The Paris Peace Conference

Agenda 3/19:

1. Students participated in a simulation of the Paris Peace Conference, representing one of the "Big Four" countries - Italy, US, France, Great Britain. They learned about and share these country's visions for a postwar world and drew maps of Europe illustrating their country's position.
2. Students read pages 65-75 in the Keylor text.
3. Students read excerpts from the Treaty of Versailles, learning about the harsh conditions placed on Germany.

DUE:

There will be a WWI vocab quiz on Friday. Here are the terms.

The Paris Peace Conference Mapping:

WWI

Agenda 3/13-15:

1. Students examined panels from the book The Great War by Joe Sacco. Students looked for examples of total war.
2. Students wrote a group paragraph answering the question: Analyze and assess how advancements in technology impacted the battlefield in WWI.
3. Students listened to the song One by Metallica, based on the antiwar book Johnny Got His Gun
4. Students watched clips from the film War Horse depicting changes in warfare during WWI.
5. Students began viewing a slideshow on WWI [below].
6. Students looked at the Paris Peace Negotiation from the perspective of people who attended the post-WWII conference.

WWI Slideshow:

War Horse - Cavalry Charge:

Japanese Expansion

Agenda 2/27:

1. Students graded Paper 1 practice exams, familiarizing themselves with the examiner scoring guide.
2. Students participated in a mixer activity featuring key terms and vocabulary from Japanese expansion. They filled in some of the unit vocabulary during the activity.
3. I gave a brief presentation about the motivations for Japanese expansion [below]. Here are my notes.
4. Students watched the first 12 minutes of the film Road to War: Japan.

Japanese Expansion:

Road to War: Japan:

Italian Expansion

Students completed Paper 1 practice exams focusing on Italian Expansion. After, I began discussing Japanese Expansion.

Mussolini

Agenda 2/9-12:

1. Students were given the vocabulary for Italian Expansion.
2. Students started learning about Benito Mussolini and the Fascist party in Italy. They read an article about the Italian Fascists use of violence as a means to gain power. 
3. Students then listened to a podcast (start around 19:30). They took notes from both of these activities using this worksheet.

Mussolini:

Hitler Quiz

There will be a quiz on Hitler on Thursday, February 8th. You will be responsible for answering two of the following prompts at random. There will also be a document analysis section

• To what extent were the lives of ordinary Germans affected by Nazism? Identify at least two groups.
• In what ways did people resist Nazi rule? Provide examples.
• Evaluate the ways in which Hitler was able to consolidate his rule between 1933 and 1938.
• Discuss the reasons for and impacts of German expansion.

Hitler, WWII, and The Holocaust

Agenda 1/31-2/2:

1. Students viewed a series of slides showing events from 1933-1945 [below]. Here are the corresponding captions.
2. Students watched several clips from the film Schindler's List and looked at several animated maps from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum website.
3. Students read about the Treblinka death camp.
4. Students began watching the film, The Pianist.

1933-1945:

The Holocaust:

Final

On the day of the final, students will take a vocabulary quiz on key terms dealing with Hitler. Here are the terms.

Hitler: Domestic Policies and The Opposition

Agenda 1/18:

1. Students learned about domestic policies under Hitler, making posters and presenting their findings to class.
2. I gave a presentation about the nature, extent, and treatment of the opposition to the Nazis. Here are my notes. 

Opposition to the Nazis:

Hitler: Consolidation of Power

Agenda 1/11:

1. Students read a excerpt from the book Human Smoke about events in Germany leading up to WWII.
2. I gave a brief lecture about Hitler's role a chancellor and the Nazi government takeover. Here are my notes.
3. Students read an article about the Night of the Long Knives.

Hitler: Consolidation of Power:

Internal Assessment

For the next week and into the new year, students will be working on the Internal Assessment research papers. Here are some helpful resources:

• IB Internal Assessment
• History IA one-page and Research Worksheets
• Complete History IA Guidebook
• IA Sample Paper - Hitler and Totalitarianism
• Old IB exam prompts = ideas for research questions
• 20th Century and HOTA objectives = ideas for research questions
• Comments from examiners of the 2017 papers
• OPCVL Worksheet - Use for Section One: Identification and Evaluation of Sources

Hitler: Rise to Power

The past two classes I've been giving a lecture about the Hitler's rise to power [below]. Here are my lecture notes. Students also read and discussed the Nazi's 25 Point Program.

QUIZ: Castro

There will be a quiz over the Castro unit on Friday 12/1. You will be required to answer two of the following prompts, assigned at random. There will also be a document analysis section.

• "The main reason Castro came to power in 1959 was because of Batista's mistakes." To what extent do you agree?
• Examine two of Castro's social policies.
• Using specific examples, explain the shifts in Cuba economic policies through time. Include a discussion of Communist and Capitalist economic systems.
• Evaluate the methods Castro used to maintain power. Include foreign and domestic affairs.
• Explain the cause, course, and consequences of either The Bay of Pigs Invasion or Cuban Missile Crisis.

The Bay of Pigs and Cuban Missile Crisis

Agenda 11/16:

Students learned about the Bay of Pigs invasion and Cuban Missile Crisis. I emphasized that both events served to empower Castro's status as he made himself look like a hero that had repelled the United States. These events also gave Castro the justification to repress the Cuban population, repression political dissent, eliminating free press, and greater control of the country.

Early Reforms and the USSR

Agenda 11/14:

1. Students read pages 68-73 in Pearson focusing on the costs and benefits of Castro's regime in the early 60s. 
2. Students also identified major events that helped solidify the Cuban-Soviet relationship.
3. Lastly, students analyzed a series of documents preceding the Bay of Pigs invasion and prepared brief presentations from their group's perspective to the John F. Kennedy group, recommending different actions in dealing with Castro.

DUE: 
Castro Vocab Quiz - 11/16

To the Cuban Revolution

Agenda 11/7:

1. Students learned about Fidel Castro's imprisonment after the failed attack on the Moncada barracks. They read excerpts from his book, History Will Absolve Me, highlighting problems and solutions identified by Fidel Castro.
2. Students read Pearson pgs. 60-63 about the Cuban Revolution, keeping track of Batista's Weaknesses and the Rebel's Strengths on a t-chart.

Mao Quiz and Intro to Castro

Agenda 10/28-11/6:

1. Students took a quiz on Mao.
2. Students began looking at Cuba. I gave a brief lecture about the Spanish-American war and events leading up to the Cuban Revolution [below].
3. Students participated in a mixer activities about different people involved in Cuban history.
4. Students learned about pre-Revolution Cuba, reading this article.

Cuban Revolution Context:

Mao: Foreign Policies

Agenda 10/27:

Students read about foreign policies under Mao. They made posters and gave brief presentations explaining the event and evaluating the impacts of success or failures on Mao's maintenance of power. After, they read an article about Mao swimming with Khrushchev and the Sino-Soviet split.

DUE:

Mao Quiz 10/31

Share Your Knowledge Assignment 10/31

The Cultural Revolution

Agenda 10/23-25:

1. Students read an article about the Cultural Revolution.
2. Students watched a clip from China: Century of Revolution [below].
3. Students analyzed a series of documents and wrote a group paragraph answering the prompt, "Write a paragraph that explains the goals, methods, and messages of the Cultural Revolution. And, why did Chinese youth get swept up in the Cultural Revolution?

China: Century of Revolution [start at 1:01:10]:

Mao QUIZ

There will be a quiz over our unit on Mao. Tentatively, the quiz is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 31st. You will answer TWO of the following prompts, giving to you randomly in addition to a document-based question.

• Discuss the conditions that produced the Chinese Communist Party and the leadership of Mao Zedong.
• ‘In the years 1953 to 1967, Mao’s economic planning was a total disaster.’ To what extent do you agree with this view?
• In what ways did Mao try to use education to support his regime?
• By what methods, and with what success did Mao Zedong try to eliminate domestic opposition?
• What was the impact of Mao’s domestic policies on women in China?
• Evaluate the impact of successes and failures of foreign policies on the maintenance of power in China under Mao's leadership.