SOCIAL STUDIES 11

Lesson Three: A Dierent Kind of War

Historical Understandings
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Establish Historical Signicance Evidence and Interpretation Identify Continuity and Change Analyze Cause and Consequence Take an Historical Perspective Understand the Moral Dimensions of History

Rationale
The aim of this lesson is to examine the changing nature of warfare and how technology impacts they way wars are fought. Continuing from the last lesson, students will begin the lesson by examining why Canada entered the war. While these two learning outcomes may appear unrelated, they both point to the fact that society was in the midst of a transfer from one age to another--politically and technologically.
1. 2. 3.

Why did Canada enter WWI? Why did Canadians enlist? (note, this is dierent than why Canada entered the war) How does technology impact warfare?

Prescribed Learning Outcome(s): Students will begin to...

- Assess Canadas role in World War One and the impact of the war on Canada - Demonstrate eective written, oral, and graphic communication skills - Apply critical thinking--including questioning, comparing, summarizing, drawing conclusions, and defending a position--to make reasoned judgments about a range of issues, situations, and topics

Assessment
Formative
Primary Source Analysis Charts Class discussions Exit Slips

Summative

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DURATION: 75 MINUTES

SOCIAL STUDIES 11

Materials
A/V Equipment Primary Source Package: Recruitment Propaganda Posters (x6) Primary Source Analysis Charts (x30)

Procedures
1.

(10 minutes) Acknowledge that last class ended with a question: Why did Canada join the ght? Ask if anyone can derive an answer from the following quotes (to be on powerpoint): It is our duty to let Great Britain know and to let the friends and foes of Great Britain know that

there is in Canada but one mind and one heart and that all Canadians are behind the Mother Country.-Sir Wilfred Laurier (Leader of the Opposition). And from the textbook: The competing alliances clicked into place with military precision. Austria declared war on Serbia. Russia declared war on Austria. Germany declared war on Russia - and immediately invaded France. Great Britain, in turn, declared war on Germany, and Canada, being part of the British Empire, was automatically at war as well-Will Ferguson
The aim of this activity is for students to identify the problem of determining why Canada

actually went to war--it isnt as simple as they had to.

2.

(20 minutes) Primary Source Analysis: Why Canadians went to War. Adding to the complexity, the reason for individuals going to war can be far from the reasons the nation went to war. In groups of four, students will analyze a set of 8 Canadian recruitment propaganda posters, using a chart to guide their thinking. Through this activity, students will both gain an understanding of what possible motivations drove men to enlist, and will practice critically reading primary documents. (15 minutes) Time to debrief as a class: What did we discover? What information is missing? Is there a dierence between why Canada went to war and why Canadians went to war?
The aim of this time is to reinforce the limited nature of using primary sources, but

3.

also the insight that they can give us into what people were thinking. Propaganda, like advertising, is aimed at individuals and what is perceived to be an aective form of motivation.

4.

(15 minutes) Transition into discussion of the changing nature of warfare. The question is now, did Canadian soldiers nd the glory and valor that was promised in the recruitment posters? Simple answer: no. Video: Crash Course History-World War I (http:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XPZQ0LAlR4) The whole video is about 11 minutes, and is all very useful as it quickly reviews much of what has been covered in the unit so far. The part that focuses on technology starts at 4:45-7:40, if time is running out. Have students seek to answer the question: What made WWI so deadly? and list the dierent technologies that the video highlights.
This can be reinforced by a teacher led discussion about the impact of technology. A

good image is found at http://www.military-research.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/ 2012/01/GREAT-WAR-WEAPONS-APRIL.jpg--The image contains the pros and cons of each weapon used in the war, and a little bit of the impact that it had on

DURATION: 75 MINUTES

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SOCIAL STUDIES 11

ghting. Ultimately, students should come away with an understanding that technology impacted how the war was fought and experienced.
5.

(15 minutes) Exit Slip: You are a Canadian soldier ghting in France in 1915, write a journal or letter home describing your experience of the war. Is it what you expected when you signed up? What is your life like?

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DURATION: 75 MINUTES