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    The Events Leading to WWII

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    Subject: Social Studies

    Lesson Length: 55 - 60 mins

    Topic: The Interwar Years and the Events Leading to WWII

    Grade Level: 7

    Standards / Framework:

    Brief Description: Students will investigate key events during the interwar years that indirectly or directly lead to World War II.

    Know Before You Start: It helps for students to have an understanding of the effects of WWI. Remind students that the “interwar years” means the period of time between WWI and WWII. Terms to know: League of Nations, Treaty of Versailles, Great Depression, reparations.

    Hook:

    • Ask students to remember and discuss a significant event in their lives. 

    • Introduce the expression “hindsight is 20/20” and discuss with students how they might change the course of that event after looking back at what happened. 

    • Lead this into a discussion of how historians view the interwar years. 

    • Read and discuss the sample comic.

      • What might have prevented an evil leader such as Hitler from coming to power?

      • Could anything have been done during the interwar years to prevent his rise to power?

    Activity:

    • Assign each student a significant event from the interwar years (1920-1939). Events may include:
      • Benito Mussolini becoming Premier
      • The Beer Hall Putsch
      • The Munich Pact
      • Stalin takes control of the Soviet government
      • The Locarno Pacts
    • Using the sample comic as a guide, have students create a two-to-three-panel comic describing this event. Comics should include:
      • The significance of the event and its connection to WWII.
      • The date of the occurrence.
      • The important people and/or places that played a role.

    Closure:

    • Have students create a class timeline using their printed comics or simply write the name of the event on a timeline on the board. 

    • Have students present their finished comics to the class.

    Differentiation:

    • Allow students to use the speech-to-text feature.
    • Allow students to use the voiceover feature to read their comics aloud.
    • Allow students to work in pairs or groups as needed.
    • Display comic expectations for independent work.

    Resources:

    • Comic to print or display

    Suggested Content Packs:

    Suggested Story Starters:

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    Students will learn about discrimination, prejudice, and the attempted genocide of Jewish people during the Holocaust and the years leading up to WWII.