!!

Here it is: Final Exam Assignment Sheet

All responses should be single-spaced, Times New Roman, 12 pt font. They should be carefully proofread and contain no errors.
Your exam must be submitted to turnitin.com no later than 10:40 AM on Monday, June 2.

Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Extra Credit Opportunity

Please see this attached document for an extra credit opportunity.
Far From Heaven E.C.

Monday, May 5, 2014

The Korean War-What to Remember?

The Korean War is often called the “forgotten war” because it was described as a police action owing to the lack of a declaration of war by the US Congress. Further, it was ostensibly a United Nations conflict, ended in stalemate, and was overshadowed by WWII because it concerned issues much less clear. Our task now is to work to remember the forgotten war. To do so, we will be creating our own Korean War Memorial in class. Thus, as you make your way through the following links, take note of important words, phrases, and details. If there are images or other items that you think might be important to help you memorialize the War, make a copy of them as you work.

1) Skim through this special report that appeared in the St.Petersburg, Fla. Times to commemorate the 50^th anniversary of the Korean War. Read the introduction on the main page and then go to the conflict section. Read the introduction and then make your way through the description of the conflict by clicking Next. Read the information actively to ensure that you have a sense of the progress and important moments in the war.

2) Then click on the Facts tab at the bottom of the conflict presentation. Note any significant numbers.

3) Next, explore the Korean War Veteran’s Memorial. Note your thoughts about it. Based on your understanding of the Korean War so far, do you think that this is an effective “memorial”? If so, what makes it effective? How does the artist use material, color, scope, etc.? What is the viewer being asked to remember or feel? Why? Based on your understanding of the Korean War, is anything missing from this memorial (in other words, is there something that should be remembered that is not memorialized here?

4) Read this description of the Pool of Remembrance at the Memorial. What do you think of this critique?

5) Browse through the following (and/or any other Korean War materials that you can find online):

A) “Faces Behind the Fight”

B) 143^rd Field Artillery Site

C) History.com Photo Gallery

D) hyperlinked story of the Korean War

For class tomorrow, find at least 4 interesting images, copy them on to SEPARATE sheets of paper and print them out. Also bring any notes that you took as you were working through these sites.

Friday, April 25, 2014

Island Hopping-The War in the Pacific: Using Documentary Film Evidence

The War in the Pacific Accelerates - Using Documentary Film Evidence

Today you will examine moments in the Pacific War to understand both the strategy involved, and the impact of these moments on the soldiers, sailors, and airmen who fought in them.

First, read an overview of the war in the Pacific.

Next, view the following film clips from the website of HBO’s The Pacific and take notes on the sheet provided. Pay Particular attention to how Americans (soldiers and military leaders) were being tested in these moments. You may find it helpful to refer to this timeline as you go.

Cape Gloucester 2:29

Peleilu Airfield 2:00

We are All Afraid 3:14

An Unnecessary Sacrifice 2:52

Iwo Jima 2:34

Kuribayashi the Toughest Foe 1:56

We Couldn’t Bury them Fast Enough 2:02

Burn and Blockade: Cities in Ash 2:55

Okinawa 2:00

Caught in the Crossfire: The Okinawans 1:46

Fugitives from the law of averages 2:53

Thursday, April 17, 2014

The Battle of the Bulge and HW for Tuesday, April 22

In the fall of 1944, allied troops had completed the successful invasion of Normandy retaking Paris at the end of August. In September, the allies embarked on Operation Market Garden to liberate Holland and open a highway and supply line that would allow for a quick invasion of Germany. Although ultimately unsuccessful, the operation severely weakened the German army’s ability to resist the oncoming allied advance. However, in December of 1944, Hitler launched a surprise, massive counterattack which would become known as the Battle of the Bulge.
Please complete the following web activity for class on Tuesday.
Battle of the Bulge Web Activity

Friday, April 11, 2014

Friday, April 11 and HW for Tuesday and Wednesday

Today in class we discussed the ways in which the United States was being tested on the homefront and whether it passed or failed those tests.

To do so, we watched from 0:00-18:42 of The Century;The Homefront and filled out this notetaking guide as we watched.
We then examined these war posters and these (make sure you scroll through both sets). Then respond to these questions: Overall impressions-What are the messages of the posters (what are they trying to get Americans do do or think)? How is the enemy being portrayed (what words, phrases, and images are being used to describe them)?

Choose one that you are particularly struck by to examine in more detail. Why did you pick this one? What is its message? What symbols are being used? What is it saying about America or American values? What connection does it have to the notion of the testing of America?

HW for Tuesday (Monday is Passover so for those of you celebrating the holiday, don't wait until Monday night to complete this)-do the first three sections (immigration, removal, internment) of this web activity. Follow the instructions carefully. We will finish the activity in class on Tuesday.

HW for Wednesday is to read and annotate this article (note, you need to be logged in with your dist113 account to view). Make sure that you can identify who each of the following people were and what they did: FDR, Henry Morgenthau, Stephen Wise, John Pehle, Breckenridge Long, Cordell Hull, John McCloy.

(The assignment sheet and the tab above have been updated as well)