Students are introduced to the Manhattan Project with film and open discussion, then use primary source documents to write an essay about the Manhattan Project.
Materials:
- “The American Pageant,” 13th Ed.
- “A Sense of Place” DVD
- “The Story of US” DVD by The History Channel
- The Manhattan Project by Cynthia C. Kelly
Assignment:
Students will achieve and understanding of:
- The science that led to the atomic bomb
- The comparisons to other scientific achievements
- The historical significance
- Problem-solving issues
- Leadership
- The future ramifications
Procedure:
- Introductory Lecture and overview
- Viewing of “A Sense of Place,” a clip of the explosion over Hiroshima and its aftermath
- Read about Harry Truman and his decision to drop the bomb
- Socratic dialogue of the decision to drop the bomb.
- Introduction to the Document Based Question (DBQ) Essay
- Writing of DBQ
- Optional field trip to Los Alamos
- Students produce an original DBQ Essay based on the DBQ Essay Packet that is provided at class.
- Students will participate in an open discussion on how to approach the DBQ process.
Difficulty:
Grade Level:
