Friday, April 30, 2010

April 30


I finished talking about types of democratic systems today. We will be going into greater detail in the coming weeks about the similarities and differences between parliamentary democracies and presidential democracies. I gave you some class time to work on your Chapter 10 Key Terms and Questions, which are due on Monday. On Tuesday, you will be writing your Unit 2 WRA II (in-class essay) in Room 241. I will make sure that you get the text-based source/essay question on Monday. I also did a homework check on your Chapter 8 Key Terms and Questions today.


I collected your Chapter 8 Key Terms and Questions today. Your "Gandhi" Film Study questions (content questions and thought questions) are due on Monday. You have your Unit 2 WRA I (3 source analysis) on Tuesday, May 4th. You have your Chapter 7-8 Test on Wednesday, May 5th, please see the study guide here. Please remember that we are going to the Holocaust Symposium on Monday. Please meet in the Main Foyer on Monday morning, and please remember to bring a non-perishable food item for the Food Bank as well.

Thursday, April 29, 2010

April 29


We finished off watching "Gandhi" today. Your "Gandhi" film study is due on Monday. Your Chapter 8 Key Terms and Questions are due tomorrow. Your Chapter 7-8 Test is on Wednesday, May 5th, please see the study guide here. Please remember that you will writing your Unit 2 WRA I (3 source analysis) on Tuesday. Please remember to bring in your field trip forms for the Holocaust Symposium tomorrow! We're going on this field trip on Monday. We are being asked to bring a non-perishable food item on this field trip (I'll talk about this tomorrow in class).


You wrote your Unit 2 Final Exam today. You'll get the results of this test tomorrow. Chapter 8 Key Terms and Questions are due tomorrow for 30-1 students.

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

April 28


We continued our film study of "Gandhi" today. I also took in your Chapter 7 Key Terms and Questions as well. Your Chapter 8 Key Terms and Questions will be due on Friday. We will finish off "Gandhi" tomorrow. Your Unit 2 WRA I (3 source analysis) will be moved to Tuesday, May 4th. Your Chapter 7-8 Test has been moved as well to Wednesday, May 5th. Please see the study guide below.


This test is on Wednesday, May 5th. It will consist of 20-24 key terms in a matching section, and 3 short answer questions. Please study the following PowerPoint presentations:

Please study the following notes packages/film study packages:


  • 36 Questions About The Holocaust
  • Turning Points in History: The Atomic Bomb (film notes)
  • White Light/Black Rain (film notes)
  • Shake Hands with the Devil (film notes + package)
  • Unit 2 Worksheet (chapter questions for Chapter 7 and 8)
  • make sure that you have read Chapters 7 and 8!
  • read the links about the genocide in Darfur that I will send to you!

1. Please study the following key concepts/key people/key events:
genocide:


  • crimes against humanity
  • war crimes
  • the Holocaust
  • ethnic cleansing
  • lebensraum
  • Weimar Republic
  • Final Solution
  • decolonization
  • successor state
  • self-determination
  • Wansee Conference
  • Nuremberg Trials
  • Mahatma Gandhi
  • Jawaharlal Nehru
  • Mohammed Ali Jinnah
  • home rule
  • Hutu
  • Tutsi
  • Romeo Dallaire
  • Manhattan Project
  • Hiroshima
  • Nagasaki
  • Robert Oppenheimer
  • FDR
  • Harry Truman
  • Potsdam Conference
  • Slobodan Milosevic

2. You should be able to answer any of the questions from the Unit 2 worksheet from Chapter 7 and 8.



I did a homework check on your "10 Questions About Democracy" work and on the results of your Political Compass survey. I gave you a few handouts today on political terminology that you must master, and another booklet that covered the two main types of representative democratic systems that we'll be examining this semester, namely parliamentary democracies and presidential democracies. I will be picking up where I left off with on the presidential democracy tomorrow. You have your Unit 2 Final Exam tomorrow. Please see the study guide here (scroll down to find it).

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

April 27


We started looking at Unit 3 material today. If you missed today's class you will have to get these notes from a classmate. We also watched a video from BBC World called "10 Questions About Democracy" (here is a link to the companion website if you'd like to hear what people had to say again). You are responsible for finishing the entire film study that went along with this video for tomorrow's class (I'll be doing a homework check on it, and in all likelihood, we'll be able to discuss some of the questions in the video). You have another homework assignment tonight: please go to the following website-Political Compass, complete the political survey (from the left-hand navigation menu, click on "Take the test"), print off where you fall in the economic-political grid and bring it to class tomorrow. We'll be able to talk about this tomorrow. Please remember that you have your Unit 2 Final Exam on Thursday, please check out the study guide here (scroll down to find it). I also gave back the results of your Chapter 7 Test as well today. Please check your e-mail today because I will be sending you a copy of the "10 Questions About Democracy" video study and I will also be sending you a handout that looks at positive and negative freedoms (I'm trying to clear up some confusion about this concept; this relates to material in Chapter 8). Your Chapter 8 Key Terms and Questions are due on Friday.


We started our film study of "Gandhi" today. Before I started the film, I took in Part 1 of your case study (the background information) on India. Please remember that your Chapter 7 Key Terms and Questions are due tomorrow. Please remember to complete your field trip forms and hand them in tomorrow.

Monday, April 26, 2010

April 26


You wrote your Cold War Exam today which took most of the period. You'll get the results back for this exam and your Cold War Concepts Quiz tomorrow. Please make sure that you study for your Unit 2 Final Exam tonight. This exam is on Thursday, please see the study guide here (scroll down to find it). If you didn't hand in your "Good Night, and Good Luck" film study in class, I should expect to find it in my mailbox in the Main Office or waiting for me in my e-mail inbox so that you get full homework check credit for your work. We'll be moving on to Unit 3 material tomorrow.


Today was a work period for you to learn as much as possible about background information on India, in preparation for our film study of "Gandhi". We will start our film study tomorrow. Please remember that the "Part 1: Background and Colonial Period for India" questions (all of questions 1-4) are due tomorrow for homework check marks. Also, your Chapter 7 Key Terms and Questions are due on Wednesday.

Friday, April 23, 2010

April 23


We finished watching "Good Night, and Good Luck" today in class. This film explores a lot of issues that are relevant to today. I found this short video on YouTube that spliced together Edward R. Murrow's speech that appears at the beginning of the film and continues at the end of the film. I find that this speech has relevance even today when you talk about the level of discourse in the media. Please remember that you have your Chapter 7 Test (Cold War period) on Monday, April 26th and your Unit 2 Final Exam on Thursday, April 29th. Please see both study guides here.




I delivered a presentation on "Contemporary Examples of Genocide" today. I will send this PowerPoint to you this weekend by e-mail. I also gave you an article written by Samantha Power that you must read this weekend.

Thursday, April 22, 2010

April 22


We finished watching "Shake Hands with the Devil" today in class. The pre-viewing and post-viewing questions from the "Shake Hands with the Devil" film study are due tomorrow. Here is some additional information on Theoneste Bagosora (especially useful if your Unit 2 collaborative inquiry project is on the Rwandan genocide). I also gave you a readings booklet on various contemporary examples of genocide today. It covers the Armenian Genocide, the Ukraine Famine (the Holodomor), genocide in Bosnia, and the Rwandan Genocide. We will look at other contemporary examples of genocide tomorrow, and look at an article written by Samantha Power on the subject. Next week, we'll be looking at India, the Indian independence movement, and the civil disobedience and non-violence movement advocated by Gandhi.


We started looking at the film "Good Night, and Good Luck" today in class. This film explores McCarthyism in the early 1950s. The film study that I provided you with also has a film review (if you are having a hard time understanding the film so far, it might be a good idea to read this over tonight), and some study questions and some discussion questions. This film definitely has relevance in today's world (which we'll be talking about more tomorrow and in Unit 3 of the course). Hopefully, we'll finish off the film tomorrow, and be able to have a short discussion period of some of the issues the film raises. In all likelihood, the study questions from the film study will be due on Monday. Please remember that you have your Chapter 7 Exam (Cold War Exam) on Monday, April 26th and your Unit 2 Final Exam on Thursday, April 29th. Please see the study guides for both exams here.

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

April 21


We continued our film study of "Shake Hands with the Devil". We will finish this film up tomorrow. You should be working on your Unit 2 Collaborative Inquiry Projects tonight.


We watched "Dear America: Letters Home From Vietnam" today in class. This film took most of the period. Please check the blog for the Chapter 7 Test (Cold War Exam) and the Unit 2 Final Exam study guide here.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

April 20


You wrote your Cold War Concepts Quiz today, which took most of the period. Please remember that your Vietnam War Assignment is due tomorrow. Please see the study guides for the upcoming Chapter 7 Test (Cold War Exam) and the Unit 2 Final Exam.


The Chapter 7 Test is on Monday, April 26th. It is a multiple choice test with 70-75 multiple choice questions. Please make sure that you have read Chapter 7. Here are some other study tips:

  • study "The Origins of the Cold War (ppt)"
  • study all notes on the Origins and Causes of the Cold War
  • study notes on the Korean War
  • study notes on the Cuban Missile Crisis
  • study notes on the Vietnam War (see notes package and Vietnam War booklet, and the notes that I sent to you on the Vietnam War)
  • make sure that you know all the Cold War Concepts (please see the Cold War Concepts Quiz Study Guide)
  • know the chronology of events of the Cold War (study the Cold War timeline and the Vietnam War timeline, and the end of the Cold War timeline that I will be giving you on subsequent class)
  • know key events that we've emphasized in class (for example: Berlin Airlift,Korean War, Cuban Missile Crisis, Vietnam War) plus other key events from the timeline
  • know major arms reduction agreements (bilateral agreements and multilateral agreements), please study the notes that I will give you on this week on this topic.
  • know about the formation of alliances (NATO, Warsaw Pact) and the formation of "spheres of influence"
  • anything that I gave you as a handout is testable material and should be reviewed!!
  • know how the Cold War ends and its results/consequences


The Unit 2 Final Exam is on Thursday, April 29th. It will be a 75 multiple choice question test. In your textbook, this is material from Chapters 3-8. Please look at the studying hints below:

  • study "The Development of Classical Liberalism" (ppt)
  • study "Responding to Classical Liberalism" (ppt)
  • study "The Evolution of Modern Liberalism" (ppt)
  • study "The Techniques of Dictatorship" (ppt)
  • study "20th Century Rejections of Modern Liberalism" (ppt)
  • study "The Origins of the Cold War" (ppt)
  • study the key concepts from the Chapters 3-8 worksheets
  • please see the summary notes from the Ideologies textbook: Chapter 7 (Private Enterprise)
  • supply-side economics
  • boom and bust cycle/business cycle
  • laws of supply and demand, Adam Smith, invisible hand, market forces
    self-interest, consumer sovereignty, competition, private ownership, profit motive
  • basic economic problems/questions
  • advantages/disadvantages of the market economy
  • causes of the Great Depression
  • FDR and the New Deal
  • please see summary notes from the Ideologies textbook on the Mixed Economy Case Studies #14 (Sweden) and #15 (Canada), #16 (Japan), #17 (Fascism and Nazism)
  • also see the Democratic Socialism booklet on Sweden (indicative planning, "cradle to the grave" economics)
  • characteristics of a mixed economy
  • nationalization
  • privatization
  • democratic socialism
  • welfare capitalism
  • Keynesian economics
  • the business cycle and fiscal and monetary policies (study all of the notes I gave you and the booklet that I gave you)
  • demand-side economics
  • neo-conservatives
  • monetarism
  • trickle down economics
  • supply-side economics
  • Thatcherism and Reaganomics
  • Milton Friedman
  • Friedrich Hayek
  • how Keynesian economics deals with a recession (remember "the percolator": increase circulation of money reducing taxes, increase government spending on "make work" projects, and reduce interest rates, which according to Keynesian economics is going increase demand for goods and services and lead to more money circulating in the economy)
  • how supply-side economics deals with a recession (remember "trickle down coffee maker": government should stimulate the goods and services sector of the economy by reducing corporate and personal taxes, eventually benefits will "trickle down" to the middle class and working class, make connections between supply-side economics and laissez faire economics/classical liberalism)
  • advantages and disadvantages of a mixed economy
  • neo-conservative criticism of government intervention
  • characteristics of a centrally planned economy
  • advantages and disadvantages of a centrally planned economy
  • Marx notes (sent by e-mail)
  • Lenin notes (sent by e-mail)
  • establishment of the Soviet Union
  • Soviet economic system (top-down decision-making process)
  • Lenin's War Communism and the New Economic Policy
  • "Stalin and the Modernization of Russia" (see film notes)
  • Stalin notes (sent by e-mail)
  • "Changes to Soviet Society After Stalin" notes (this bridges the gap between Stalin and Gorbachev)
  • Gorbachev to Collapse Notes
  • Economic Planning in the USSR booklet
  • techniques of dictatorships (USSR and Nazi Germany case studies)
  • modern liberalism
  • features of the Nazi state
  • Hitler's rise to power
  • Characteristics of Democracy
  • Characteristics of Dictatorship
  • Democratic Systems notes
  • Non-Democratic Systems notes
  • Types of Dictatorships notes (includes Techniques of Dictatorships as well)
  • A Comparison of Communism and Fascism notes
  • Totalitarianism notes
  • Fascism/Nazism booklet (has techniques of dictatorship in Nazi Germany and USSR)
  • do a brief review of the political spectrum and economic spectrum and the quadrant model



We finished watching "Scream Bloody Murder" today. We also started our film study of "Shake Hands with the Devil". Keep in mind that I will be taking in your answers to the pre-viewing and post-viewing questions from the film study for homework check marks. I also gave you forms for you to fill out for attending the Holocaust Symposium, please make sure that you return these to me as soon as possible.

Monday, April 19, 2010

April 19


We continued our look at the Vietnam War today by watching an excerpt from "Born of the Fourth of July". Please remember that you have your Cold War Concepts Quiz tomorrow, please see the study guide here. Here is a link to the NPR that explains the story behind this photograph, definitely worth the time to read or listen to the podcast, and make sure that you look at the photo gallery of Eddie Adams' photographs of the Vietnam War.



There are certain iconic images associated with the Vietnam War. Here is another:

The above photograph is of Phan Thị Kim Phúc, O.Ont (born in 1963), she is a Vietnamese-Canadian best known as the child subject of a Pulitzer Prize winning photograph taken during the Vietnam War on June 8, 1972. The iconic photo taken in Trang Bang by AP photographer Nick Ut shows her at about age nine running naked on the street after being severely burned on her back by a South Vietnamese napalm attack. Contrary to popular myth, the US Air Force were not involved in the attack, and only two US troops were within 60 miles (97 km) of the scene, neither of whom had any say in the bombings. Still, it is a powerful image associated with the war.

Please remember to hand in your Southeast Asia package tomorrow as well as your Chapter 7 Key Terms and Questions. Your Vietnam War Assignment is due on Wednesday.

I'm posting study guides for your Chapter 7 Test (Cold War Exam) and your Unit 2 Final Exam below. You have a lot of review and studying to do, that's why I'm posting these study guides so far in advance.




The Chapter 7 Test is on Monday, April 26th. It is a multiple choice test with 70-75 multiple choice questions. Please make sure that you have read Chapter 7. Here are some other study tips:

  • study "The Origins of the Cold War (ppt)"
  • study all notes on the Origins and Causes of the Cold War
  • study notes on the Korean War
  • study notes on the Cuban Missile Crisis
  • study notes on the Vietnam War (see notes package and Vietnam War booklet, and the notes that I sent to you on the Vietnam War)
  • make sure that you know all the Cold War Concepts (please see the Cold War Concepts Quiz Study Guide)
  • know the chronology of events of the Cold War (study the Cold War timeline and the Vietnam War timeline, and the end of the Cold War timeline that I will be giving you on subsequent class)
  • know key events that we've emphasized in class (for example: Berlin Airlift,Korean War, Cuban Missile Crisis, Vietnam War) plus other key events from the timeline
  • know major arms reduction agreements (bilateral agreements and multilateral agreements), please study the notes that I will give you on this week on this topic.
  • know about the formation of alliances (NATO, Warsaw Pact) and the formation of "spheres of influence"
  • anything that I gave you as a handout is testable material and should be reviewed!!
  • know how the Cold War ends and its results/consequences


The Unit 2 Final Exam is on Thursday, April 29th. It will be a 75 multiple choice question test. In your textbook, this is material from Chapters 3-8. Please look at the studying hints below:

  • study "The Development of Classical Liberalism" (ppt)
  • study "Responding to Classical Liberalism" (ppt)
  • study "The Evolution of Modern Liberalism" (ppt)
  • study "The Techniques of Dictatorship" (ppt)
  • study "20th Century Rejections of Modern Liberalism" (ppt)
  • study "The Origins of the Cold War" (ppt)
  • study the key concepts from the Chapters 3-8 worksheets
  • please see the summary notes from the Ideologies textbook: Chapter 7 (Private Enterprise)
  • supply-side economics
  • boom and bust cycle/business cycle
  • laws of supply and demand, Adam Smith, invisible hand, market forces
    self-interest, consumer sovereignty, competition, private ownership, profit motive
  • basic economic problems/questions
  • advantages/disadvantages of the market economy
  • causes of the Great Depression
  • FDR and the New Deal
  • please see summary notes from the Ideologies textbook on the Mixed Economy Case Studies #14 (Sweden) and #15 (Canada), #16 (Japan), #17 (Fascism and Nazism)
  • also see the Democratic Socialism booklet on Sweden (indicative planning, "cradle to the grave" economics)
  • characteristics of a mixed economy
  • nationalization
  • privatization
  • democratic socialism
  • welfare capitalism
  • Keynesian economics
  • the business cycle and fiscal and monetary policies (study all of the notes I gave you and the booklet that I gave you)
  • demand-side economics
  • neo-conservatives
  • monetarism
  • trickle down economics
  • supply-side economics
  • Thatcherism and Reaganomics
  • Milton Friedman
  • Friedrich Hayek
  • how Keynesian economics deals with a recession (remember "the percolator": increase circulation of money reducing taxes, increase government spending on "make work" projects, and reduce interest rates, which according to Keynesian economics is going increase demand for goods and services and lead to more money circulating in the economy)
  • how supply-side economics deals with a recession (remember "trickle down coffee maker": government should stimulate the goods and services sector of the economy by reducing corporate and personal taxes, eventually benefits will "trickle down" to the middle class and working class, make connections between supply-side economics and laissez faire economics/classical liberalism)
  • advantages and disadvantages of a mixed economy
  • neo-conservative criticism of government intervention
  • characteristics of a centrally planned economy
  • advantages and disadvantages of a centrally planned economy
  • Marx notes (sent by e-mail)
  • Lenin notes (sent by e-mail)
  • establishment of the Soviet Union
  • Soviet economic system (top-down decision-making process)
  • Lenin's War Communism and the New Economic Policy
  • "Stalin and the Modernization of Russia" (see film notes)
  • Stalin notes (sent by e-mail)
  • "Changes to Soviet Society After Stalin" notes (this bridges the gap between Stalin and Gorbachev)
  • Gorbachev to Collapse Notes
  • Economic Planning in the USSR booklet
  • techniques of dictatorships (USSR and Nazi Germany case studies)
  • modern liberalism
  • features of the Nazi state
  • Hitler's rise to power
  • Characteristics of Democracy
  • Characteristics of Dictatorship
  • Democratic Systems notes
  • Non-Democratic Systems notes
  • Types of Dictatorships notes (includes Techniques of Dictatorships as well)
  • A Comparison of Communism and Fascism notes
  • Totalitarianism notes
  • Fascism/Nazism booklet (has techniques of dictatorship in Nazi Germany and USSR)
  • do a brief review of the political spectrum and economic spectrum and the quadrant model



We finished looking at the eight stages of genocide and how governments and individuals deny genocide. We started watching the CNN special called "Scream Bloody Murder" which covers examples of genocide in the 20th and 21st century. As you were watching the video, you were to take notes. Here's a link to the CNN Scream Bloody Murder website.

Friday, April 16, 2010

April 16


Today you had the entire period to complete some work on Southeast Asia and the Vietnam War. The southeast Asia booklet (activity questions) are due on Monday. On Tuesday, your Chapter 7 Key Terms and Questions are due. Also on Tuesday, you have your Cold War Concepts Quiz, please see the study guide here. On Wednesday, your Vietnam War Assignment is due (sections A-C). If you missed class today, here are the topics that need to be covered in the Vietnam War Assignment:


A. PEOPLE
Identify and explain the role each played in the Vietnam War
1. Ho Chi Minh
2. Ngo Dinh Diem
3. Lyndon B. Johnson
4. Richard M. Nixon
5. Viet Minh
6. Viet Cong
7. Le Duc Tho
8. Henry Kissinger
9. William Westmoreland
10. "Draft Dodger"

B. CONCEPTS/TERMS
Explain the significance of the following with regards to the Vietnam War (identify participants or individuals if appropriate)
1. Ho Chi Minh Trail
2. defoliation
3. "search and destroy" mission
4. "Vietnamization of the war"
5. Gulf of Tonkin Incident
6. My Lai Massacre
7. domino theory
8. Kent State University protest (May 4, 1970)
9. Tet Offensive (January 1968)
10. Geneva Agreement (1954)

C. ISSUES
Provide the information requested
1. The predominant religion of Vietnam
2. The battle which marked the end of French colonial rule in Indo-China
3. The scandal which led to the only resignation of an American President
4. The Vice President who replaced the President after his resignation
5. Why was November 1963 a "bad month" for the governments of South Vietnam and the United States?



You had today's class period to start your research on the Unit 2 Collaborative Inquiry Projects. These projects are due on May 13th. On May 13th and 14th you will be doing 10 minute presentations on your findings. It's a really good idea to put together a KWL chart on your topic and put it on your wiki under "Planning". Please make sure you set up your wikis this weekend, and invite all group members to be administrators on the wiki, and make me an editor. I can make some suggestions for you if you let me have editing access to your wikis.

Thursday, April 15, 2010

April 15


Today you selected your topics for your Unit 2 Collaborative Inquiry Projects. Tomorrow, we are in the Library doing some research on your selected topics. I really recommend that you set up a wiki over the course of the next few days. I recommend using the PBWorks wiki site (here's the URL: http://www.pbworks.com/). I also think you should have a look at using Prezi for the presentation component of the assignment (here's the URL: http://www.prezi.com/ ). Remember to go directly to the Library tomorrow. I also started a presentation on the Eight Stages of Genocide, which I will finish on Monday.


We watched a short video on the construction of the Berlin Wall called "Escape from Berlin". We also watched a video from the BBC 20th Century History series called "Mr. Kennedy and Mr. Khrushchev" which focused on the Cuban Missile Crisis. I also gave you some handouts related to the Cuban Missile Crisis. This event is one of the best examples of brinkmanship that you see in the Cold War period. We will have your Cold War Concepts Quiz on Tuesday, please see the study guide below.

This short answer quiz will be on Friday, November 6th. Be able to define each of the following key terms, and be able to provide real-world examples of each of these concepts in action:

  • deterrence
  • disarmament
  • isolationism
  • appeasement
  • collective security
  • direct confrontation
  • brinkmanship
  • containment
  • detente
  • collective intervention

Be able to define the following key concepts:

  • superpower
  • sphere of influence
  • arms race
  • brinkmanship
  • Korean War
  • Cold War
  • Cuban Missile Crisis
  • detente
  • NATO
  • collective security
  • Warsaw Pact

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

April 14


We finished our film study of "White Light/Black Rain" today. I also gave you the topic list for the Unit 2 Collaborative Inquiry Project. We'll be holding "the draft" for topics tomorrow.


I went through a PowerPoint presentation on the Korean War today. I won't be sending this to you since I gave you a companion booklet of notes that went along with the presentation. If you missed today's class, you need to get these notes tomorrow. Your Cold War Events notes are due tomorrow. You had the remainder of class time today to finish off that booklet.

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

April 13


We watched a couple of videos today from the BBC 20th Century History series: "The Road to Berlin" which explored the end of WWII in Europe, and "Cold War Confrontation" which looked at the division of Germany, the Berlin Airlift and the Korean War. I gave you a timeline of key events in the Cold War that you must memorize. I also gave you a Cold War Events package that included a chart of key events in the Cold War and associated key concepts of the Cold War that must be completed using a supplementary book that you had some access to today. Tomorrow we will be looking at the Korean War in greater detail, and then you will have some more time to work on your Cold War Events notes.

I would like you to go to the World War II Behind Closed Doors website tonight, and read the sections on the Yalta Conference and the Potsdam Conference. This is an excellent site, with tons of information, maps, video clips, timelines and archival footage and re-enactments as well. You do need to really make sure that you understand the Yalta Agreements and the Potsdam Declaration (among other things) and this is a great site to do this. Episode 3 is the one that contains most of the information that you would need to read and watch. There's a great little video clip on this website called "Stalin's Distrust of the West" that might help you see WWII from the Soviet perspective and why the Soviets might wish to extend control over Eastern Europe and be so distrustful of their wartime allies. You can find this video clip in Episode 3 (Dividing the World), scroll down and click on the video clip on the right called "Stalin's Distrust of the West". It's a short little clip, but you'll get the idea. We'll continue our look at the Cold War tomorrow.



We watched a video today on the development of the atomic bomb from the "History's Turning Points" series. After watching the video you were to copy down the notes that I had written on the board based on the topics covered in the video. If you missed today's class, you'll have to get these notes from a classmate. We then started a film study of the HBO documentary "White Light/Black Rain". We will finish this video off tomorrow.

Monday, April 12, 2010


We started our examination of the Cold War today. I hope that you read Chapter 7 prior to today's class. If you haven't read it yet, please do so tonight. I delivered a PowerPoint presentation today called "The Origins of the Cold War", which I have already sent to you. Make sure that you read the other handouts that I gave you on the Cold War today. I know that I gave them out at the end of the period, but they are important. The handout that covers the WWII conferences and agreements is especially valuable in my opinion. I would like you to go to the World War II Behind Closed Doors website tonight, and read the sections on the Yalta Conference and the Potsdam Conference. This is an excellent site, with tons of information, maps, video clips, timelines and archival footage and re-enactments as well. You do need to really make sure that you understand the Yalta Agreements and the Potsdam Declaration (among other things) and this is a great site to do this. Episode 3 is the one that contains most of the information that you would need to read and watch. There's a great little video clip on this website called "Stalin's Distrust of the West" that might help you see WWII from the Soviet perspective and why the Soviets might wish to extend control over Eastern Europe and be so distrustful of their wartime allies. You can find this video clip in Episode 3 (Dividing the World), scroll down and click on the video clip on the right called "Stalin's Distrust of the West". It's a short little clip, but you'll get the idea. We'll continue our look at the Cold War tomorrow.



We watched some excerpts today from "Schindler's List" to help illustrate life in the ghetto and the concentration camps. We also started talking about the aftermath of WWII in Europe and the trial of Nazi war criminals at Nuremberg. We watched a short video on the war crimes trials at Nuremberg and I also gave you a handout with all the defendants and the results of the trial. Tomorrow, we'll be moving on to look at the end of WWII in the Pacific.

Friday, April 09, 2010

April 9


You wrote your Nazi Germany Quiz today and got the results today as well. I gave you the Chapter 7 Worksheet today, I didn't assign key terms or questions from this worksheet yet. The Chapter 7 Key Terms and Questions will be due on April 19th, but it's probably not a bad idea to get started on the key terms. Please make sure that you read Chapter 7 over the weekend.


Prior to today's class, you should have read the "36 Questions About the Holocaust". We watched the video "Genocide" today, which took most of the class period. On Monday, we will watch excerpts from "Schindler's List" and look at the Nuremberg Trials.

Thursday, April 08, 2010

April 8


I went through a PowerPoint presentation on the Holocaust today. I have sent this presentation to you already, so please print it off and add it to your notes. I'll do a homework check on it on Monday. I also gave you a reading booklet called "36 Questions About the Holocaust" that you need to read before tomorrow's class.


I gave you back the results of your Chapter 5 Test today. I also went through a PowerPoint presentation on the techniques of dictatorship used in Nazi Germany. (I have sent this presentation to you, so please print it off and add it to your notes. I'll do a homework check on it on Monday. We also watched a bit of "Triumph of the Will" today. Tomorrow you have your Nazi Germany Quiz (39 key concepts, matching format). Please see the study guide here.

Wednesday, April 07, 2010

April 7


I talked a little bit about the end of WWII in Europe, and how after the failure of Operation Barbarossa (the Nazi invasion of the USSR), the success of the Allied invasion of Italy and the D-Day invasion that the end of the war was near for the Nazis in WWII. We watched an excerpt from the film "Saving Private Ryan" as well today. Tomorrow, and for the next few days we will be looking at the Holocaust and other genocides in the 20th century.


You wrote your Chapter 5 Test today. I put up a print out of your up-to-date marks today as well. These marks will of course be out of date after the results of today's test are factored in. Your "Nazism/Fascism Booklet" is due tomorrow. You have a matching quiz on Friday featuring 39 key concepts associated with Nazi Germany. Please see the study guide below.


This quiz is a short matching quiz, with a word bank. What you'll have is a list of key people, key terms and key events associated with Nazi Germany (this is your word bank) and then you'll have a description that you'll have to match it up with. Here's a list of possible key terms that you might see on this quiz:

  • anti-Semitism
  • Aryan
  • concentration camp
  • corporate state
  • Dachau
  • decree
  • deportation
  • dissent
  • elite
  • Enabling Act
  • ethnic
  • Führerprinzip
  • Gestapo
  • Hitler
  • Holocaust
  • indoctrination
  • inequality
  • inflation
  • judicial
  • jugend
  • Mein Kampf
  • Kristallnacht
  • nationalism
  • Nazi
  • Niemoller
  • Nuremberg
  • passive
  • plebiscites
  • pogrom
  • Reichstag
  • Ruhr
  • SA
  • SS
  • state
  • swastika
  • War Guilt Clause
  • White Rose