Download Educational Duffle Bag - Armed Forces History Museum

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Educational
Duffle Bag
Teacher‘s Packet
World War II
Bag #1
Dear Teacher,
Thank you for participating in our Educational Duffle Bag Program. The Duffle Bag Program
was created to accompany a field trip to complete the learning experience. Your involvement
strengthens our relationship with the schools and the community. We look forward to seeing
you and your students at The Armed Forces Military Museum.
.
This bag and guide has been created with you, the teacher, in mind. The items in the bag
have a brief description and history. Teaching tools like timelines and reading lists related
to your subject matter have been included as well.
Please note the Inventory Checklist in your guide. To ensure all artifacts are returned to
the museum, a series of inventory checks accompany the duffle bag. Please read and
follow the instructions carefully. Each checklist is specific to the bag it accompanies. The
duffle bag and artifacts are not to leave the school. Please refrain from taking the
artifacts home. A $50 replacement fee will be assessed for each item that is lost. Thank
you for your help preserving our artifacts.
Once you have finished using the Duffle Bag in your classroom, we encourage you to fill
out our Feedback sheet. Let us know what worked and what didn‘t, what you liked and
didn‘t liked, what you would want to see added. You are on the ‗front lines‘ for us so
your opinions are key to the success of our program.
Once again, thank you for participating in our Educational Duffle Bag Program. We look
forward to seeing you and your students at the Armed Forces History Museum.
Sincerely,
Armed Forces History Museum
2050 34th Way North
Largo, FL 33771
www.armedforcesmuseum.com
Phone: 727-539-8371
Fax: 727-524-4967
Inventory Checklist
World War II Duffle Bag #1
To ensure all artifacts are returned to the museum, a series of inventory checks accompany the
duffle bag. Thank you for your help preserving our artifacts.
Drop Off: A museum employee will check the inventory before bringing the bag to your school.
Teacher Check In to Classroom: Once you receive the bag, please check the inventory yourself.
Initial off for each item.
Teacher Check Out of Classroom: When you have finished using the bag, again, check the
inventory before packing the bag for museum pick up. Initial again.
Pick Up: When a museum employee picks the bag up from your school they will check the
inventory list again.
Drop Off
Teacher
Check In
Teacher
Check Out
Pick Up
Army Garrison
Cap
Leggings
Navy Flight
Deck Hat
Navy Sailor Hat
Navy Seabee’s
Utility Jacket
WWII Canteen
w/Cup & Case
WWII Mess Kit
w/s Knife, Fork
& Spoon
Timeline
WWII in HDDVD
The Big Book of
WWII
Drop Off Date: ___________________________ Pick Up Date: __________________________
Teacher:________________________________ Contact Email: __________________________
School:________________________________________________________________________
With this signature I take full responsibility for each item in the Educational Duffle bag. I fully
understand that a $50 replacement fee will be assessed for each missing item and I agree to pay
any necessary fees.
_______________________________________________________ Date _________________
Army Garrison Cap
The Garrison Cap originated during WWI. The French soldiers wore a cloth cap which
was the inspiration for the US Army "overseas cap" adopted during WWI, but that cap
was not used inside the US. By the late 1930‘s, the cap was altered for use by both
officers and enlisted men, and piping was added to indicate the branch of service. Since it
was used in the US as well as overseas, it became known as the Garrison Cap.
Garrison Caps were produced in dark olive drab wool as well as in khaki to go with the
khaki cotton summer uniform. Officers garrison caps were worn with officer's insignia
pinned near the front on the left side. The USMC has its own garrison cap similar in style
to the Army version. The USMC garrison cap is forest green.
The piping on the Garrison Cap was referred to as the "hat cord" or "braid". The hat cord
was either a pure color or a base color with a second color "piped" into the cord.
According to a Soldier's Handbook, dated 1940, the hat cord colors for the arms and
services were:
Air Corps
Cavalry
Chemical Warfare Service
Coast Artillery Corps
Corps of Engineers
Field Artillery
Finance Department
Infantry and Tanks
Medical Department
Military Chaplain
Military Police
Ordnance Department
Quartermaster Corps
Signal Corps
Ultramarine blue piped with golden orange
Yellow
Cobalt blue piped with golden orange
Scarlet
Scarlet piped with white
Scarlet
Silver Gray piped with golden yellow
Blue
Maroon piped with white
Black
Yellow piped with green
Crimson piped with yellow
Buff
Orange piped with white
Canteen w/Cup
In military terms, 'canteen' was not originally a piece of equipment. The word referred to
a place where refreshments and entertainment were provided for members of the armed
forces. By the 19th century, canteen also came to mean a portable container for water,
carried by infantry.
One of the most common items of individual equipment for ground troops is the military
canteen. With the high level of physical activity that is normal in military operations,
every person needs a significant ration of water on a regular basis. This need is
accelerated in warm climates, but does not disappear even in quite cold environments.
The canteen and its accessories provide the vital link between the unit's water supply and
the individual soldier on the move. World War I canteens are very popular among
collectors
Leggings
During WWI leggings were a standard part of the Army uniform. Originally, men wore
wide cloth strips, called Puttees, wrapped around the upper ankle and lower leg to
provide ankle support and protect the lower leg and calf. These developed into a single
piece of cloth or canvas that wrapped and buckled around the lower calf.
In 1917, during WWI, these leggings were redesigned to cover the top of the boot to
prevent dirt and gravel from entering the show and to provide more ankle support. A
strap was added to the bottom of the legging to circle under the show around the arch of
the foot and prevent the legging from riding up the soldier‘s leg throughout the day.
These leggings were in use from WWI through most of WWII when the army began
experimenting with high-top combat boots in 1943. These eventually replaced leggings
and are currently the military standard, making leggings obsolete.
Mess Kit
An important part of a soldier‘s personal gear was his mess kit. Mess kits were a set of
plates and eating utensils that could be used to prepare and eat food while in the field.
These kits were used through the Vietnam War and were phased out in the 1980‘s with
the distribution of the MRE (Meal, Ready to Eat).
The design of the mess kit is based on the aluminum kits that were in use before WWI,
consisting of a pan with a hinged handle plus a lid that fits over the pan and was held
together as one unit when the pan handle was folded over. Mess kits used from WWII
through the Vietnam War were made of ―corrosion resistant‖ galvanized steel or stainless
steel. The mess kit was nicknamed a ―Meat Can‖ by troops.
Mess kits are almost universally marked ‗US‘ on the folding handle, along with the date
and manufacturer. Mess kits also included individual utensils, a spoon, fork and knife,
but they are not included in this artifact.
Navy Flight Deck Hat
Manufactured exclusively for the Navy during WWII to protect against the cold, windy
days and nights on the high seas. These feature wool lined inside, an adjustable chin
strap, and an extended windbreak flap for the neck.
Anyone on deck on any type of ship in cold weather could have worn these. It was in
1942 that the Navy realized that blue jackets and caps could cause Navy landing boat
crews to be mistaken for Germans during the fog of war, so they started making caps and
coats in olive drab to make the sailors look more like US Soldiers. The hats are often
called "flight deck hats" in a effort to tie them to naval aviation, but really they were just
plain "deck hats".
Navy Seabee’s Utility Jacket
The Seabees, or SeaBees, are the Construction Battalions (CBs) of the United States
Navy. The Seabees have a history of building bases, bulldozing and paving thousands of
miles of roadway and airstrips, and accomplishing myriad other construction projects in a
wide variety of military theatres dating back to World War II.
The earliest Seabees were recruited from the civilian construction trades and were placed
under the leadership of the Navy's Civil Engineer Corps. Because of the emphasis on
experience and skill rather than physical standards, the average age of Seabees during the
early days of the war was 37.
More than 325,000 men served with the Seabees in World War II, fighting and building
on six continents and more than 300 islands. In the Pacific, where most of the
construction work was needed, the Seabees landed soon after the Marines and built major
airstrips, bridges, roads, gasoline storage tanks, and Quonset huts for warehouses,
hospitals, and housing.
The Seabees were officially organized in the Naval Reserve on December 31, 1947.
US Navy Sailor’s Uniform & Hat
Since it‘s inception in 1775 to help defend the young United States in the Revolutionary
War, the US Navy has developed various uniforms for its sailors.
The original navy blue uniform color, accented with white, was chosen by British naval
officers petitioning the Admiralty for a standardized uniform in 1745. The US Navy has
stayed with the navy blue and white tradition. This standard blue uniform could be worn
with white or blue pants and enlisted men wearing it were often referred to as ―blue
jackets‖.
The iconic white sailor‘s uniform has been a symbol of the Navy since the 1880‘s. The
traditional sailor's uniform in white or blue with the back flap and neckerchief became
even more widely recognized after the snack Cracker Jack adopted it for their mascot
Sailor Jack. This uniform is informally referred to as the "Cracker Jack" uniform by the
US Navy.
The white hat worn by sailors today originated in the 1880's as a low, rolled brim, high
domed item made of wedge shaped pieces of canvas. Canvas material was replaced by
cotton as a cheaper, more comfortable material. These hats are affectionately called
―Dixie Cups‖ and sailors often personalized them by shaping them in different manners.
This is the hat that Cracker Jack‘s Sailor Jack wears today. The hat included in this bag
is a cotton, white hat worn in WWII.
It is commonly believed that the bell-bottomed trousers were introduced in 1817 to
permit men to roll them above the knee when washing down the decks. Bell bottoms also
made it easier to remove them in a hurry when forced to abandon ship or when washed
overboard. The trousers may be used as a life preserver by knotting the legs.
The jumper flaps (back flap) collar originated as a protective cover for the jacket to
protect it from the grease or powder normally worn by seamen to hold their hair in place.
The black neckerchief, or bandanna, first appeared as early as the 16th century and was
utilized as a sweat band and collar closure. Black was the predominant color as it was
practical and did not readily show dirt.
Khaki originated in 1845 in India where British soldiers soaked white uniforms in mud,
coffee, and curry powder to blend in with the landscape. Khakis made their debut in the
US Navy in 1912 when they were worn by naval aviators, and were adopted for
submarines in 1931. In 1941 the Navy approved khakis for on-station wear, and soon
after Pearl Harbor chiefs and officers were authorized to wear khakis ashore on liberty.
Today the US Navy has three basic service uniforms, the Service Khaki, Winter Blue,
and Summer and Tropical Whites. The white sailor‘s hat can be worn with all three.
Pinellas County Approved Lesson Plans
The following pages are excerpts from our Pinellas County Approved Lesson Plan. We
encourage you to print out copies for yourself and use them in your classroom as part of
the Duffle Bag Program and a Field Trip to The Armed Forces Military Museum. We
have also included the Sunshine State Standards Benchmarks that our Lesson Plan meets.
The entire lesson plan is available online at www.armedforcesmuseum.com.
SSS BENCHMARKS
Grade
K
SS.K.A.1.1
SS.K.A.2.5
1st
SS.1.A.2.4
SS.1.C.3.2
2nd
SS.2.A.2.5
SS.2.A.2.6
3rd
SS.3.A.1.1
SS.3.G.1.2
SS.3.G.4.4
4th
SS.4.A.6.4
SS.4.A.7.3
SS.4.E.1.2
SS.4.G.1.4
5th
SS.5.A.1.1
SS.5.A.5.3
SS.5.C.1.2
SS.5.C.3.3
SS.5.G.1.1
6th
SS.6.G.1.2
SS.6.G.4.4
SS.6.W.1.4
SS.6.W.1.5
SS.6.W.1.6
7th
SS.7.C.2.10
SS.7.C.2.13
SS.7.C.3.1
SS.7.C.4.1
SS.7.C.4.2
SS.7.C.4.3
8th
SS.8.A.1.6
SS.8.E.2.3
SS.8.G.1.1
9th – 12th
SS.912.A.4.5
SS.912.A.4.6
SS.912.A.4.7
SS.912.A.4.8
SS.912.A.4.9
SS.912.A.6.1
SS.912.A.6.12
SS.912.A.6.14
SS.912.A.7.3
SS.912.C.4.2
SS.912.E.3.1
SS.912.E.3.3
SS.912.G.1.1
SS.912.G.1.3
SS.912.G.2.4
SS.912.G.4.7
SS.912.G.4.9
SS.912.W.1.1
SS.912.W.2.1
SS.912.W.6.6
SS.912.W.7.1
SS.912.W.7.2
SS.912.W.7.3
SS.912.W.7.6
SS.912.W.7.7
SS.912.W.7.8
SS.912.W.7.9
SS.912.W.7.10
SS.912.W.7.11
SS.912.W.8.2
SS.912.W.8.3
SS.5.G.1.2
World War II Facts
Who Fought Whom?
Axis
Bulgaria
Finland
Germany
Hungary
Italy
Japan
Romania
Yugoslavia
Allies
Occupied
Argentina
Albania
Bolivia
Belgium
Brazil
Czechoslovakia
Canada
Denmark
China
Estonia
Chile
Ethiopia
Columbia
France
Costa Rica
Greece
Cuba
Luxemburg
France
Netherlands
India
Norway
Iraq
Philippines
Lebanon
Poland
Mexico
New Zealand
Paraguay
South Africa
Soviet Union
United Kingdom
United States
Neutral
Andorra
Ireland
Liechtenstein
Portugal
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Uruguay
Vatican City
Main Leaders
Country
Leader
France
Charles de Gaulle
Germany
Adolf Hitler
Italy
Benito Mussolini
Japan
Emperor Hirohito
United Kingdom
Neville Chamberlain to 1940
Winston Churchill from 1940
United States
Franklin Roosevelt died 1945
Harry Truman 1945
Where in the World War?
Mapping WWII in the Pacific
A Lesson Plan from:
The Department of Education of The National D-Day Museum
―America‘s World War II Museum‖
The National D-Day Museum
945 Magazine Street
New Orleans, LA 70130
504-527-6012
www.ddaymuseum.org
© The National D-Day Museum
Where in the World War?
Mapping WWII in the Pacific
Americans who served in the Pacific fought a very different kind of war. Whether in the
jungles of New Guinea or on tiny atolls in the central Pacific, they confronted
environments and cultures with fewer reference points. For Americans at home,
following news of the war in the Pacific meant learning the geography and place names
across that vast ocean.
OBJECTIVE: As an introduction to WWII in the Pacific, students will use classroom
reference materials to learn the basic geography of that theater of war.
DIRECTIONS:
1. Use the map provided for this activity.
2. After presenting an introductory lesson on the history of WWII in the Pacific, present
the map of the Pacific to students.
3. Have students complete the map activity sheet using classroom reference materials,
like textbooks, atlases, globes, etc.
4. Distribute the place names activity sheet for students to complete.
5. Hold a brief discussion about the map: What elements of this map do the students like?
What parts are confusing? What information is not on this map that could be? Are the
design elements of the map appropriate (colors, shapes, icons, etc.)?
ASSESSMENT: Components for assessment include the completed student worksheets.
ENRICHMENT: Have students research and create a map of a specific island in the
Pacific where fighting occurred, such as Iwo Jima, Saipan, Guadalcanal, the Philippines,
or Oahu. Display these maps on the wall.
Where in the World War (Pacific) © The National D-Day Museum 2
Strangers in a Strange Land
Places in the Pacific
Strangers in a Strange Land
Places in the Pacific
Sixty years ago, a generation of young Americans left their homes to fight a world war.
That war was waged in two distant and very different places. In Europe, Americans faced
hardship and danger. But they did so amid people and places that—while foreign—had
important connections with their lives back in America. Terrain, weather, place names
and, sometimes, ethnic ties were familiar links that provided some measure of comfort
against the hardships of war.
Americans who fought the Japanese in the Pacific fought a very different kind of war.
Whether in the jungles of New Guinea or on tiny atolls in the central Pacific, they
confronted environments and cultures with fewer reference points. Their war involved
vast distances, isolation and harsh, unfamiliar surroundings that placed special burdens
on them.
Over two million young Americans went to war in the Pacific. They served in places as
remote and far-flung as the Philippines, the Solomon Islands and Okinawa. Many
struggled and died in places their families had never heard of. They waged a bloody war
against a determined enemy.
Consider this: when the Japanese attacked the US Pacific Fleet on December 7, 1941,
most Americans had never heard of Pearl Harbor and did not even know where it was.
Directions: Use an atlas, globe, or other classroom resource to locate these places in
the Pacific Ocean and Asia. Learn to spell these important WWII locations.
1. Japan
2. Tokyo
3. China
4. Manchuria
5. Pearl Harbor
6. Guadalcanal (Solomon Islands)
7. Midway Island
8. Gilbert Islands
9. Marshall Islands
10. Mariana Islands
11. Guam
12. New Guinea
13. Philippines
14. Singapore
15. Hong Kong
16. Aleutian Islands
17. Iwo Jima
18. Okinawa
19. Hiroshima
20. Nagasaki
Where in the World War (Pacific) © The National D-Day Museum 3
A Brief History of WWII in the Pacific
Directions: This activity will help you familiarize yourself with the geography of
WWII in the Pacific. Using maps, globes and atlases, locate each location discussed on
the accompanying map. Place the number next to each location in the blanks following its
description.
In 1931, the Empire of Japan (__) invades Manchuria (__) in order to increase its natural
resources. This begins a push by Japan into mainland Asia that continues throughout the
1930‘s. A decade later, Japan has been slowly pressing into China (__) and is prepared to
make a major assault in the Pacific Theater. In order to prevent the U.S. from interfering
with their plans, they stage a sneak attack at Pearl Harbor (__) on December 7th, 1941.
Much of the United States fleet is destroyed. The Japanese are prepared to move quickly.
On December 8th, 1941, the Japanese attack the American forces in the Philippine
Islands (__), the British holdings of Hong Kong (__) and Singapore, on the Malayan
peninsula (__). The Japanese are conquering new territory rapidly while the Americans
recover. Japan continues to conquer territory throughout the Pacific towards Australia
(__). By May of 1942, the Japanese have reached the Coral Sea (__), where American
ships are waiting for them. The battle is technically a draw, but it marks the first set-back
in Japan‘s offensive.
In June of 1942, the Japanese send a large fleet to the island of Midway (__). American
planes have been using this island to refuel on the long trips from California to the South
Pacific. If the Japanese can take the island, they will stop these flights entirely. At the
Battle of Midway, the U. S. Navy sinks four Japanese aircraft carriers, scoring a clear
victory and turning the tide of the war in the Pacific. The Japanese begin losing ground.
In order to defeat Japan, American forces will have to wage a long campaign of islandhopping, slowly taking back islands the Japanese have conquered. On August 7, 1942,
the 1st Marine Division lands on Guadalcanal (__). It will take nearly three years and
many hard-fought battles for islands large and small to get U.S. forces within striking
distance of Japan.
In February of 1945, 30,000 U. S. Marines land in one day on the tiny island of Iwo Jima
(__). After 36 days of combat, the U. S. controls an airstrip within range of Japan itself.
The battle costs nearly 7,000 US lives and most of the 22,000-man Japanese garrison.
Now, bombardment of Japanese factories and military bases can begin. Japan has lost
almost all of its conquered territory. In April of 1945, more than 180,000 Americans land
on the island of Okinawa (__) and face a Japanese army half their size. The Japanese
fight to the end, losing over 110,000 soldiers.
American bombing raids have heavily damaged the home island of Japan, but Japan is
unwilling to surrender and prepares to fight to the very end. In order to deal a major blow
to the nation of Japan itself and force the Emperor to surrender, President Harry S
Truman authorizes the use of the atomic bomb. On August 6, 1945, the first atomic bomb
is dropped on Hiroshima (__). On August 14, Japan surrenders.
Where in the World War (Pacific) © The National D-Day Museum 3Where in the World War (Pacific) © The National D-Day
Museum 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 � Miles Kilometers 1000 1600 0 0 11 12 13 14 Copyright 2009 LessonSnips www.lessonsnips.com
A Brief History of WWII in the Pacific
Answer Key
Japan- 8
Manchuria- 9
China- 11
Pearl Harbor- 6
Philippine Islands- 4
Hong Kong- 12
Malayan Peninsula- 1
Australia- 13
Coral Sea- 7
Midway- 2
Guadalcanal- 10
Iwo Jima- 3
Okinawa- 14
Hiroshima- 5
Recommended Reading for Middle School
World War II
Aaron, Chester Alex, Who Won His War
In the final months of World War II fourteen-year-old Alex, worried about the fate of his
brother fighting in Europe, falls into the hands of two Nazi spies intent on sabotage.
Bauer, Marion Dane Rain of Fire
When Steve‘s older brother Matthew, returning home after service in World War II,
refuses to talk about his wartime experiences, Steve‘s friends begin to doubt the stories
he has told them of Matthew‘s heroism.
Booth, Martin War Dog
After her owner is arrested while poaching, Jet is requisitioned by the British Army and
sees duty on the beach at Dunkirk, searching for survivors of Germany‘s bombing raids
on English cities, and in Italy at the end of the war.
Bunin, Sherry Dear Great American Writers School
Fourteen-year-old Bobby Lee‘s letters to a correspondence school describe her life in a
small Kentucky town during World War II and her growth as a person and as a writer.
Carter, Peter The Hunted
In 1943, with the surrender of Italy to the Allies, Corporal Vito Salvani finds himself and
the orphaned Jewish boy Judah trapped in enemy territory in France, where they must
flee from an obsessed Gestapo agent.
Gaeddert, LouAnn Bigge Friends and Enemies
In 1941 in Kansas, as America enters World War II, fourteen-year-old William finds
himself alienated from his friend Jim, a Mennonite who does not believe in fighting for
any reason, as they argue about the war.
Giff, Patricia Reilly Lily’s Crossing
During a summer spent at Rockaway Beach I 1944, Lily‘s friendship with a young
Hungarian refugee causes her to see the war and her own world differently.
Greene, Bette Summer of My German Soldier
Sheltering an escaped prisoner of war is the beginning of some shattering experiences for
a twelve-year-old girl in Arkansas.
Gwaltney, Doris Homefront
For as long as she can remember, Margaret Ann has longed for a room of her own. When
her older sister leaves for college, she finally gets her dream until her cousin from
England leaves London because of the Blitz and moves to America. Not only does she
get part of Margaret Ann‘s room, but her boyfriend too. Then Margaret‘s brother enlists
in the Navy and she has to come to grips with the war in Europe.
Heneghan, James Wish Me Luck
While on an ocean voyage to Canada to escape air raids in his Liverpool home, twelveyear-old Jaimie Monaghan faces another kind of life-threatening situation. Based on the
true story of the sinking of a passenger liner by a German U-boat during World War II.
Hernstein, Jane Beyond Paradise
Within months of arriving in the exotic Philippines from Upper Sandusky, Ohio, to live
with her missionary parents on the island of Panay, fourteen-year-old Louise finds herself
a prisoner of war in an internment camp when the Japanese invade her new country in
1941.
Hesse, Karen Aleutian Sparrow
An Aleutian Islander recounts her suffering during World War II in American internment
camps designed to ―protect‖ the population from the invading Japanese.
Hughes, Dean Soldier Boys
Two boys, one German and one American, are eager to join their respective armies
during World War II, and their paths cross at the Battle of the Bulge.
Kerr, M. E. Slap Your Sides
Life in their Pennsylvania hometown changes for Jubal Shoemaker and his family when
his older brother witnesses to his Quaker beliefs by becoming a conscientious objector
during World War II.
Kerr, M. E. Your Eyes in Stars
In their small New York town, two teenaged girls become friends while helping each
other make sense of their families, neighbors, and selves as they approach adulthood in
the years preceding World War II.
Lingard, Joan Tug of War
Follows the ordeal of fourteen-year-old twins Astra and Hugo Petersons, as they and their
family flee their native Latvia before the advancing Russian armies in late 1944 and find
themselves homeless refugees in a war-torn Germany.
Lisle, Janet Taylor The Art of Keeping Cool
In 1942, Robert and his cousin Elliot uncover long-hidden family secrets while staying in
their grandparent‘s Rhode Island town, where they also become involved with a German
artist who is suspected of being a spy.
Magorian, Michelle Good Night Mr. Tom
A battered child learns to embrace life when he is adopted by an old man in the English
countryside during World War II.
Mazer, Harry A Boy at War: A Novel of Pearl Harbor
While fishing with his friends off Honolulu on December 7, 1941, a teenaged Adam is
caught in the midst of the Japanese attack and through the chaos of the subsequent days
tries to find his father, a naval officer who was serving on the U.S.S. Arizona when the
bombs fell.
Mazer, Harry The Last Mission
In 1944 a fifteen-year-old Jewish boy tells his family he will travel in the West but
instead, enlists in the United States Air Corps and is subsequently taken prisoner by the
Germans.
Napoli, Donna Jo Stones in Water
After being taken by German soldiers from a local movie theatre along with other Italian
boys, including his Jewish friend, Roberto is forced to work in Germany and escapes into
the Ukrainian winter, before desperately trying to make his way back home to Venice.
Osborne, Mary Pope My Secret War: The World War II Diary of Madeline Beck
(Dear America Series)
Thirteen-year-old Madeline‘s diaries for 1941 and 1942 reveal her experiences living on
Long Island during World War II while her father is away in the Navy.
Oughton, Jerrie The War in Georgia
Living in Georgia during World War II, thirteen-year-old Shanta sometimes feels that her
family and neighborhood are more hopeless battlefields than those in foreign lands.
Park, Linda Sue When My Name Was Keoko
Sun-hee and her older brother Tae-yul are proud of their Korean heritage. Yet they live
their lives under Japanese occupation. All students must read and write in Japanese and
no one can fly a Korean flag. Korea is torn apart by their Japanese invaders during World
War II.
Paulsen, Gary The Cookcamp
During World War II, a little boy is sent to live with his grandma, a cook in a camp for
workers building a road through the wilderness.
Poynter, Margaret A Time Too Swift
Living in San Diego on the verge of World War II, fifteen-year-old Marjorie is confused
be her romantic feelings for a handsome serviceman and her changing attitude toward the
Japanese neighbors she had known all her life.
Reiss, Johanna The Upstairs Room
A Dutch Jewish girl describes the two-and-one-half years she spent in hiding in the
upstairs bedroom of a farmer‘s house during World War II.
Salisbury, Graham Eyes of the Emperor
Eddy Okana lies about his age and joins the Army in his hometown of Honolulu only
weeks before the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor. Then the Army sends Eddy and a small
band of Japanese-American soldiers on a secret mission- a special job that only they can
do.
Spinelli, Jerry Milkweed
A Jewish boy living in the streets of Warsaw wishes to be a Nazi some day, with tall
shiny jackboots and a gleaming Eagle hat of his own. Until the day when the trains come
to empty the Jews from the ghetto of the damned, he‘s a boy who realizes it‘ safest of all
to be nobody.
Suhl, Yuri Unkle Misha’s Partisans
During World War II in the Ukraine, an orphaned Jewish boy joins a band of partisans
who give him an important assignment against the Nazis.
Taylor, Theodore The Bomb
In 1945, when the American‘s liberate the Bikini Atoll from the Japanese, fourteen-yearold Sorry Rinamu does not realize that the next year he will lead a desperate effort to
save his island home from a much more deadly threat.
Thesman, Jean Molly Donnelly
Twelve-year-old Molly, who lives next door to a Japanese American family and whose
cousin is a nurse in the Philippines, experiences many changes in her life when World
War II breaks out.
Tripp, Valerie American Girl Series: Molly McIntire 1944
Molly McIntire is a young girl living during the latter years of World War II. Her father
is stationed in England as a doctor caring for wounded soldiers, and she must cope with
the changes that the war has brought.
Westall, Robert Blitzcat
During World War II a black cat journeys all across war-ravaged England in an effort to
track down her beloved master.
Westall, Robert The Kingdom By the Sea
During World War II twelve-year-old Harry and a stray dog travel through war-torn
England in search of safety.
Winter, Kathryn Katarina
During World War II in Slovakia, a young Jewish girl in hiding becomes a devout
Catholic and is sustained by her belief that she will return home to her family as soon as
the war ends.
Wolitzer, Hilma Introducing Shirley Braverman
The adventures of a sixth-grader growing up in Brooklyn during World War II.
Zindel, Paul The Gadget
In 1945, having joined his father at Los Alamos, where he and other scientists are
working together on a secret project to end World War II, thirteen-year-old Stephen
becomes caught in a web of secrecy and intrigue.
Zusak, Markus The Book Thief
Trying to make sense of the horrors of World War II, Death related the story of Liesel- a
young German girl whose book-stealing and story-telling talents helps sustain her family
and the Jewish man they are hiding, as well as their neighbors.
Recommended Reading for High School
World War II
Aaron, Chester Alex, Who Won His War
In the final months of World War II fourteen-year-old Alex, worried about the fate of his brother
fighting in Europe, falls into the hands of two Nazi spies intent on sabotage.
Baklanov, Grigorii Forever Nineteen
The experience of a nineteen-year-old Soviet lieutenant on the front during World War II as he
defends his Russian homeland from the Nazis
Bat-Ami, Miriam Two Suns in the Sky
In 1944, an Upstate New York teenage named Christine meets and falls in love with Adam, a
Yugoslavian Jew living in a refugee camp, despite their parents‘ conviction that they do not belong
together.
Bauer, Marion Dane Rain of Fire
When Steve‘s older brother Matthew, returning home after service in World War II, refuses to talk
about his wartime experiences, Steve‘s friends begin to doubt the stories he has told them of
Matthew‘s heroism.
Bruchac, Joseph Code Talker
After being taught in a boarding school run by whites that Navajo is a useless language, Ned Begay
and other Navajo men are recruited by the Marines to become Code Talkers, sending messages
during World War II in their private tongue.
Bunin, Sherry Dear Great American Writers School
Fourteen-year-old Bobby Lee‘s letters to a correspondence school describe her life in a small
Kentucky town during World War II and her growth as a person and as a writer.
Carter, Peter The Hunted
In 1943, with the surrender of Italy to the Allies, Corporal Vito Salvani finds himself and the
orphaned Jewish boy Judah trapped in enemy territory in France, where they must flee from an
obsessed Gestapo agent.
Chambers, Aidan Postcards From No Man’s Land
This novel for older teens alternates between two stories- contemporary seventeen-year-old Jacob
visits a daunting Amsterdam at the request of his English grandmother- and historically, nineteenyear-old Geertrui relates her experience of British soldier‘s attempts to liberate Holland from its
German occupation.
Cormier, Roberts Heroes
After joining the Army at fifteen and having his face blown away by a grenade in a battle on France,
Francis returns home to Frenchtown hoping to find- and kill- the former childhood hero he feels
betrayed him.
Elliott, L. M. Under a War Torn Sky
After his plane is shot down by Hitler‘s Luftwaffe, nineteen-year-old Henry Forester of Richmond,
Virginia, strives to walk across occupied France, with the help of the French Resistance, in hopes of
rejoining his Unit.
Gaeddert, LouAnn Bigge Friends and Enemies
In 1941 in Kansas, as America enters World War II, fourteen-year-old William finds himself
alienated from his friend Jim, a Mennonite who does not believe in fighting for any reason, as they
argue about the war.
Giff, Patricia Reilly Lily’s Crossing
During a summer spent at Rockaway Beach I 1944, Lily‘s friendship with a young Hungarian
refugee causes her to see the war and her own world differently.
Greene, Bette Summer of My German Soldier
Sheltering an escaped prisoner of war is the beginning of some shattering experiences for a twelveyear-old girl in Arkansas.
Gwaltney, Doris Homefront
For as long as she can remember, Margaret Ann has longed for a room of her own. When her older
sister leaves for college, she finally gets her dream until her cousin from England leaves London
because of the Blitz and moves to America. Not only does she get part of Margaret Ann‘s room, but
her boyfriend too. Then Margaret‘s brother enlists in the Navy and she has to come to grips with the
war in Europe.
Heller, Joseph Catch 22
The classic tale of pilots stationed in Italy during World War II.
Heneghan, James Wish Me Luck
While on an ocean voyage to Canada to escape air raids in his Liverpool home, twelve-year-old
Jaimie Monaghan faces another kind of life-threatening situation. Based on the true story of the
sinking of a passenger liner by a German U-boat during World War II.
Hernstein, Jane Beyond Paradise
Within months of arriving in the exotic Philippines from Upper Sandusky, Ohio, to live with her
missionary parents on the island of Panay, fourteen-year-old Louise finds herself a prisoner of war in
an internment camp when the Japanese invade her new country in 1941.
Hesse, Karen Aleutian Sparrow
An Aleutian Islander recounts her suffering during World War II in American internment camps
designed to ―protect‖ the population from the invading Japanese.
Hough, Richard Alexander Razor Eyes
More than forty years after the fact, a farmer details his experiences as a British pilot in World War
II and the maturing effect they had on him.
Hughes, Dean Soldier Boys
Two boys, one German and one American, are eager to join their respective armies during World
War II, and their paths cross at the Battle of the Bulge.
Kerr, M. E. Your Eyes in Stars
In their small New York town, two teenaged girls become friends while helping each other make
sense of their families, neighbors, and selves as they approach adulthood in the years preceding
World War II.
Lingard, Joan Tug of War
Follows the ordeal of fourteen-year-old twins Astra and Hugo Petersons, as they and their family
flee their native Latvia before the advancing Russian armies in late 1944 and find themselves
homeless refugees in a war-torn Germany.
Lisle, Janet Taylor The Art of Keeping Cool
In 1942, Robert and his cousin Elliot uncover long-hidden family secrets while staying in their
grandparent‘s Rhode Island town, where they also become involved with a German artist who is
suspected of being a spy.
Kerr, M. E. Slap Your Sides
Life in their Pennsylvania hometown changes for Jubal Shoemaker and his family when his older
brother witnesses to his Quaker beliefs by becoming a conscientious objector during World War II.
Magorian, Michelle Good Night Mr. Tom
A battered child learns to embrace life when he is adopted by an old man in the English countryside
during World War II.
Mazer, Harry The Last Mission
In 1944 a fifteen-year-old Jewish boy tells his family he will travel in the West but instead, enlists in
the United States Air Corps and is subsequently taken prisoner by the Germans.
Mazer, Harry A Boy at War: A Novel of Pearl Harbor
While fishing with his friends off Honolulu on December 7, 1941, a teenaged Adam is caught in the
midst of the Japanese attack and through the chaos of the subsequent days tries to find his father, a
naval officer who was serving on the U.S.S. Arizona when the bombs fell.
Mazer, Norma Fox Good Night, Maman
After spending years fleeing from the Nazis in war-torn Europe, Karin Levi and her older brother
Marc find a new home in a refugee camp in Oswego, New York.
Napoli, Donna Jo Stones in Water
After being taken by German soldiers from a local movie theatre along with other Italian boys,
including his Jewish friend, Roberto is forced to work in Germany and escapes into the Ukrainian
winter, before desperately trying to make his way back home to Venice.
Osborne, Mary Pope My Secret War: The World War II Diary of Madeline Beck (Dear America
Series)
Thirteen-year-old Madeline‘s diaries for 1941 and 1942 reveal her experiences living on Long Island
during World War II while her father is away in the Navy.
Oughton, Jerrie The War in Georgia
Living in Georgia during World War II, thirteen-year-old Shanta sometimes feels that her family and
neighborhood are more hopeless battlefields than those in foreign lands.
Park, Linda Sue When My Name Was Keoko
Sun-hee and her older brother Tae-yul are proud of their Korean heritage. Yet they live their lives
under Japanese occupation. All students must read and write in Japanese and no one can fly a
Korean flag. Korea is torn apart by their Japanese invaders during World War II.
Poynter, Margaret A Time Too Swift
Living in San Diego on the verge of World War II, fifteen-year-old Marjorie is confused be her
romantic feelings for a handsome serviceman and her changing attitude toward the Japanese
neighbors she had known all her life.
Reiss, Johanna The Upstairs Room
A Dutch Jewish girl describes the two-and-one-half years she spent in hiding in the upstairs bedroom
of a farmer‘s house during World War II.
Rylant, Cynthia I Had Seen Castles
Now an old man, John is haunted by memories of enlisting to fight in World War II, a decision
which forced him to face the horrors of war and changed his life forever.
Salisbury, Graham Eyes of the Emperor
Eddy Okana lies about his age and joins the Army in his hometown of Honolulu only weeks before
the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor. Then the Army sends Eddy and a small band of JapaneseAmerican soldiers on a secret mission- a special job that only they can do.
Salisbury, Graham Under the Blood Red Sun
Tomikazu Nakaji‘s biggest concerns are baseball, homework, and a local bully, until life with his
Japanese family in Hawaii changes drastically after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in December 1941.
Spinelli, Jerry Milkweed
A Jewish boy living in the streets of Warsaw wishes to be a Nazi some day, with tall shiny jackboots
and a gleaming Eagle hat of his own. Until the day when the trains come to empty the Jews from the
ghetto of the damned, he‘s a boy who realizes it‘ safest of all to be nobody.
Suhl, Yuri Unkle Misha’s Partisans
During World War II in the Ukraine, an orphaned Jewish boy joins a band of partisans who give him
an important assignment against the Nazis.
Taylor, Theodore The Bomb
In 1945, when the American‘s liberate the Bikini Atoll from the Japanese, fourteen-year-old Sorry
Rinamu does not realize that the next year he will lead a desperate effort to save his island home
from a much more deadly threat.
Winter, Kathryn Katarina
During World War II in Slovakia, a young Jewish girl in hiding becomes a devout Catholic and is
sustained by her belief that she will return home to her family as soon as the war ends.
Zindel, Paul The Gadget
In 1945, having joined his father at Los Alamos, where he and other scientists are working together
on a secret project to end World War II, thirteen-year-old Stephen becomes caught in a web of
secrecy and intrigue.
Zusak, Markus The Book Thief
Trying to make sense of the horrors of World War II, Death related the story of Liesel- a young
German girl whose book-stealing and story-telling talents helps sustain her family and the Jewish
man they are hiding, as well as their neighbors.
WWII Timeline for Middle School- Europe
1939
- May 22: Germany and Italy sign Pact of Steel
- August 23: Germany and USSR sign Pact
- September 1: Germany invades Poland from west with Luftwaffe, Navy, and Army in 4
hours- Eastern Front
- September 1: UK mobilizes armed forces and begins evacuation plans in preparation of
German air attacks
- September 3: France and England declare war on Germany
- September 19: USSR invades Poland from east- Eastern Front
- September 27: Warsaw surrenders to Nazis- Eastern Front
- September 29: Germany and USSR divide up Poland
- October 12: Adolf Eichmann begins deporting Jews from Austria and Czechoslovakia
into Poland
- October 19: First Jewish ghetto established at Lublin, Poland
- November 1: USSR annexes eastern Poland, Ukraine and Belorussia- Eastern Front
- November 4: Warsaw ghetto established
- November 23: Polish Jews ordered to wear Star of David armband
- December 14: USSR expelled from League of Nations
1940
- January 8: rationing begins in UK
- April 9: Nazis invade Denmark and Norway
- May 10: Nazis invade France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Netherlands- Western Front
- May 14: Rotterdam, Netherlands is carpet-bombed by Luftwaffe- Western Front
- May 15: Netherlands surrender to Germany- Western Front
- May 26: Allied troops evacuate Dunkirk, France under heavy Luftwaffe attack- Western
Front
- May 28: Belgium surrenders to Germany- Western Front
- June 3: Germany bombs Paris, France- Western Front
- June 10: Norway surrenders to Germany
- June 10: Italy declares war on UK and France
- June 14: Nazis enter Paris- Western Front
- June 28: Gen Charles De Gaulle recognized by Britain at leader of Free French
- July 10: Battle of Britain begins with Luftwaffe raids on English Channel shippinglater bombing the British Isles- Western Front
- August 17: Hitler declares blockade of British Isles- Western Front
- August 23: 1st German air raids on central London, beginning of ‗London Blitz‘Western Front
- August 26: 1st British air raid on Berlin, Germany
- September 1: German Jews required to wear yellow Star of David for identification
- September 16: 1st peacetime draft in US history begins
- September 27: Axis (Tripartite) Pact signed by Germany, Italy and Japan
- November 26: USSR gives terms for joining Axis Powers- ignored by Germany
1941
- February 15: deportation of Austrian Jews to Polish ghettos begins
- May 27: British Navy sinks German battleship Bismarck
- June: Nazi SS Einsatzgruppen begin mass murders
- June 2: US Tuskegee Airmen are formed
- June 22: Germany invades USSR held lands turning USSR against Germany- Eastern
Front
- July 12: mutual assistance agreement between UK and USSR
- July 31: preparation for ‗Final Solution‘ begins
- August 20: Nazi siege of Leningrad (St. Petersburg), USSR begins (900 days)- Eastern
Front
- September 3: 1st experimental use of gas chambers at Auschwitz
- September 19: Nazis take Kiev, Ukraine- Eastern Front
- October 19: Moscow announces official ‗state of siege‘- city under martial law- Eastern
Front
- November 1: USCG placed under direction of US Navy- usually only in wartime
- November 12: Battle of Moscow- temperatures -12 deg C- Eastern Front
- December 5: Germany calls off attack on Moscow- Eastern Front
- December 7: Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor, Hawaii
- December 8: US and UK declare war on Japan
- December 11: Germany and Italy declare war on US
- December 11: US declares war on Germany and Italy
1942
- January 1: United Nations is established- 26 nations sign declaration against the Axis
Powers
- January 13: Germany begins U-boat offensive on US east coast
- January 20: German Wannsee Conference coordinates the ‗Final Solution of the Jewish
Question‘
- January 26: 1st US forces arrive in UK
- May 15: US Women‘s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC) is formed
- June: mass murder of Jews by gassing begins in Auschwitz
- June 18: US Manhattan Project starts- scientific approach to nuclear weapons
- June 25: General Eisenhower arrives in London as Commander of American Forces in
Europe
- July 4: 1st air missions by Americans in Europe- Western Front
- July 19: German U-boats withdraw from US east coast due to effective US convoy
system
- July 22: 1st deportations of Jews from Warsaw ghetto to concentration camps
- August 12: Stalin and Churchill meet in Stalingrad (Moscow), USSR
- August 17: 1st all-American air attack in Europe- Western Front
- August 30: Luxembourg annexed by Germany- Western Front
- September 3: Battle of Stalingrad (Moscow), USSR begins- Eastern Front
- September 4: full-effort production of atomic bomb begins in US
- November 12-25: Red Army encircles Nazis in Stalingrad to cut off supplies- turning
point- Eastern Front
- December 1: gasoline rationing begins in US
1943
- January 10: Soviets begin offensive on Nazis in Stalingrad
- January 14: Casablanca conference begins between Churchill and FDR
- January 18: Resistance Jews in Warsaw ghetto begin the Warsaw Uprising
- January 24: Casablanca conference ends with announcement: war can only end with
unconditional German surrender
- January 27: 1st American air raid on Germany at Wilhelmshaven
- February 2: Battle of Stalingrad ends with German surrender- first major defeat of
Hitler‘s armies- Eastern Front
- February 9: shoe rationing begins in US
- February 11: Eisenhower named commander of all Allied troops in Europe
- March 13: Nazis liquidate Jewish ghetto in Krakow, Poland
- March 16-20: Battle of the Atlantic climaxes with 27 merchant ships sunk by German
U-boats
- April 19: SS attacks Jewish Resistance in Warsaw ghetto
- May 15: French Resistance Movement forms- Western Front
- May 16: Warsaw Ghetto Uprising ends and ghetto is destroyed
- June 11: Liquidation of all Jew ghettos in Poland ordered
- June 22: Red Army begins major offensive against Nazis- Eastern Front
- July 9-10: Allies land in Sicily, Italy- Western Front
- July 19: Allies bomb Rome, Italy- Western Front
- July 25-26: Mussolini arrested and Italian Fascist government falls in a coup
- August 29: Germany dissolves occupied Danish (Denmark) government and institutes
martial law
- September 3: Germany begins civilian evacuations of Berlin
- September 8: Italy surrenders
- September 11: Germany occupies Rome
- November 6: Red Army liberates Kiev, Ukraine on anniversary of Bolshevik
Revolution of 1917- Eastern Front
- November 15: Gypsies put ―on same level as Jews and placed in concentration camps‖
- November 28: FDR, Churchill and Stalin meet in Teheran and discuss Operation
Overlord- the cross channel invasion of France- Western Front
- December 24: Eisenhower named commander of Operation Overlord- Western Front
- December 24-26: USSR launches offensives in Ukraine- Eastern Front
1944
- January 4: Red Army enters Poland- Eastern Front
- January 27: Siege of Leningrad ends- Eastern Front
-May: multiple Allied bombings of north French coast in preparation of D Day landingsWestern Front
- June 5: Rome falls to the Allies- first Axis capital in Allied hands- Western Front
- June 6: D-day landings on Normandy beaches in northern France- largest amphibious
military operation in history- Western Front
- July 20: failed German assassination attempt on Hitler and coup- Operation Valkyrie
- July 24: Red Army liberates 1st concentration camp- Majdanek
- August 1: 2nd Warsaw Uprising by Polish Home Army expecting help from
approaching Red Army
- August 4: Anne Frank and family arrested by Gestapo in Amsterdam, Holland
- August 15: Allied invasion of southern France begins- Western Front
- August 19: Resistance Uprising in Paris
- August 25: Paris liberated by Allied troops- Western Front
- September 3-5: Antwerp and Brussels, Belgium liberated by Allies- Western Front
- September 10: Luxembourg liberated and 1st Allied troops enter Germany at AachenWestern Front
- October 2: Nazis put down Warsaw Uprising which never received aid from Soviet
troops just outside the city
- October 21: massive German surrender at Aachen, Germany on the French borderWestern Front
- October 30: last use of gas chambers at Auschwitz
- December 16: Battle of the Bulge begins in Ardennes, Belgium- German goal to take
Antwerp- Western Front
1945
- January 17: Red Army takes Warsaw- pro-Communism government installed- Eastern
Front
- January 25: Battle of the Bulge ends in Allied victory- Western Front
- January 26: Red Army liberates Auschwitz
- February 4: Belgium is clear of all German forces- Western Front
- February 4-11: Yalta Conference- FDR, Churchill and Stalin
- March 6: Last German offensive of the war- Hungary
- March 7: Allies cross the Rhine River and take Cologne, Germany- Western Front
- March 29: Red Army enters Austria- Eastern Front
- April 10: Buchenwald concentration camp liberated by US troops
- April 12: FDR dies and Harry S. Truman becomes president of US
- April 15: Bergen-Belsen concentration camp liberated by British troops
- April 21: Red Army reaches Berlin- Eastern Front
- April 25: Elbe Day- US and Soviet troops meet for 1st time at the Elbe River- both
fronts converge
- April 29: Dachau concentration camp liberated by US troops
- April 29: Italy officially surrenders and ceasefire is declared
- April 30: Adolph Hitler commits suicide
- May 2: Battle of Berlin ends with Berlin‘s surrender
- May 5: Denmark liberated by Allied troops
- May 7: unconditional surrender of all German forces to Allies
- May 8: VE Day (victory in Europe)
- June 5: Allies split Germany and take over government
- July 1: US, French and British troops enter Berlin
- July 16: 1st US atomic bomb test
- July 17: Potsdam Conference begins
- August 2: Potsdam Conference ends
- August 6: Enola Gay drops 1st atomic bomb ―Little Boy‖ on Hiroshima, Japan
- August 9: Bockscar drops 2nd atomic bomb ―Fat Man‖ on Nagasaki, Japan
- August 14: Unconditional surrender of Japan to the US
- August 15: VJ Day (victory over Japan)
- September 2: Japan signs surrender on USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay- official end of
WWII
- October 24: UN officially established
- November 20: Nuremberg War Crimes Trials begin
WWII Timeline for Middle School- Pacific
1940
- September 16: 1st peacetime draft in US history begins
- September 27: Axis (Tripartite) Pact signed by Germany, Italy and Japan
- November 11: Japan is already preparing for attack on Pearl Harbor
1941
- March 27: Japanese spy Takeo Yoshikawa arrives in Hawaii to begin reconnaissance on
US fleet at Pearl Harbor
- July 26: US freezes Japanese assets in America and suspends relations
- July 28: Japan occupies French Indochina
- August 1: Japan occupies South Vietnam
- October 18: Hideki Tojo becomes Prime Minister of Japan
- November 17: 1st warning of Pearl Harbor attack
- December 7: Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor
- December 7: Japan invades Thailand
- December 8: US and UK declare war on Japan
- December 9: China and Australia declare war on Japan
- December 11: Germany and Italy declare war on US
- December 11: US declares war on Germany and Italy
- December 11: Japan invades Burma and southern Philippines
- December 11: Battle for Wake Island begins
- December 18: Japan invades Hong Kong
- December 23: Japan wins Battle for Wake Island
1942
- January 1: United Nations is established- 26 nations sign declaration against the Axis
Powers
- January 7: Battle of Bataan Peninsula begins
- January 12: Japanese invade Indonesia
- January 25: Japanese invade Solomon Islands- major threat to Australia
- February 15: Singapore surrenders to Japan- most devastating loss in British military
history
- February 19: 1st Japanese air raid on Darwin, Australia- largest attacks by foreign
power on Australia
- February 20: Japanese invade Bali
- February 28: Japanese invade Java
- March 8: Japan takes control of New Guinea- adds to the threat to Australia
- April: Japanese-Americans sent to relocation camps in US
- April 9: Battle of Bataan ends in Japanese victory
- April 18: 1st American bombing attack on Japan- Doolittle Raid
- May 4-8: Battle of the Coral Sea- US Navy victory- 1st time in history ships on
opposing sides are never in sight of one another
- June 4-7: US Navy wins Battle of Midway- turning point of Pacific War
- June 18: Manhattan Project starts- scientific approach to nuclear weapons
- August 7: US begins Guadalcanal Campaign invading Solomon Islands
- September 4: full-effort production of atomic bomb begins in US
- November 12-15: Battle of Guadalcanal- US Navy victory
1943
- February 9: Guadalcanal is secured by American and Australian troops
- March1-3: Battle of the Bismarck Sea- naval victory for US and Australia over Japan
- May 11: US troops battle Japanese on Attu Island, Aleutian Islands (Alaska)- only
foreign land battle ever fought on American soil
- November 20: Battle of Tarawa, Gilbert Islands- heavy loss of American life
1944
- February 28: Battle for Admiralty Islands begins
- May18: Battle for Admiralty Islands ends
- July 18: General Hideki Tojo resigns as chief minister of Japanese government due to
mounting military defeats- Emperor Hirohito asks General Kuniaki Koiso to form
a new government
- August 8: US captures Marianas Islands
- October 23: Battle of Leyte Gulf, largest sea battle in history, begins- 1st Japanese
kamikaze attacks on US warships
1945
- February 19: US invades Iwo Jima
- February 23: US flag raised on Mt. Suribachi, Iwo Jima
- March 9-10: US bombs Tokyo
- March 16: Battle for Iwo Jima ends in US victory
- April 1: US troops land at Okinawa
- April 12: FDR dies and Harry S. Truman becomes president of US
- May 8: VE Day (Victory in Europe)
- June 21: Battle for Okinawa ends in US victory
- July 4: Philippines liberated by US troops
- July 16: 1st US atomic bomb test
- July 17: Potsdam Conference begins
- July 24: Truman hints at Potsdam Conference that US has nuclear weapons
- August 2: Potsdam Conference ends
- August 6: Enola Gay drops 1st atomic bomb ―Little Boy‖ on Hiroshima, Japan
- August 8: USSR declares war on Japan and invades Manchuria
- August 9: Red Army enters China and Korea
- August 9: Bockscar drops 2nd atomic bomb ―Fat Man‖ on Nagasaki, Japan
- August 14: Unconditional surrender of Japan to US
- August 15: VJ Day (victory over Japan)
- August 22: Japanese surrender to Red Army in Manchuria
- August 30: Hong Kong liberated
- September 2: Japan signs surrender on USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay- official end of
WWII
WWII Timeline for High School- Europe
1939
- March 15/16: Nazis invade Czechoslovakia
- May 22: Germany and Italy sign Pact of Steel
- August 23: Germany and USSR sign Pact
- September 1: Germany invades Poland from west with Luftwaffe, Navy, and Army in 4 hoursEastern Front
- September 1: UK mobilizes armed forces and begins evacuation plans in preparation of German air
attacks
- September 2: British draft begins
- September 3: France and England declare war on Germany
- September 19: Germany and USSR join forces at Brest Litovsk, Poland- Eastern Front
- September 19: USSR invades Poland from east- Eastern Front
- September 27: Warsaw surrenders to Nazis- Eastern Front
- September 29: Germany and USSR divide up Poland
- October: Nazis begin euthanasia on sick and disabled in Germany
- October 2: US Navy begins patrolling neutral zone off North American coast
- October 12: Adolf Eichmann begins deporting Jews from Austria and Czechoslovakia into Poland
- October 19: First Jewish ghetto established at Lublin, Poland
- November 1: USSR annexes eastern Poland, Ukraine and Belorussia- Eastern Front
- November 4: Warsaw ghetto established
- November 23: Polish Jews ordered to wear Star of David armband
- November 30: USSR attacks Finland- Eastern Front
- December 14: USSR expelled from League of Nations
- December 18: 1st Canadian troops arrive in Europe
- December 27: 1st Indian troops arrive in France (members of British Empire)
1940
- January 8: rationing begins in UK
- March 12: Fin and USSR sign peace treaty- Eastern Front
- April: Katyn Massacre- sometime this month, Soviet secret police NKVD secretly massacre over
22,000 Polish POWs (military officers), intellectuals and public servants (example: policemen)
and burry them in mass graves in the Katyn Forest
- April 9: Nazis invade Denmark and Norway
- May 10: Nazis invade France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Netherlands- Western Front
- May 10: Winston Churchill elected British Prime Minister
- May 14: Rotterdam, Netherlands is carpet-bombed by Luftwaffe- Western Front
- May 15: Netherlands surrender to Germany- Western Front
- May 26: Allied troops evacuate Dunkirk, France under heavy Luftwaffe attack- Western Front
- May 28: Belgium surrenders to Germany- Western Front
- June 3: Germany bombs Paris, France- Western Front
- June 10: Norway surrenders to Germany
- June 10: Italy declares war on UK and France
- June 14: Nazis enter Paris- Western Front
- June 18: USSR occupies Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia- Eastern Front
- June 22: French-German armistice signed- Western Front
- June 24: French-Italian armistice signed- Western Front
- June 28: Gen Charles De Gaulle recognized by Britain at leader of Free French
- July 10: Battle of Britain begins with Luftwaffe raids on English Channel shipping- later bombing
the British Isles- Western Front
- August 17: Hitler declares blockade of British Isles- Western Front
- August 23: 1st German air raids on central London, beginning of ‗London Blitz‘- Western Front
- August 26: 1st British air raid on Berlin, Germany
- September 1: German Jews required to wear yellow Star of David for identification
- September 7: German blitz on England begins- Western Front
- September 16: 1st peacetime draft in US history begins
- September 27: Axis (Tripartite) Pact signed by Germany, Italy and Japan
- October 7: Germany invades Romania- Eastern Front
- October 28: Italy invades Greece- Eastern Front
- November 5: Franklin Delano Roosevelt re-elected to 3rd term as US president
- November 20: Hungary joins Axis Powers
- November 23: Romania joins Axis Powers
- November 26: USSR gives terms for joining Axis Powers- ignored by Germany
1941
- January 10: Luftwaffe has control over all Mediterranean airspace
- February 14: German troops arrive in Tripoli, North Africa under General Rommel- African Front
- February 15: deportation of Austrian Jews to Polish ghettos begins
- March 11: FDR signs Lend-Lease Act with Allied Powers
- April 6: Germany invades Greece and Yugoslavia- Eastern Front
- April 11: US begins sea patrols in Atlantic despite being neutral
- April 17: Yugoslavia surrenders to Germany- Eastern Front
- April 27: Greece surrenders to Germany- Eastern Front
- May 8: British Navy captures German U-boat with an ‗Enigma‘ machine for messages in code
- May 27: British Navy sinks German battleship Bismarck
- May 31: Luftwaffe bombs Dublin in neutral Ireland
- June: Nazi SS Einsatzgruppen begin mass murders
- June 2: US Tuskegee Airmen are formed
- June 14: US freezes German and Italian assets in America
- June 22: Germany invades USSR held lands turning USSR against Germany- Eastern Front
- July 12: mutual assistance agreement between UK and USSR
- July 31: preparation for ‗Final Solution‘ begins
- August 20: Nazi siege of Leningrad (St. Petersburg), USSR begins (900 days)- Eastern Front
- September 3: 1st experimental use of gas chambers at Auschwitz
- September 19: Nazis take Kiev, Ukraine- Eastern Front
- October 3: Mahatma Ghandi and followers begin passive resistance against British rule in India
- October 19: Moscow announces official ‗state of siege‘- city under martial law- Eastern Front
- November 1: USCG placed under direction of US Navy- usually only in wartime
- November 12: Battle of Moscow- temperatures -12 deg C- Eastern Front
- December 5: Ger calls off attack on Moscow- Eastern Front
- December 7: Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor, Hawaii
- December 7: Hitler issues Night and Fog (Nacht und Nebel) decree against Resistance
- December 8: US and UK declare war on Japan
- December 11: Germany and Italy declare war on US
- December 11: US declares war on Germany and Italy
- December 19: Hitler becomes Supreme Commander-in-Chief of German Army
1942
- January 1: United Nations is established- 26 nations sign declaration against the Axis Powers
- January 13: Germany begins U-boat offensive on US east coast
- January 20: German Wannsee Conference coordinates the ‗Final Solution of the Jewish Question‘
- January 26: 1st US forces arrive in UK
- May 11: German U-boat sinks an Ally ship on St. Lawrence River, Canada
- May 15: US Women‘s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC) is formed
- May 29: Jews in France ordered to wear yellow Star of David
- June: mass murder of Jews by gassing begins in Auschwitz
- June 13: US opens Office of War Info to produce propaganda
- June 18: US Manhattan Project starts- scientific approach to nuclear weapons
- June 25: General Eisenhower arrives in London as Commander of American Forces in Europe
- July 1: 1st Battle of El Alamein, Egypt begins- African Front
- July 4: 1st air missions by Americans in Europe- Western Front
- July 19: German U-boats withdraw from US east coast due to effective US convoy system
- July 22: 1st deportations of Jews from Warsaw ghetto to concentration camps
- July 22: Treblinka extermination camp opens
- July 27: 1st Battle of El Alamein ends in British victory- African Front
- August 9: independence riots in India- Mahatma Ghandi arrested
- August 12: Stalin and Churchill meet in Stalingrad (Moscow), USSR
- August 17: 1st all-American air attack in Europe- Western Front
- August 30: Luxembourg annexed by Germany- Western Front
- September 3: Battle of Stalingrad (Moscow), USSR begins- Eastern Front
- September 4: full-effort production of atomic bomb begins in US
- October 3: Ger launches A4-rocket- first man-made object to reach space
- October 23: 2nd Battle of El Alamein begins- African Front
- November 3: 2nd Battle of El Alamein ends with Allied victory- African Front
- November 8: US invades North Africa- Operation Torch under General Patton- African Front
- November 12-25: Red Army encircles Nazis in Stalingrad to cut off supplies- turning pointEastern Front
- December 1: gasoline rationing begins in US
- December 2: atomic reactor set up in Chicago
1943
- January 2-3: Nazis begin withdrawal from Caucasus
- January 10: Soviets begin offensive on Nazis in Stalingrad
- January 14: Casablanca conference begins between Churchill and FDR
- January 18: Resistance Jews in Warsaw ghetto begin the Warsaw Uprising
- January 23: Allies capture Tripoli, Libya- African Front
- January 24: Casablanca conference ends with announcement: war can only end with unconditional
German surrender
- January 27: 1st American air raid on Germany at Wilhelmshaven
- February 2: Battle of Stalingrad ends with German surrender- first major defeat of Hitler‘s armiesEastern Front
- February 4: Allies enter Tunisia- African Front
- February 9: shoe rationing begins in US
- February 11: Eisenhower named commander of all Allied troops in Europe
- February 18: Nazis arrest members of The White Rose, an Anti-Nazi youth group
- March 2: Germany begins withdrawal from Tunisia- African Front
- March 13: Nazis liquidate Jewish ghetto in Krakow, Poland
- March 16-20: Battle of the Atlantic climaxes with 27 merchant ships sunk by German U-boats
- April 12: German Afrika Corps surrender Tunisia- African Front
-April 13: Germany announces discovery of mass graves of Polish in Katyn Forest and accuses
USSR
- April 19: SS attacks Jewish Resistance in Warsaw ghetto
- April 30: successful British diversionary Operation Mincemeat falsely informs Germany of Allied
invasion of Greece- invasion was really planned for Sicily
- May 13: German and Italian troops surrender in North Africa- African Front
- May 15: French Resistance Movement forms- Western Front
- May 16: Warsaw Ghetto Uprising ends and ghetto is destroyed
- June 11: Liquidation of all Jew ghettos in Poland ordered
- June 22: Red Army begins major offensive against Nazis- Eastern Front
- July 9-10: Allies land in Sicily, Italy- Western Front
- July 19: Allies bomb Rome, Italy- Western Front
- July 25-26: Mussolini arrested and Italian Fascist government falls in a coup
- August 29: Germany dissolves occupied Danish (Denmark) government and institutes martial law
- September 3: Germany begins civilian evacuations of Berlin
- September 8: Italy surrenders
- September 11: Germany occupies Rome
- September 12: Nazis rescue Mussolini
- September 23: Mussolini re-establishes Fascist government- unpopular with the population
- October 13: Italy declares war on Germany
- November 6: Red Army liberates Kiev, Ukraine on anniversary of Bolshevik Revolution of 1917Eastern Front
- November 15: Gypsies put ―on same level as Jews and placed in concentration camps‖
- November 28: FDR, Churchill and Stalin meet in Teheran and discuss Operation Overlord- the
cross channel invasion of France- Western Front
- December 24: Eisenhower named commander of Operation Overlord- Western Front
- December 24-26: USSR launches offensives in Ukraine- Eastern Front
1944
- January 4: Red Army enters Poland- Eastern Front
- January 27: Siege of Leningrad ends- Eastern Front
-May: multiple Allied bombings of north French coast in preparation of D Day landings- Western
Front
- June 5: Rome falls to the Allies- first Axis capital in Allied hands- Western Front
- June 6: D-day landings on Normandy beaches in northern France- largest amphibious military
operation in history- Western Front
- July 11: FDR runs for an unprecedented 4th term as US president
- July 20: failed German assassination attempt on Hitler and coup- Operation Valkyrie
- July 24: Red Army liberates 1st concentration camp- Majdanek
- August 1: 2nd Warsaw Uprising by Polish Home Army expecting help from approaching Red
Army
- August 4: Anne Frank and family arrested by Gestapo in Amsterdam, Holland
- August 15: Allied invasion of southern France begins- Western Front
- August 19: Resistance Uprising in Paris
- August 25: Paris liberated by Allied troops- Western Front
- August 31: Red Army takes Bucharest, Romania- Eastern Front
- September 2: Finland and USSR agree on a cease-fire- Eastern Front
- September 3-5: Antwerp and Brussels, Belgium liberated by Allies- Western Front
- September 10: Luxembourg liberated and 1st Allied troops enter Germany at Aachen- Western
Front
- October 2: Nazis put down Warsaw Uprising which never received aid from Soviet troops just
outside the city
- October 14: Allies liberate Athens, Greece
- October 21: massive German surrender at Aachen, Germany on the French border- Western Front
- October 30: last use of gas chambers at Auschwitz
- December 16: Battle of the Bulge begins in Ardennes, Belgium- German goal to take AntwerpWestern Front
- December 26: Patton liberates Bastogne, Belgium- Western Front
1945
- January 1: Nazis begin withdrawal from Ardennes- Western Front
- January 17: Nazis complete withdrawal from Ardennes- Western Front
- January 17: Red Army takes Warsaw- pro-Communism government installed- Eastern Front
- January 25: Battle of the Bulge ends in Allied victory- Western Front
- January 26: Red Army liberates Auschwitz
- February 4: Belgium is clear of all German forces- Western Front
- February 4-11: Yalta Conference- FDR, Churchill and Stalin
- March 6: Last Ger offensive of the war- Hungary
- March 7: Allies cross the Rhine River and take Cologne, Germany- Western Front
- March 29: Red Army enters Austria- Eastern Front
- April: Allies discover Nazi-stolen art and wealth hidden in salt mines- Western Front
- April 10: Buchenwald concentration camp liberated by US troops
- April 12: FDR dies and Harry S. Truman becomes president of US
- April 15: Bergen-Belsen concentration camp liberated by British troops
- April 21: Red Army reaches Berlin- Eastern Front
- April 25: Elbe Day- US and Soviet troops meet for 1st time at the Elbe River- both fronts converge
- April 28: Mussolini captured and hanged by Italian partisans
- April 29: Dachau concentration camp liberated by US troops
- April 29: Italy officially surrenders and ceasefire is declared
- April 30: Adolph Hitler commits suicide
- May 2: Battle of Berlin ends with Berlin‘s surrender
- May 5: Denmark liberated by Allied troops
- May 5-8: Prague Uprising of Czech Resistance to Ger occupation
- May 7: unconditional surrender of all German forces to Allies
- May 8: VE Day (victory in Europe)
- June 5: Allies split Ger and take over government
- June 26: UN charter signed in San Francisco, California
- July 1: US, French and British troops enter Berlin
- July 16: 1st US atomic bomb test
- July 17: Potsdam Conference begins
- July 24: Truman hints at Potsdam Conference that US has nuclear weapons
- July 26: new British Prime Minister Atlee succeeds Churchill
- August 2: Potsdam Conference ends
- August 6: Enola Gay drops 1st atomic bomb ―Little Boy‖ on Hiroshima, Japan
- August 9: Bockscar drops 2nd atomic bomb ―Fat Man‖ on Nagasaki, Japan
- August 14: Unconditional surrender of Japan to the US
- August 15: VJ Day (victory over Japan)
- September 2: Japan signs surrender on USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay- official end of WWII
- October 24: UN officially established
- November 20: Nuremberg War Crimes Trials begin
WWII Timeline for High School- Pacific
1940
- September 16: 1st peacetime draft in US history begins
- September 27: Axis (Tripartite) Pact signed by Germany, Italy and Japan
- November 5: Franklin Delano Roosevelt re-elected US President (3rd term)
- November 11: Japan is already preparing for attack on Pearl Harbor
1941
- March 27: Japanese spy Takeo Yoshikawa arrives in Hawaii to begin reconnaissance on US fleet at
Pearl Harbor
- June 2: US Tuskegee Airmen are formed
- July 26: US freezes Japanese assets in America and suspends relations
- July 28: Japan occupies French Indochina
- August 1: Japan occupies South Vietnam
- October 18: Hideki Tojo becomes Prime Minister of Japan
- November 1: USCG placed under direction of US Navy- usually only in wartime
- November 17: 1st warning of Pearl Harbor attack
- December 7: Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor
- December 7: Japan invades Thailand
- December 8: US and UK declare war on Japan
- December 9: China and Australia declare war on Japan
- December 11: Germany and Italy declare war on US
- December 11: US declares war on Germany and Italy
- December 11: Japan invades Burma and southern Philippines
- December 11: Battle for Wake Island begins
- December 16: Japan invades Borneo
- December 18: Japan invades Hong Kong
- December 23: Japan wins Battle for Wake Island
- December 25: Hong Kong surrenders to Japan
1942
- January 1: United Nations is established- 26 nations sign declaration against the Axis Powers
- January 2: Japanese capture Manila, Philippines
- January 7: Battle of Bataan Peninsula begins
- January 12: Japanese invade Indonesia
- January 25: Japanese invade Solomon Islands- major threat to Australia
- February 15: Singapore surrenders to Japan- most devastating loss in British military history
- February 19: 1st Japanese air raid on Darwin, Australia- largest attacks by foreign power on
Australia
- February 20: Japanese invade Bali
- February 28: Japanese invade Java
- March 8: Japan takes control of New Guinea- adds to the threat to Australia
- April: Japanese-Americans sent to relocation camps in US
- April 9: Battle of Bataan ends in Japanese victory
- April 18: 1st American bombing attack on Japan- Doolittle Raid
- May 4-8: Battle of the Coral Sea- US Navy victory- 1st time in history ships on opposing sides are
never in sight of one another
- May 15: Women‘s Aux Army Corps (WAAC) is formed
- May 25: Jap sends diversionary forces to Aleutian Islands, Alaska
- June 4-7: US Navy wins Battle of Midway- turning point of Pacific War
- June 13: US opens Office of War Info to produce propaganda
- June 18: Manhattan Project starts- scientific approach to nuclear weapons
- July 3: Japan has full control of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands
- August 7: US begins Guadalcanal Campaign invading Solomon Islands
- August 28: Japan drops incendiary bombs on Orgeon
- September 4: full-effort production of atomic bomb begins in US
- November 12-15: Battle of Guadalcanal- US Navy victory
- December 1: gasoline rationing begins in US
- December 2: atomic reactor set up in Chicago
1943
- January 30: Japan completes secret evacuation of Guadalcanal
- February 9: shoe rationing begins in US
- February 9: Guadalcanal is secured by American and Australian troops
- March1-3: Battle of the Bismarck Sea- naval victory for US and Australia over Japan
- May 11: Us troops battle Japanese on Attu Island, Aleutian Islands (Alaska)- only foreign land
battle ever fought on American soil
- May 30: battle on Attu Island ends
- November 20: Battle of Tarawa, Gilbert Islands- heavy loss of American life
- November 22-27: FDR, Churchill and Chinese leader Chiang Kai-Shek meet in Cairo, Egypt to
discuss ways to defeat Japan
1944
- February 28: Battle for Admiralty Islands begins
- May18: Battle for Admiralty Islands ends
- July 11: FDR runs for an unprecedented 4th term as US president
- July 18: General Hideki Tojo resigns as chief minister of Japanese government due to mounting
military defeats- Emperor Hirohito asks General Kuniaki Koiso to form a new government
- August 8: US captures Marianas Islands
- October 23: Battle of Leyte Gulf, largest sea battle in history, begins- 1st Japanese kamikaze
attacks on US warships
1945
- February 19: US invades Iwo Jima
- February 23: US flag raised on Mt. Suribachi, Iwo Jima
- March 9-10: US bombs Tokyo
- March 16: Battle for Iwo Jima ends in US victory
- April 1: US troops land at Okinawa
- April 12: FDR dies and Harry S. Truman becomes president of US
- May 8: VE Day (Victory in Europe)
- June 21: Battle for Okinawa ends in US victory
- June 26: UN charter signed in San Francisco
- July 4: Philippines liberated by US troops
- July 16: 1st US atomic bomb test
- July 17: Potsdam Conference begins
- July 24: Truman hints at Potsdam Conference that US has nuclear weapons
- July 30: USS Indianapolis sinks from Japanese sub attack but is not reported for 4 days- most of
the crew drowns or are attacked by sharks
- August 2: Potsdam Conference ends
- August 6: Enola Gay drops 1st atomic bomb ―Little Boy‖ on Hiroshima, Japan
- August 8: USSR declares war on Japan and invades Manchuria
- August 9: Red Army enters China and Korea
- August 9: Bockscar drops 2nd atomic bomb ―Fat Man‖ on Nagasaki, Japan
- August 14: Unconditional surrender of Jap to US
- August 15: VJ Day (victory over Japan)
- August 22: Japanese surrender to Red Army in Manchuria
- August 30: Hong Kong liberated
- September 2: Japan signs surrender on USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay- official end of WWII
- October 24: UN officially established
The Armed Forces History Museum
Field Trip
The Duffle Bag Program was created with the intention of an accompanying field trip to
complete the learning experience. We look forward to seeing you and your students at the
museum!
The objective of your visit to the Armed Forces History Museum is to experience various
aspects of military history. Every generation must realize the freedom we take for
granted does not come without a sacrifice.
At AFHM, you will learn about World War I, World War II, Pearl Harbor, Korea,
Vietnam, Desert Storm, and Iraqi Freedom. You will have the opportunity to view
military vehicles used in war (tanks & jeeps, and artillery). You will also see, firsthand,
weapons, uniforms, and personal items used during these wars.
View the display created with a life size replica of Saddam Hussein, clothed in one of his
original uniforms captured by a US soldier in Iraq. In addition, you will see the original
Japanese model ships used in the 1970 movie, ―Tora! Tora! Tora!‖ a movie that depicts
the historic Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941.
Teachers may choose to have students record in their student journals prior to the
museum visit.
Areas to view:
 Salute to Service Gallery (uniforms)
 Weapons and Ordnance
 WWI Dioramas and Displays
 Pearl Harbor and Japanese Gallery
 USMC South Pacific Gallery
 WWII US Navy Display
 D Day Diorama
 Korean War
 Vietnam
 Desert Storm
 Iraq/Operation Freedom
 Tanks, military vehicles and artillery