|
Don't Fence Me In: The Japanese American Experience During WWII A Farewell to Manzanar WebQuest Introduction | Task | Process | Evaluation | Conclusion | Credits Manzanar National Historic Site Designed by Anna Wilder
"Oh, give me land, lots of land under
starry skies above, ~ lyrics by Cole Porter When Japanese planes bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, America was thrust into war with the empire of Japan that it had not seen coming. In the days and weeks following Pearl Harbor, many people on the west coast feared that another attack was imminent. Many believed that Japanese people living in California were a threat to the United States. The fear was so strong that two months after Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt signed an order removing "all persons of Japanese ancestry" from the west coast and settling them in internment camps such as the one we will read about in "Farewell to Manzanar." What must it have been like to be one of these people, subjected to intense racial hatred and forced to leave their homes and life as they knew it behind them? How did it feel to be caught in the middle of the war between Japan and the United States, imprisoned simply because you looked like the enemy?
The Task Your groups' task will be to research the anti-Japanese attitudes that existed in America at the start of World War II, and the ways in which this attitude affected the Japanese and Japanese Americans living on the west coast at the time. Your group will read archived newspaper articles, view anti-Japanese propaganda posters and primary source photographs of the internment camps to try and get a feel for what it would be like to be a person of Japanese ancestry living in America during World War II. After completing your research, you will work with your group to create the following using PowerPoint:
 The Process Step 1: Each of you will first go through an interactive map and timeline that will lead you through the experience of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor - the event that began WWII. As you go through the map and timeline think about the effect this sudden and devastating attack would have had on the attitude of Americans towards Japanese people living in America. Step 2: You will be assigned to a group of four students. Each student should choose one of the following roles to play.
Japanese Planes over San Francisco ó 1941 Air Raid Instruction Card for Your Home ñ 1942 New Curfew Rules for Enemy Aliens - March 24, 1942 Aliens Must Go by Sunday or Army Will Freeze Them - March 26, 1942 "Behind the News"; Japanese Won't be Welcomed Back - April 29, 1942
Anti-Japanese Propaganda Posters (Click on "Anti-Japanese War Posters") Concentration Camps for Japanese Wanted by Western Governors - March 2, 1942 Greatest Forced Migration in American History to Begin - March 4, 1942 Editorial- Their Best Way to Show Loyalty - March 6, 1942
Photographs of Internment Camp Daily Life - Tule Lake Manzanar Arrival Soon for Interned L.A. Japanese - March 23, 1942 Life in a WWII Japanese American Internment Camp
Life Interrupted - Multimedia Scrapbook Ansel Adams Japanese Internment Photos Life at Manzanar PowerPoint - Museum of San Francisco Relocation of the Japanese - Dorothea Lange Photo Collection Digital Classroom Document and Photo Collection
Photo Courtesy of the War Relocation Authority
Step 3: Once you have each created your individual slides, cut and paste them into one unified PowerPoint. Discuss and share what you have created with your group members. Compare the PowerPoint against the rubric below and edit if necessary. Decide on who will do and say what during the presentation. Step 4: Present your PowerPoint journal to the class. Evaluation Your performance on this project will be based on the quality of the PowerPoint presentation your group creates, how detailed and accurate your journal entries are, how well your group works together and the presentation you give to the class. Use the following rubric to help you complete the project.
Conclusion After completing this project, you should have a better understanding of what it was like for the Japanese Americans at the start of WWII. You have taken a trip back into the past and seen life through the eyes of those who lived through the difficult internment years. Keep in mind the things you have learned as we begin the book Farewell to Manzanar. Credits & References National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) http://www.archives.gov/research_room/federal_records_guide/war_relocation_authority_rg210.html Manzanar National Historic Site
Based on a template from The WebQuest Page |
ulous Mother -
You have
been reading the paper over
your husband's
shoulder each night and as much as you hate the idea, you
realize that you must prepare for evacuation. You were grocery
shopping the other day when you saw the evacuation order posted on
the front window of the store. As you stopped to read it, you could
feel the other women staring at you. They stare a lot now. You wonder
what they are thinking. Don't they realize you are just a mother like they are, trying to take care of her family. Your task is to go to
the sites below. Look at the anti-Japanese propaganda posters that
would have been posted all over town. Read the Evacuation Order and
incorporate the answers to the questions below it in your three
journal entries from the mother's point of view.
What does she need to do now to take care of her family? What items
will they need to take for the evacuation? What are her worries for
her family? Include appropriate dates and references to the
information you have read as well as her personal reactions.
bothered
that your mom and dad have been so upset lately. So when your parents
told you that the entire family was going to camp, you were excited.
Getting on a bus and going somewhere new sounded like a fun
adventure. But the long bus ride wasn't so fun, and what you found
when you got to "camp" was not what you had expected at all. Now you
wish you didn't have to stay here, but your parents tell you there's
no choice. Life is so different here and so hard, you wish you could
just go home...but mom says for now, this is home. 
otographer/Presenter
- You are a photographer who has
been hired to take pictures to document the Japanese internment
experience. You have followed this story since the bombing of Pearl
Harbor and have taken pictures of many families struggling with the
difficulties of life in internment camps. Your task is to find
pictures to represent the family portrayed by the rest of your group
members. You must find a picture to represent each journal entry (9
in all - one per slide). Your pictures should somehow reflect the
family or their overall experience. There are sites below
with hundreds of pictures to choose from. Take your time and find the most
appropriate ones. Cut and paste them into your group member's slides.
You will also need to create two slides of your own - a title slide
for your presentation and a credits slide listing the sources of your
photos. You will also be the lead presenter for the PowerPoint
presentation you will give to the class.