Website Spotlight: First World War.com

Website URL: http://www.firstworldwar.com/

Introductory Note:

Welcome to one in a series of posts which spotlight quality websites that I use with my U.S. History survey course students at Azusa Pacific University to enrich the regular material in our learning modules.

In this post, I limit myself to those specific aspects of the website which I find fit particularly well within our face-to-face class sessions (each student is required to bring a laptop to class) or as the basis for the students' regularly-assigned written reactions.

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I ask the students to work through the following links:

1. Read these articles to get a clear picture of a soldier's life in the trenches during World War One

a. First World War.com -Life in the Trenches
http://www.firstworldwar.com/features/trenchlife.htm

b. Trench Warfare Photos (History Channel)
http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-i/photos#world-war-i-trench-warfare

c. The Trenches: Symbol of Stalemate (The Great War and the Shaping of the 20th Century: this is a terrific website)
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/chapters/ch1_trench.html

2. Posters in World War One
http://www.firstworldwar.com/posters/usa.htm

Go to Posters, United States.

Click through the posters on each of the 4 pages.

What is the intended audience? What does the government want people to do?

3. Read each of the following articles:

First World War.com - Women and WWI
http://www.firstworldwar.com/features/womenww1_one.htm

First World War.com -No Man's Land
http://www.firstworldwar.com/atoz/nomansland.htm

First World War.com - Observation Balloons
http://www.firstworldwar.com/atoz/balloons.htm

First World War.com -Poison Gas
http://www.firstworldwar.com/weaponry/gas.htm

First World War.com -Creeping Barrage
http://www.firstworldwar.com/atoz/creepingbarrage.htm

First World War.com -Big Bertha
http://www.firstworldwar.com/atoz/bigbertha.htm

First World War.com -Tanks
http://www.firstworldwar.com/weaponry/tanks.htm

First World War.com - Snipers
http://www.firstworldwar.com/atoz/snipers.htm

First World War.com - Wiring Parties
http://www.firstworldwar.com/atoz/wiring.htm

First World War.com - A Night Counter-attack
http://www.firstworldwar.com/diaries/nightcounterattack.htm

First World War.com - Alvin C. York
http://www.firstworldwar.com/bio/york.htm
Internet Movie Data Base: Sergeant York (played by Gary Cooper)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0034167/

First World War.com - Hun
http://www.firstworldwar.com/atoz/hun.htm

First World War.com - Hitler in WWI
http://www.firstworldwar.com/features/aslowfuse.htm

4. Songs from the FirstWorldWar.com website (they are organized by year):
http://www.firstworldwar.com/audio/index.htm

Most Famous Song in U.S.:
http://www.firstworldwar.com/audio/overthere.htm
Bio of George M. Cohan
http://www.firstworldwar.com/bio/cohan.htm

Other noteworthy songs:


http://www.firstworldwar.com/audio/mademoisellefromarmentieres.htm
http://www.firstworldwar.com/audio/packupyourtroubles.htm
http://www.firstworldwar.com/audio/keepthehomefiresburning.htm
http://www.firstworldwar.com/audio/theresalonglongtrailawinding.htm
http://www.firstworldwar.com/audio/katy.htm
http://www.firstworldwar.com/audio/howyagonna.htm
http://www.firstworldwar.com/audio/ohhowihatetogetupinthemorning.htm
http://www.firstworldwar.com/audio/youreagrandoldflag.htm
 
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Concluding Note:

I hope you will use this blog post in conjunction with both the modules on my Learning Professor wiki and the numerous other posts in my Website Spotlight series.

1. The website spotlighted in this post fits within the following U.S. History survey course module on the wiki:
http://thelearningprofessor.wikispaces.com/World+War+I

2. The other blog posts in my Website Spotlight series--chronologically displayed by U.S. History survey course module-- can be found on this wiki page:
http://thelearningprofessor.wikispaces.com/WEBSITE+SPOTLIGHT 

Website Spotlight: The Great War and the Shaping of the 20th Century

Website URL: http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/

Introductory Note:

Welcome to one in a series of posts which spotlight quality websites that I use with my U.S. History survey course students at Azusa Pacific University to enrich the regular material in our learning modules.

In this post, I limit myself to those specific aspects of the website which I find fit particularly well within our face-to-face class sessions (each student is required to bring a laptop to class) or as the basis for the students' regularly-assigned written reactions.

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I ask the students to work through the following links:

I. Trenches

The Trenches: Symbol of Stalemate
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/chapters/ch1_trench.html

The Trenches: What they were really like
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/historian/hist_fussell_03_trenches.html

American Troops in the Trenches [David Kennedy]
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/historian/hist_kennedy_03_troops.html

II. Maps 
Check out the animation built into the maps
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/maps/

Europe in 1914
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/maps/index.html

Outbreak of War
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/maps/maps_outbreak.html

Gallipoli
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/maps/maps_gallipoli.html

The Western Front in 1918
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/maps/maps_western.html

III. Effects of the Great War

"Then and now: the Shaping of the 21st Century"
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/thenandnow/

The Great War Today [Jay Winter]
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/historian/hist_winter_23_today.html

The Lusitania [Jay Winter]
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/historian/hist_winter_12_lusitania.html

Gallipoli: A Turkish Perspective
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/historian/hist_tuncoku_01_gallipoli.html

Gallipoli: An Australian Perspective
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/historian/hist_wilson_04_gallipoli.html

Gallipoli: An Intelligence Screw-up
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/historian/hist_winter_07_gallipoli.html

Voices of the War: Gallipoli and Armenian Genocide
http://www.pbs.org/greatwar/chapters/ch2_voices2.html

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Concluding Note:

I hope you will use this blog post in conjunction with both the modules on my Learning Professor wiki and the numerous other posts in my Website Spotlight series.

1. The website spotlighted in this post fits within the following U.S. History survey course module on the wiki:
http://thelearningprofessor.wikispaces.com/World+War+I

2. The other blog posts in my Website Spotlight series--chronologically displayed by U.S. History survey course module-- can be found on this wiki page:
http://thelearningprofessor.wikispaces.com/WEBSITE+SPOTLIGHT 

Website Spotlight: World War I (BBC)

Website URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwone/

Introductory Note:

Welcome to one in a series of posts which spotlight quality websites that I use with my U.S. History survey course students at Azusa Pacific University to enrich the regular material in our learning modules.

In this post, I limit myself to those specific aspects of the website which I find fit particularly well within our face-to-face class sessions (each student is required to bring a laptop to class) or as the basis for the students' regularly-assigned written reactions.

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Of all the rich material available on this fantastic website from the BBC, I ask my students to work through the following links:

I. Campaigns and Battles of World War One

Animated Map: The Western Front, 1914 - 1918
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwone/launch_ani_western_front.shtml   
  
Battle of the Marne: 6-10 September 1914
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwone/battle_marne.shtml
   
Battle for Gallipoli: February 1915 - January 1916
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwone/battle_gallipoli.shtml
   
Battle of Verdun: 21 February 1916 - July 1916
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwone/battle_verdun.shtml
   
Battle of the Somme: 1 July - 13 November 1916
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwone/battle_somme.shtml   

Animated Map: Battle of the Somme
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwone/launch_ani_somme_map.shtml
       
Battle of Passchendaele: 31 July - 6 November 1917
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwone/battle_passchendaele.shtml
   
II. The Human Experience of War

The Human Face of War [Click on each of the nine images]
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwone/humanfaceofwar_gallery.shtml
   
III. The Trenches: Virtual Tours

World War One Trench Virtual Tour
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwone/launch_vt_wwone_trench.shtml

Life in the Trenches Virtual Tour
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwone/launch_vt_trench_life.shtml

Front Line Trench Virtual Tour
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwone/launch_vt_frontline.shtml

IV. Debates and Controversies of World War One

Shell Shock during World War One by Professor Joanna Bourke
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwone/shellshock_01.shtml

Shot at Dawn: Cowards, Traitors or Victims? by Peter Taylor-Whiffen
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/britain_wwone/shot_at_dawn_01.shtml
 
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Concluding Note:

I hope you will use this blog post in conjunction with both the modules on my Learning Professor wiki and the numerous other posts in my Website Spotlight series.

1. The website spotlighted in this post fits within the following U.S. History survey course module on the wiki:
http://thelearningprofessor.wikispaces.com/World+War+I

2. The other blog posts in my Website Spotlight series--chronologically displayed by U.S. History survey course module-- can be found on this wiki page:
http://thelearningprofessor.wikispaces.com/WEBSITE+SPOTLIGHT

Website Spotlight: Woodrow Wilson

 

Website URL: http://millercenter.org/president/wilson

Introductory Note:

Welcome to one in a series of posts which spotlight quality websites that I use with my U.S. History survey course students at Azusa Pacific University to enrich the regular material in our learning modules.

Among the many worthwhile aspects of the Miller Center (University of Virginia) site, I ask the students to concentrate on the following four essays:

Life Before the Presidency
http://millercenter.org/president/wilson/essays/biography/2
Campaigns and Elections
http://millercenter.org/president/wilson/essays/biography/3
Domestic Affairs
http://millercenter.org/president/wilson/essays/biography/4
Foreign Affairs
http://millercenter.org/president/wilson/essays/biography/5

~~For a review of the Miller Center website:

TeachingHistory.org (National History Education Clearinghouse)
http://teachinghistory.org/history-content/website-reviews/14722

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For additional quality material about President Wilson:

American Presidents (American Experience)

Woodrow Wilson
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/wilson/

These are the specific links from the website that I ask my students to work through:

Ellen Axson Wilson (Wilson's First Wife)
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/wilson/portrait/wp_ellen.html

Edith Bolling Galt Wilson (Wilson's Second Wife)
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/wilson/portrait/wp_edith.html

Election of 1912
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/wilson/portrait/wp_election.html

Wilson's Legacy
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/wilson/sfeature/sf_legacy.html

William Jennings Bryan
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/wilson/peopleevents/p_bryan.html

Colonel Edward House
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/wilson/peopleevents/p_house.html

Henry Cabot Lodge
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/wilson/peopleevents/p_lodge.html

Gallery: Poster Art of World War I
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/wilson/gallery/posters.html

Teacher's Guide Lesson 4: War and Peace
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/wilson/tguide/t_lesson_04.html

~~For reviews of the American Presidents website:

History Matters (The U.S. Survey Course on the Web)
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/4106/
TeachingHistory.org (National History Education Clearinghouse)
http://teachinghistory.org/history-content/website-reviews/14714

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Concluding Note:

I hope you will use this blog post in conjunction with both the modules on my Learning Professor wiki and the numerous other posts in my Website Spotlight series.

1. The website spotlighted in this post fits within the following U.S. History survey course module on the wiki:
http://thelearningprofessor.wikispaces.com/World+War+I

2. The other blog posts in my Website Spotlight series--chronologically displayed by U.S. History survey course module-- can be found on this wiki page:
http://thelearningprofessor.wikispaces.com/WEBSITE+SPOTLIGHT

Website Spotlight: Influenza 1918

Website URL: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/influenza/

Introductory Note:

Welcome to one in a series of posts which spotlight quality websites that I use with my U.S. History survey course students at Azusa Pacific University to enrich the regular material in our learning modules.

In this post, I limit myself to those specific aspects of the website which I find fit particularly well within our face-to-face class sessions (each student is required to bring a laptop to class) or as the basis for the students' regularly-assigned written reactions.

++++++++++

I ask the students to work through the following links:

Introduction: Influenza 1918
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/introduction/influenza-introduction/

Interview: Alfred Crosby
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/interview/influenza-alfred-crosby/

Primary Resources: A Letter from Camp Devens:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/primary-resources/influenza-letter/

General Articles: City Snapshots--Philadelphia
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/general-article/influenza-philadelphia/

General Articles: City Snapshots--Boston
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/general-article/influenza-boston/

General Articles: City Snapshots--San Francisco
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/general-article/influenza-san-francisco/

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Concluding Note:

I hope you will use this blog post in conjunction with both the modules on my Learning Professor wiki and the numerous other posts in my Website Spotlight series.

1. The website spotlighted in this post fits within the following U.S. History survey course module on the wiki:
http://thelearningprofessor.wikispaces.com/World+War+I

2. The other blog posts in my Website Spotlight series--chronologically displayed by U.S. History survey course module-- can be found on this wiki page:
http://thelearningprofessor.wikispaces.com/WEBSITE+SPOTLIGHT