
We’re stepping away from the United States and stepping into the world, the first ever World War to be exact. War has existed since ancient times yet never before had a war been entered into with nations from every continent. Also for the first time we’ll see battles fought in the air on the land AND on the sea. This was thought to be the war to end all wars and it was also called the “Great War” for this reason.
Study/Learn:
Watch this short crash course intro to WW1 so you have a general understanding: https://youtu.be/-GsolnXOiBg?si=vAHFP-TmUgKcQPDB
Read Story of the World pages 216-221 and pages 227-231 (These are the two sections about WW1 in case your page numbers are different from mine).
Listen or Read to these first-person accounts of their experience living in England during WW1: https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/voices-of-the-first-world-war-life-on-the-home-front
Read this article about the end of the war and study the map of what the world looked like before and after WW1: https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/does-the-peace-that-ended-ww1-haunt-us-today/zf4cscw

Know/Understand:
Go back over those notes and write up the who, what, why, when, where and how of World War 1. This will probably be pretty easy because this is such a BIG topic to write into a concise 500 words.
Click here to access the newspaper template you will be using for this class.
(I updated the template so you shouldn’t have problems using it even if you don’t have Canva pro) Just like last month these are the guidelines for your article, please read this carefully:
- The requirements for this assignment are to first, write a headline and create an article for the main story. The main story must cover the Who, What, Why, When and Where of WW1. Working with the 8.5 type size in the template means this article is less than 500 words! Do not be intimidated, that is not a lot of words. I do expect you to use that space but you may adjust your font size to be 7.5 or 9.5 if that is helpful. We are going to get really good at summarizing and learning key points this school year by working on these newspaper articles each month. I do not expect you to write in newspaper style because we haven’t taught that to you — just write an informative 500 (ish) words covering the 5 w’s of WW1. (Keep it between 400- 500 words)
- NEXT, you get to write a sub-article for the sidebar. This sub-article is of a topic of your choosing. I want you to pick a topic dealing with WW1 and write an interesting but concise summary of that topic. Things that may spark your interest could be: the sinking of the Lusitania, Americas feelings towards joining the war, famous leaders and heads of state during this war, War rations in food, war rations and fashion, advent of flight and warfare, invention of submarine torpedos, 1918 flu pandemic, trench warfare and no-man’s land, technology advances in WW1, efforts of Red Cross, Salvation Army, and YMCA, Fokker interrupter gear, a specific battle fought, animals such as calvary horses, homing pigeons and dogs in war AND MORE. (Hint, the link at the top with first person accounts of the war is a great place to search for ideas for topics)
- Both articles need to have a photograph — that’s what the green and blue box is for. I would like you to use a historical photo for both spots! We have entered the era where we can actually see photos of this time period so we’re going to seek out and use those photos. A simple google search will bring up ample photographs for you to use.
IN CLASS you will be put in groups to share your sidebar article! Each group will vote on the most interesting article they heard in their group. Yes, I understand that “interesting” is a relative word — this could mean that your article was very articulate or written in a fascinating way. It could mean you chose a really unique topic. It could mean that you chose something your classmates had never learned about before. So the goal is to be consise and interesting 🙂 Each group will send their “most interesting” representative to read their article for the entire class.
Tip for success: Practice reading your article out loud (both of them) to hear how they flow and catch any mistakes. Also, I recommend having a parent proofread them AND do not go over the space limit. I know this is so hard because some of these topics are so deep and fascinating BUT it is a great life skill to be able to study, discern key details and craft an interesting summary. That’s the goal!
Also this week, prepare a commercial! I will be texting your moms your commercial assignment today. Remember, a commercial can be a skit, can be a song, can be an energetic 30 second presentation, it can involve visuals or not — the goal is just to get us super interersted in whatever invention or discovery you are advertising to go along with our “brown paper packages tied up with string.” 🙂 We will be presenting these throughout the school year so we’re going to get them all ready this week.

Become/Serve:
This month we’re focusing on how we can grow towards the light. Can you imagine how difficult it may. have felt to feel light or peace during times of war, especially for the soldiers who are caught up in the conflict? Think of a time when life felt challenging or hard for you (maybe it is still going on right now), did it feel harder to feel the spirit or to receive answers? How can we grow towards the light and feel greater measures of peace despite the turmoil happening all around us?
Elder Bednar teaches three aspects of receiving light in our life that I would like you to watch (each video is about 3 minutes long). After watching the videos I want you to ponder how you can grow better toward the light and write about it in your commonplace book. Is there something in your life that you need to give up to gain greater light? Is there a habit of meaningful prayer or personal study that you could add? As you watch the videos listen for how the Spirit is calling YOU personally to grow towards the light. When I have asked this question at different times in my life the answer has been different each time. When you ask Heavenly Father how He wants you to come unto Him better He will answer with a personal answer just for you so be thinking and seeking those answer as you watch. Journal about the insights you have after watching this video and take action based on the thoughts that came to you 🙂
https://youtu.be/fycvkAhYz1I?si=Aga48ujgann9pfpC
https://youtu.be/zDEXQ-GTYTs?si=U3rPty–OZyKIU3W
https://youtu.be/slTa15a3mp0?si=9T46O2Th_e982G2i