Winona Historical Society WWII Lesson Plan

2007-12-08T10:12:00.000-08:00

WWII: Day IV
Grade: 7

Time: 90 minute period

Wartime: Life at Home

1. Wartime: Life at Home: Students will learn about how Americans still stateside spent their time aiding the war effort. They will use primary documents from the Winona Republican-Herald newspaper to help understand the enormity of the effect that the war had on their community 60 years ago.

2. Materials/Resources Needed:
*"Training Women for War Production" clip, narrated by Eleanor Roosevelt, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUg3bWC1VxA
*Winona Newspaper Project website, Winona Republican-Herald, years 1941-1946, http://archive.olivesoftware.com/Default/Skins/Winona/Client.asp?Skin=Winona&GZ=T&AppName=2
*Worksheets for Image & Article notes
*"Of Lost Conversations and Untold Stories,” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hc490zRLWMA

3. Goals for Today’s Lesson:
The student will use primary documents to analyze historical evidence and draw conclusions about the far-reaching effects of WWII. They will also see how women entering the workforce fulfilled an economic need.

4. Objective:
Students will be able to list two examples of how the war affected the people of Winona during the time and one fact regarding the "Rosie the Riveter" campaign.

5. Procedures:
a. introductory experiences:
The teacher will have the "Training Women for War Production" clip playing as students enter the room. When class begins, the teacher will explain that the video was used during WWII to help enlist women into production. The class will return to the issue later in the period. (4 minutes)

b. developmental experiences:
1. The teacher will review the material the students learned the day before regarding characteristics of the men and women who served as soldiers. Students’ responses will be written on the white board. The teacher will then ask: Who does that leave at home? (5 minutes)
*Possible responses: men roughly ages 18 – 40, African American men as well as Anglo American, women 18-30 as nurses and pilots, etc.

2. Next, the teacher will break up students into groups of four and have them hypothesize as to how the absences of soldiers affected the country, the state of Minnesota, and the city of Winona. Each person in the group must list an effect and then pass the recording sheet along. Complete sentences aren’t required. (10 minutes)

3. The teacher will leave students in their groups but require full class attention. Each group will list one nationwide effect until all have been mentioned. The same will be done for the Minnesota and Winona effects. A new spokesperson for the group will be required each time. (5 minutes)

*Possible responses: large job openings, lack of farmers, lack of doctors, more women’s clubs and activities, decline in professional sports for men, Watkins and Coke Bottling probably cut production, greater social networks, church support for women supporting families

4. Students will return to their assigned seats. The teacher will display a "Rosie the Riveter" poster on the projector screen and talk through what they see. For example, “from her flexed arm pose, I can tell Rosie is meant to look strong. She appears to be in some type of uniform and her hair is tied back. She is most likely a worker.” Then the teacher will explain that the students will do the same thing with advertisements from the Winona Republican-Herald newspaper from years 1941-1946. Pass out the worksheet form. (5 minutes)

5. Work time. Students stay in desks and spend approximately 3-4 minutes with each image. Then they will pass it back to the person behind them. They will analyze four images. (15 minutes)

6. Next, students will do the same with articles from the Winona Republican-Herald from years 1941-1946. However, they will have to describe if the war has any reflection on the topic or contents of the article, and if so, how. They will spend 4-5 minutes with each of the three articles. (15 minutes)

7. Students will turn in their worksheets. The teacher will project each image and article and tell the students their origins and allow for any questions. *information listed on attached images (10 minutes)

8. Shift Gears: introduction to women at work. The teacher will bring up the "Rosie the Riveter" poster once more and expand on the real story of Rosie. [Rosie story notes below] Show “Of Lost Conversations and Untold Stories.” (12 minutes)

c. culminating experiences:
1. Each student will turn to a classmate and list two ways the war affected the people of Winona and also what surprised her or him most about an article/advertisement they analyzed. Also, they will turn to a different classmate and tell them one thing about "Rosie the Riveter". (3 minutes)

2. The teacher will inform students that they are going to have a WWII veteran come in and speak to them during the next class period. Elizabeth Strohfus, from Faribault, Minnesota, was a Women’s Air Service Pilot during World War II and is still flying today. The class will review appropriate behaviors for a guest speaker. (5 minutes)

6. Assessments Used During Lesson:
Informal Assessment: walking around during group work, listing two examples and a fact to a classmate
Formal Assessment: worksheet on advertisements and articles

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Additional Materials- Worksheets and Lecture Notes

Characteristics of men and women serving:

- Army: 8,300,000
- Navy: 4,204,662
- Marines: 599,693
- Grand Total: 13,104,355

Figures for women serving with the American military in World War II:
- Army - 140,000
- Navy - 100,000
- Marines - 23,000
- Coast Guard - 13,000
- Air Force - 1,000
- Army and Navy Nurse Corps - 74,000

*59,000 American nurses

*More than 1,000 women served as pilots associated with the US Air Force in the WASP (Women Airforce Service Pilots) but were considered civil service workers

*Over 2.5 million African American men and thousands of African American women served in all branches of service, and in all Theaters of Operations during World War II

Rosie the Riveter – Teacher’s Notes

*Rosie the Riveter was most closely associated with a real woman, Rose Will Monroe, born in Pulaski County, Kentucky, in 1920 and moved to Michigan during World War II
*She worked as a riveter at the Willow Run Aircraft Factory in Ypsilanti, Michigan, building B-29 and B-24 bombers for the U.S. Army Air Forces
*Model/Actress Daisy was asked to star in a promotional film about the war effort at home and was featured in a poster campaign
*The song "Rosie the Riveter" by Redd Evans and John Jacob Loeb was released in early 1943, and Monroe happened to best fit the description of the worker depicted in the song
*Rose went on to become perhaps the most widely recognized icon of that era
*According to the Encyclopedia of American Economic History, the "Rosie the Riveter" movement increased the number of working American women to 20 million by 1944, a 57% increase from 1940. (In 1942, just between the months of January and July, the estimates of the proportion of jobs that would be "acceptable" for women was raised by employers from 29 to 85%.)
*Conditions were sometimes very poor and pay was not always equal—the average man working in a wartime plant was paid $54.65 per week, while women were paid $31.21 per week
*Women quickly responded to Rosie the Riveter, who convinced them they had a patriotic duty to enter the workforce
*Some claim that she forever opened up the work force for women, but others dispute that point, noting that many women were discharged after the war and their jobs given to returning servicemen

Name: ____________________

Winona Republican Herald Advertisements/Images

Image:

Approximate Date:

Description:

If it relates to the war, how:

Image:

Approximate Date:

Description:

If it relates to the war, how:

Image:

Approximate Date:

Description:

If it relates to the war, how:

Image:

Approximate Date:

Description:

If it relates to the war, how:

Winona Republican-Herald Articles

Article Title:

Approximate Date:

Description:

If it relates to the war, how:

Article Title:

Approximate Date:

Description:

If it relates to the war, how:

Article Title:

Approximate Date:

Description:

If it relates to the war, how:

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Winona Republican-Herald Images:

Notes:

*Published June 1, 1942

-many auto factories were converted to build airplanes

-fulfilling patriotic duty by offering free air, also good advertising for Wadhams

-rubber (tires) had to be rationed

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Notes:

*Published December 11, 1942

-scrap drive was first organized in 1942

-melted down and used for munitions

-morale builder; a way Americans at home could feel that they were helping the war effort

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Notes:

*Published June 19, 1943

-popular types/styles of china could be French, English, etc.

-time of war, patriotic "Revere Pattern"

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Notes:

*Published March 29, 1944

-New Zealand was Allied

-image for families of soldiers at home, soldiers are happy/thriving with new friends

-Winona Bottling Company, helping war effort

-some troops stationed in New Zealand

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Notes:

*Published November 26, 1941

-two weeks before attacks at Pearl Harbor

-color photographs new, big deal

-Rotary: service club organization, "Service Above Self"

-How will the Winona Rotary's role change after the war begins?

-Winona Rotary is still very active today

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Notes:

*Published June 19, 1943

-in 1940, the Office of Price Administration was created

-OPA managed price stabilization and consumer protection divisions

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Notes:

*Published August 18, 1943

-Victory Gardens: fruits and vegetables grown at home to reduce pressure on the public food supply

-one of the many ways people sacrificed

-on display in the floral building, shows that the war effort spreads to all portions of the fair

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Notes:

*Published November 23, 1945

-USES: United States Employment Service

-What did the women do that were working in the factories?

-Economics: What would help create more job openings for returning soldiers?

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Notes:

*Published June 15, 1946

-a year after the war ended, patriotism still strong

-Why so many flags?

-honor veterans

-increase sense of patriotism

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Winona Historical Society WWII Lesson Plan