The War
There is a lot to learn about World War II and what life was like for those at home in America. Explore the links below to find out more related to what you read in the Molly books. Visit the Going Beyond page to find out even more about this huge topic!
American Home Front. Scholastic. (2010).
For another look at what life was like on the home front in America, check out this website where you can explore the kitchen and living room of a typical home in the 1940s during the war. Compare this home with the house depicted in the English house linked to under Things English. (You can also explore what life would have been like for the Japanese in America and learn about a lady named Betty Reilly from this site, too).
For a few other resources of interest, check out this related site - Our America: World War II, also by Scholastic, 2010 - which has a little bit of information about the war, introduces you to two other books you might like to read related to the time period, provides instructions for creating your own victory garden, and allows you to publish a WWII memory.
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World War II: The Home Front. ThinkQuest. (1998).
Explore a variety of aspects of life in the early 1940s at this site! With pictures scattered throughout, you can explore entertainment, fashion, toys, and communications of the period. For easy-to-understand definitions of WWII terms, look through the World War II Encyclopedia under "Resources." You will also find direction and resources for a journal activity and additional links to WWII related sites.
A People At War. National Archives and Records Administration.
For brief information about WWII and various people and organizations that arose during it, visit this site from the National Archives and Record’s Administration. The site touches on topics like what led to the war, how the war changed things for African Americans and some Navajos, how women became pilots, what the war was like in the Pacific and in Europe, how certain scientific inventions helped the war, and how the war ended.
World War II Holiday Photos. Center of Military History, U.S. Government. (2004).
It was hard for Molly's family to be apart during Christmas! Soldiers were often far from their home during the holidays in World War II. To see what kinds of things the soldiers did during the Christmas holidays, visit the website above, which shows several real photos of soldiers at Christmastime.
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Powers of Persuasion: Poster Art from World War II. The National archives.
Did you notice the pictures of posters throughout the Molly series? Posters were a very important way of sending messages about the war to American citizens. Visit this site to view more posters, like the one on the left (see if you can find the ones from the books).
Can you tell what the posters are trying to make you believe? Propaganda is communication that is supposed to make someone feel or think a certain way about someone or something else. **ACTIVITY To help you think about and understand the posters, print out this Poster Analysis Worksheet from the National Archives; choose a couple of posters and see what you can figure out about the poster using the worksheet. Check with your grandparents or someone who lived during WWII and see if they remember any of these posters. **
Can you tell what the posters are trying to make you believe? Propaganda is communication that is supposed to make someone feel or think a certain way about someone or something else. **ACTIVITY To help you think about and understand the posters, print out this Poster Analysis Worksheet from the National Archives; choose a couple of posters and see what you can figure out about the poster using the worksheet. Check with your grandparents or someone who lived during WWII and see if they remember any of these posters. **
The Motor Pool: Episode 2 & An Italian Mess Kit, Inside the Vault, Episode 4. The National World War II Museum. Videos. See also the timeline linked below.
Do you remember who made a poster of WWII planes in the Molly books? The National World War II Museum hosts several podcasts or videos on its website, and one of those focuses on two types of war planes flown in WWII - one plane is German and the other English. Click on the link or the picture to watch the short movie. Soldiers also had to eat during the war, too, and though this second video shows an Italian mess kit and not an American one, it is cool to see what some officers (higher ranked soldiers) used to eat during WWII. (For WWII recipes, see the Fun! page.) The National World War II Museum also has a cool Timeline (it may require downloading software to view it, just follow the directions or ask an adult for help). Images from screen shots of the movies |
American Aircraft of WWII. Dave Hanson. (2009).
You will find numerous WWII airplane photographs with information at the page above! **ACTIVITY After looking over some of the pictures, pick some of your favorite, and like Ricky create a poster of WWII planes, labeling them with the information you find at the site. For instructions on how to do this in PowerPoint, see the pdf file below. ** image from site of an SB2C Helldiver Bomber
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Encyclopedia Articles - World Book Online
Great general, authoritative information about topics like World War II can be found in online databases, like the World Book Encyclopedia Online. (You may have used a print version of World Book Encyclopedia at school or at the library.) You have free access to this online database website if you have a Carmel Clay Public Library card. To see important dates and statistics, view maps, watch videos (about people like Eleanor Roosevelt and Adolf Hitler), look at maps, read articles, and much, much more, visit World Book Online Kids or Student!!
You will find instructions on how to get to this website and access information in the "World Book Online Encyclopedia Directions" pdf file below.
You will find instructions on how to get to this website and access information in the "World Book Online Encyclopedia Directions" pdf file below.
world_book_online_encyclopedia_directions.pdf | |
File Size: | 759 kb |
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