20th Century II: 1945-1950
Dan Gordon
Salem-Keizer Public Schools
McKay High School
Name___________________ Period_______ Parent
Signature_________
Welcome to our new Layered Curriculum unit. This will take
us from the end of WWII to
the beginning of the decade of the 1950's. Again, you will have your
choice of tasks from
the "C", "B", and "A" levels. It is not necessary to have completed
your "C" level tasks
before you begin to work on your "B" or "A" tasks, but you can not get
higher than a C
grade without completing the "C" level. Due dates are posted on the
board, and you will be
given the scoring rubrics for the tasks. If you wish to substitute a
task that you create, you
may do so as long as it is cleared with Mr. Gordon prior to you
beginning the task.
"C" Level Tasks. Choose any 4 of the following:
Take notes on Mr. Gordon's mini lectures. Organize
(preferably type) those notes and
turn them in. The oral exam will be from 5 to 10 questions. (20 pts
______/______)
1 Read the first 3 sections of Chapter 26 in the World History: Continuity and Change text
book. Complete the "Identify" questions in each section
review. (20 pts ______/______)
1 Watch the movie, Judgement at Nuremberg. Write a two page typed paper on the trials that
took place there. Include a paragraph on the treatment of those trials by the movie and a
paragraph on whose performance you found to be the most
effective.(20 pts______/______)
1 Study Winston Churchill's famous "Iron Curtain" speech.
Prepare a 3 minute rebuttal to be given to the United Nations General
Assembly by the Soviet Ambassador. This will
meet the state CIM requirement and will judged using CIM scoring
guides. This task
provides one of your opportunities to meet this benchmark. (20
pts______/______)
1 "George Marshall's plan to rebuild Europe after WWII was a direct result of the failure of both the Treaty of Versailles and United States foreign policy following WWI." Assess the validity of this statement. Write an essay on this prompt. It is to fit the format that will meet the state standards for the CIM requirement. State scoring guides will be used to correct it. This task provides one of the opportunities to meet this benchmark.
(20 pts ______/_______)
1 Find 4 Norman Rockwell paintings or magazine covers that
portray life in the U.S.
between 1946 and 1950. Accompany each with a brief explanation of what
Rockwell was
trying to say about post war life in the U.S. (20 pts ______/_______)
1 Provide two wall maps (3 feet by 4 feet) that show the Middle East prior to and after the
creation of Israel. Accompany this with a brief (one page
typed) explanation of why the
United Nations believed this creation of a Jewish state was a viable
alternative and why it
instead created problems. (20 pts ______/_______)
1 Watch the first 30 minutes of The Right Stuff. Write a
typed 2 page paper that deals
with our attempts to break the sound barrier and the political and
foreign policy
ramifications that accompanied our success. (20 pts ______/_______)
"B" Level Tasks
Choose any one of the following tasks:
1 Create a pictorial essay of the life of Jackie Robinson. Accompany each
picture with a brief explanation of "who, where, when, and what" it portrays.
You may begin with his college days at UCLA and end with his death.
(30 pts ____/_____)
1 A new art form, Abstract Expressionism, grew in the late '40s. Two of the
most famous painters to develop this style were Jackson Pollock and Willem
deKooning. Find either Pollock's Number 1, 1950 (Lavender
Mist) or deKooning's
Woman, I and study it. Then pick up directions from Mr. Gordon and
create your own
painting using that style. (30 pts _____/_____)
1 Create a board game based upon the "Domino Principle". This game must
be played by at least 4 students in this class and you must provide an analysis and review done by each student. They can receive 5 points for participating.
(30 pts _____/_____)
"A" Level Tasks
Choose any one of the following tasks:
1 Watch (with parental permission, 5 extra points to watch with your parents)
the movies The Best Years of Their Lives and Coming Home.
Write a 3 page typed paper
that compares and contrasts the problems faced by veterans coming home
from WWII and
those coming home from Vietnam. In your conclusion, speculate on the
difficulties that will
face those coming home from Iraq. (30 pts _____/______)
1 Write a paper (4 to 5 pages typed) on post WWII United States foreign policy.
You must cover the Truman Doctrine, the policy of containment, the domino principle, occupation of Berlin, NATO, United Nations, nuclear testing, and the Marshall Plan. Use specific examples (i.e. support for Chiang Kai Shek in the Chinese Revolution in order to contain communism) whenever possible.
(30 pts _____/______)
1 Write a brief biography (4 to 5 typed pages) of any world leader during this
time period. Include a bibliography that cites all sources you use.
(30 pts _____/______)