The+Pacific+War+1931-45

=**The Pacific War**= For most people in China, the Pacific War started in 1931 with Japan's annexation of Manchuria, part of China. Eventually, there was an all out attempt by Japan to take-over all of China. Her objective, to create an East-Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere. This attempt culminated in Japan taking on most of the western imperialist powers still left in Asia. In this, she was victorious. At least for a time. This was a tragic war, and one that must be viewed separate from the war that was occurring at the same time in Europe. Though linked, there were some striking differences between these two theaters of war.
 * __Introduction__**

__**Objectives**__
 * Students will develop a detailed understanding of the forces which lead to Japan going to war against America.
 * Students will learn what events lead to acts of overt, deliberate aggression and genocide against a civilian population.
 * Students will demonstrate that they understand and appreciate how much of East Asia was connected to this war and what the long term effects of this war are.

Japan had to attempt to justify its position in East Asia (in 1937) to the rest of the world. Read the attached document (quoted text taken from the Japanese Ambassador to America) and answer the questions which follow with the document below. You might also need to look up the [|Second Front] and the [|Anticomintern Pact.]
 * __How Japan saw its position in Asia prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor.__**

__**[|Japan's Decision for War]**__ Read the article above. Then respond to the article as if you are one of the following: Each letter should at least 2/3s of a page, 12 point font and spaced 1.5. It should be in a hard copy. Due: See announcement or in class directions for this.
 * 1) You are a Japanese civilian living in Japan in October of 1941 protesting Japan's position in preparing for war, and its invasion of China. You are writing a letter to the editor of a newspaper.
 * 2) You are an American high school student critiquing the yearly ceremony commemorating the dropping of the A-bomb on Hiroshima. You are writing a letter to the editor of a newspaper.
 * 3) You are a Japanese military leader supporting the war against America. You are writing a letter to the editor of a newspaper.
 * 4) You are a Chinese nationalist describing why China needs America's support. You are writing a letter to the editor of an American newspaper.

__**Notes**__ You are responsible for the contents of the following two Keynote presentations. The first is very basic and general about the Pacific War. The second is a fairly detailed examination about the use of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima, August 6, and Nagasaki, August 9, 1945.
 * 1) -[[file:SS 30 WWII L5- Victory in Japan.key]]
 * 2) -[[file:MotivesForDroppingAtomicBomb.key]]
 * 3) - You should also read this section on [|Korea Under Japanese Rule] go to the section, "Koreans in the Japanese Military."

__Major Assignment: Ant Farm for the Pacific War__
Right now you have found out why Japan went to war against European colonial powers, China and the United States. In this assignment you are to create a character from which you are going to experience the war. Your mission is to make diary entries in which you describe events, perceptions and your own experiences and thoughts during particular stages of the war. There will be a total of five entries in your diary.

Rules of the Ant Farm (READ THIS!):
= =
 * 1) No murdering other students' characters--you CAN murder other students' characters' relations. In some cases this is going to an impossibility because you are going to be so far from each other, but a lot of you will cross paths, or at least you should seek to cross paths.
 * 2) IF you kill another student's character's family member, you MUST notify them on the discussion page of their __character's wiki__.
 * 3) You have to suffer the consequences of your actions in all following diaries. If you kill somebody in diary 1, it can't disappear in diary 2. Keep the story going. Remember that there are going to be war crimes trials, and or, even a very upset conscience due to bombing a civilian target.
 * 4) There should be a //**realistic, convincing reason for all actions you take**//. Take risks and show the fear and hatred of this period, yes; but be careful--don't be silly; be convincing.
 * 5) You can always converse and interact with more people than assigned. Don't hesitate to step outside of a perceived limitation of this activity access other people or characters that may not be party to your class (or any other class for that matter).
 * 6) If you read something that bothers you, privately inform the teacher. Your privacy will be protected.

Diary Grading Criteria:

 * **Credibility / Realism:** Are your character's actions believable to the reader? Do we understand the reasons he/she does what she does?
 * **Historical Accuracy:** Do you include convincing and accurate __historical details__ in your "historical fiction"?
 * //Include **at least one detail** (image or dialogue) that shows each of the following factors in your character's life://
 * social factors
 * political factors
 * economic factors
 * cultural factors
 * daily life
 * **Creativity:** Are your character, your events, and your writing imaginative, full of images, drama?
 * **Collaboration:** Are you giving good feedback--based on the feedback questions--to your assigned peer review partners?

__**Character**__: For this you are to create a wiki page in which you do the following:
 * Process:** Copy the prompts below. Paste them to your own diary's wiki page. Then, use the prompts to help yourself imagine and create a character that is **a) historically accurate**, and **b) interesting to you and us**. Brainstorm (meaning write) your ideas for these prompts on your own wiki diary page. See your class page for the characters that you will have. A Power Point notes for this section, War in the Pacific. You are responsible for this. Be patient it takes a lot of time to down load [[file:PPNTWWIIYearsForward.pdf]]

Name: Age: Gender: Occupation: Appearance: Location: Personality/Quirks/Unique Personality Traits: Family: Education: Languages you speak: Your main concerns at this time and in life: Portrait (an image that you and we can live with): Due: by the end of the class in which this is assigned

Pacific War Ant Farm Group 1 Pacific War Ant Farm Group 2

__**Diary Entry #1 and #2 (Japan's Invasion of China and the Start of War with the USA, 1937-41):**__ Your first two diary entries will be from a day in the life of your character from the year 1937 right to December 8, 1941. Each of those two entries must reflect the tensions in East Asia (or at least in the world of your character's) during that time. Discuss how at least two events would be affecting your daily life (or at least your thoughts and feelings). For each character, the causes may certainly be different. Begin by reading and completing the reading above, Japan's Decision for War and [|Japan's Quest for Power]. Get an idea of what was happening in the world, albeit a very brief and an Amerocentric view at that at [|Information Please: 1937.] Note: Each diary entry is to be a minimum of 400 words. At lest one of your two entries should demonstrate how the invasion of China by Japan had an impact on you personally, your nation or at least your thoughts. One other element that must be present in your diary: your contact (or at least potential contact with another character). The contact with this person may be from just a distance, i.e. soldiers in combat. The point here, though, is that you communicate with the person whose character seems to offer the greatest likelihood of your at least crossing paths. Major leaders might not be able to add this element to their diaries given the lack of this occurrence being plausible. To do this use the discussion tab on a character from your list (Group 1 or 2). Communicate and, hopefully collaborate with another character. From here establish how your lives might become intertwined. In class we will be watching a documentary from the History Channel, //Century of Warfare: Oriental Blitzkrieg// (approximately 25 minutes) in class. This and the short section below (from the //World at War Series//) should help stimulate your creative ideas for writing in your diaries.

media type="youtube" key="cm6bsU7aA4Q" height="385" width="480" __**Diary Entry #3 and #4**__ Japan has enjoyed 100 days of victories over several colonial powers in East Asia, the French in Indochina, the British in Hong Kong, Malaya and Singapore (soon Burma), the Dutch in the Dutch East Indies, and the Americans in the Philippine Islands. Write about your feelings in regards to any one of the aforementioned victories, what it means for you, or your nation (or all three). The Americans have fought hard battles through out the South Pacific. Their island hopping attack has brought their bombers within range of all Japanese cities. The Japan's Imperial Army is being beaten in the Philippines. All of its South-east Asian areas of occupation are being harassed by bombing and guerrilla fighting. Their shipping supply lines are nearly cut off completely. Okinawa is finally taken. The bomb is used on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The USSR enters the war against the Japanese. The Pacific War ends. Each entry should be at least 350 words. Again, be able to connect with at least one other person in one of your entries. This your last two entries. They must be completed by Wednesday, May 26. media type="youtube" key="96GtfDrXbQ8" height="385" width="480"