Beyer - US History : The Great Forgotten War Webquest

The Forgotten War

A WebQuest for 10th Grade US History

Introduction

This WebQuest is designed to discuss the World War I era, during which much of Europe became embroiled in conflict. Despite American reluctance, powerful forces pulled our nation into battle. From April 1917 until the war's end in November 1918, the United States sent men and women to participate in The Great War, The War to End All Wars, or World War I. More than 50,000 young American men lost their lives fighting in the trenches of France or in planes over the Western Front. The American Expeditionary Force helped turn the tides of war in Europe to enable the Allies victory and an end to the brutal war. To date, there is no national monument to recognize the millions of Americans who gave their time, money, and even lives to the service of their country. The Great War has become the Great Forgotten War.

Task

The Clarksonian Museum has decided to develop a national monument to honor those who served in World War I, The Great War. Since there is no national shrine on The Mall in Washington, D.C., you've been assigned to a task force that will design an appropriate way to commemorate Americas involvement in World War I.

In describing your design to others, you need to identify aspects of The Great War you are depicting. You should also list other important aspects of this conflict that you were not able to represent and which should be conveyed in some other way.

Process

The first step is to learn as much as you can about your assigned group involved in World War I.
Generate a list of 5-10 aspects that are worth celebrating. (Don't forget to include any information that you potentially can't show on your monument but is still vital in understanding the impact your group/individual had on WWI)
Become familiar with some of the ways in which people/institutions/events have been honored in the past.
Generate ideas for your design. You will be working in a group with four of your classmates to brainstorm your monument.
Research Specialists
Architect
Project Supervisor
Decide on the best solution and develop your description of it.
You will describe your findings to the Board of Trustees (Mrs. Beyer and classmates). Your team will create a PowerPoint presentation to gain the Trustees support financially and to give claim to your group's involvement in World War I.

Evaluation

Your evaluation will be based on your ability to defend and explain your monument to the Board of Trustees.

The committee will be graded on the scale seen below. An individual grade will be added on based on individual performance. (10pts)

	Exemplary 4	Accomplished 3	Developing 2	Beginning 1
Presentation	Spoke clearly, confidently and enthusiastically about all items in the monument.	Spoke well and fairly confidently about items in the monument.	Spoke unenthusiastically, but covered the items in the monument.	Seemed unclear about items in the monument.
Organization	Well thought out and clearly understood by audience.	Thought out but is not clearly understood by audience.	Ideas thought out but are disorganized.	Disorganized and lacking organization.
Accuracy of Information	All facts presented are accurate and fitting for the exhibit.	Almost all of the facts are accurate and fitting for the exhibit.	Most of the facts are accurate and fitting for the exhibit.	There are several factual errors or several items are not fitting for the exhibit.
Display	The design captures the "flavor" of the topic by accurately reflecting the period, culture or theme.	The design somewhat captures the "flavor" of the topic by including a few details that reflect the period, culture or theme.	The design is unclear and includes few details that reflect the period, culture or theme.	Historical and cultural details are missing from the design.
Items Included	Items are complete, interesting, and completely justified rationale for their design concept.	Student turns in a complete, interesting design concept and rationale, but the rationale needs to be expanded.	Student turns in a complete design concept, but lacks a rationale.	Student turns in a partial design concept.

Conclusion

Congratulations on completing your monument design. The Board of Trustees was highly impressed with concept and will be starting construction of your monument on the National Mall shortly. This monument will memorialize Americans of the World War I Era and will make people think more carefully about those who served and died for our country. You should have now an understanding of how war affected your particular participant's viewpoint and experience of this war.