World War Ii 7th Grade History Project

[QuickFingers]

I am doing a World War II history project in my 7th grade class and I need some help. I have always had a desire to learn about World War II so when we where told to do a 10 week assignment a history project on WWII was the first thing I thought of. We always learn about the Revolutionary War to the the Civil War in school but we never seem to get anywhere close to WWII. WWII seems to me to be very important but in my ten years in school not one teacher has ever even mentioned it. It is very sad to think that the war that shapped the world we live in today is not a worthy topic in schools. Anyway I have been trying to find as much as I could in the last 5 weeks but unfortunitally it is a very hard topic to research. I watched movies such as Band of Brothers, Saving Private Ryan's, Hart's War, and Pearl Harbor. The History Channel has also showed a few interesting shows that were very helpful and I have also read a few books that gave useful information.

Over the past 5 weeks this is all I could find for information:

For a complete time line of World War two you can visit http://www.historychannel.com/classr...warII/map.html.

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Hitler ordered the invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939. He issued a form of statement of intent rather than a declaration of war.

Prior to this Germany had reoccupied Sarrland (lost to Germany after W.W.I) and 'acquired' control of Austria and effectively Czechoslovakia, but these were not officially deemed as acts of war by the west ? i.e. the appeasement of Hitler to avert another world war.

When Hitler invaded Poland, Britain, France, Amsterdam, Australia and New Zealand issued a 'back-off' last warning to Hitler, which was ignored, and declared war on Germany on September 3, 1939.

On September 5, 1939 the USA declares its neutrality.
On September 10, Canada declares war on Germany.
June 10, 1940 fascist Italy declares war on Britain and France.
December 7, 1941 Japan declares war on America.
December 8, 1941 America declares war on Japan.
December 11, 1941 Germany and fascist Italy declare war on America.
September 8, 1943 fascist Italy surrenders.
October 13, 1943 Italy declares war on Germany.
April 19, 1945, German forces in Italy surrender.
May 8, 1945 Germany surrenders, (VE day).
September 2, 1945 Japan surrenders, (VJ day).


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The true number of soldiers killed in World War 2 remains unknown. The estimated death count of World War to is 60 million. Out of the total death count it is believed that there were more cilvilian deaths than soldier deaths.

The Soviet Union lost the most with 25 million deaths, but only about a third were combat related. China's death toll is incomplete but estimates are between 15 and 22 million, Poland had 6 million deaths including 3 million Jews, roughly 20% of its prewar population, Germany lost 4 million soldiers and 2 million civilians, many of them women, Japan had 1.2 million battle deaths and another 1.4 million soldiers listed as missing, almost 1 million civilians were killed in the bombing raids between 1944 and 1945, over 1.7 million Yugoslavs and 500,000 Greeks died in the war, France lost 200,000 soldiers and 400,000 civilians, Italy lost 330,000 people, Hungary lost 147,000 men in combat, Bulgaria lost 19,000 in combat, Romania lost 73,000 in combat, Great Britain lost 264,000 soldiers and 60,000 civilians in bombing raids, the United States lost 292,000 soldiers, the Dutch lost 10,000 soldiers and 190,000 civilians, Australia lost 23,000 men in combat, Canada 37,000 soldiers, India lost 24,000 men in battle, New Zeland 10,000 and South Africa 6,000. These totals do not include the 6 million Jews who perished in the Final Solution of Nazi Germany or the 17 million dead as a result of Japan's policies in Asia from 1931 to 1945.


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Te massive number casualities inflicted and the physical ravaging of the nations, the biggest consequence of WW2 was the Soviet Union's occupation of eastern Europe, which allowed the forceful spread of Communism and set the stage for the Cold War, which consumed the next half-century.


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16,354,000 men & women served in the U.S. Armed Forces during WW 2. This number includes members of the Army, Army Air Corps, Navy & Marines.


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Like the previous answer to your question stated, Hitler was born on April 20th, 1889. He became dictator in 1933 when he was 44. Actual combat in World War II didn't really begin until 1935, when Hitler was 46. Germany was invaded by Russia in 1944, when Hitler was 55. Germany lost the war in 1945 to Russian and American troops and Hitler killed himself on April 30th, 1945 in his bunker quarters; he was 56.


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My B-Day in World War II:

June 9
1944 The Red Army invades Karelian Isthmus in Finland On this day in 1944, Russia penetrates into East Karelia, in Finland, as it fights to gain back control of territory that had already been ceded to it.According to the terms of the Treaty of Moscow of 1940, Finland was forced to surrender parts of its southeastern territory, including the Karelian Isthmus, to the Soviet Union, which was eager to create a buffer zone for Leningrad. To protect itself against further Russian encroachment, Finland allowed Germany to traverse its country in its push eastward into Russia, despite the fact that it did not have a formal alliance with the Axis power. Emboldened by the damage Germany was inflicting on Russia, Finland pursued the "War of Continuation" and won back large parts of the territory it had ceded to Moscow in the 1940 treaty.But as Germany suffered setback after setback, and the Allies continued bombing runs in the Balkans, using Russia as part of its "shuttle" strategy, Finland began to panic and made overtures to Stalin about signing an armistice. By June 9, the Red Army was once again in the East Karelia, and Stalin was in no mood to negotiate, demanding at least a symbolic "surrender" of Finland entirely. Finland turned back to its "friend," Germany, which promised continued support. A change in Finnish government resulted in a change in perspective, and Finland finally signed an armistice that gave Stalin what he wanted: all the old territory from the 1940 treaty and a guarantee that German troops would evacuate Finnish soil. Finland agreed but the German army refused to leave. Terrible battles were waged between the two behemoths; finally, with the defeat of the Axis, Russia got what it wanted, not only in Finnish territory, but also in war reparations to the tune of $300 million. Finland !would become known for its passivity in the face of the Soviet threat in the postwar era.





References:

-www.HistoryChannel.com
-www.FAQFarm.com/History/WWII

The moveis and the shows also gave good information that I havn't writen down. If any of that information is wronge please correct me! I also need more information. If anyone could help by maybe directing me to a useful website, forum, post, book, movie, tv show, etc... it would be great. I really appreicate any help you guys have to offer!

[Paul Reed]

What, specifically, do you want to know or learn more about - WW2 is a very big subject, as you are learning!

By the way the line "Actual combat in World War II didn't really begin until 1935" is wrong - WW2 began in 1939, when Germany invaded Poland. Some historians would of course argue the seeds of war go back further, and some events prior to 1939 are inter-connected, but for Germany the war proper did not start until then.

[QuickFingers]

Originally posted by Paul Reed@Feb 13 2005, 08:16 PM
What, specifically, do you want to know or learn more about - WW2 is a very big subject, as you are learning!

By the way the line "Actual combat in World War II didn't really begin until 1935" is wrong - WW2 began in 1939, when Germany invaded Poland. Some historians would of course argue the seeds of war go back further, and some events prior to 1939 are inter-connected, but for Germany the war proper did not start until then.

Quoted post

Well A few questions I have been trying to research lately are:

What effects of World War I effected the start World War II?
Why did the U.S. wait so long before joing the war?
What went wronge at Pearl Harbor?
Why did Hitler hate the jews so much?
What was life like for the people not fighting the war in the U.S.

One of my favorit bands is Pink Floyd. One of there more Famous CDs is The Wall which was also made in to a movie. The CD and the movie talk about the tormented life of Pink who's father died in World War 2. Do you think this would be ok to use as a small fact if I explain it in more deatail?
If you find any pictures I could use for a new poster that would be great. I need mostly main faqs at the moment. Thanks for the help!

[Kiwiwriter]

Originally posted by QuickFingers+Feb 13 2005, 04:45 PM-->

Well A few questions I have been trying to research lately are:

What effects of World War I effected the start World War II?
Why did the U.S. wait so long before joing the war?
What went wronge at Pearl Harbor?
Why did Hitler hate the jews so much?
What was life like for the people not fighting the war in the U.S.

One of my favorit bands is Pink Floyd. One of there more Famous CDs is The Wall which was also made in to a movie. The CD and the movie talk about the tormented life of Pink who's father died in World War 2. Do you think this would be ok to use as a small fact if I explain it in more deatail?
If you find any pictures I could use for a new poster that would be great. I need mostly main faqs at the moment. Thanks for the help!

Quoted post

[/b]

Well, I am impressed by your determination, but your questions are the kind that require Master's Theses to answer:

World War I was the basic cause of World War II.

The US waited because isolationism and a divided nation meant it would not fight until it was attacked.

At Pearl Harbor, nearly everything went wrong, except the American carriers were at sea, and the Japanaese did not make a third attack.

Why Hitler hated the Jews is a complex question that historians are still struggling to unravel. But apparently it is based on his failures to get into art schools and gain advanced education (and even win a lottery), and his extensive reading of Vienna's flood of vicious anti-Semitic pamphlets.

A good source for the US in wartime is Doris Kearns Goodwin's "No Ordinary Time."

I hope that helps. It's a lengthy subject, I'm afraid. My web page has a good bibliography.

[angie999]

Originally posted by Paul Reed@Feb 13 2005, 08:16 PM
What, specifically, do you want to know or learn more about - WW2 is a very big subject, as you are learning!

By the way the line "Actual combat in World War II didn't really begin until 1935" is wrong - WW2 began in 1939, when Germany invaded Poland. Some historians would of course argue the seeds of war go back further, and some events prior to 1939 are inter-connected, but for Germany the war proper did not start until then.

Quoted post

I am coming increasingly round to the viewpoint that Japanese operations in China in the 1930s cannot be divorced from WWII, so in my mind the date has moved back from 1939, which I see as a very Eurocentric date.

I think the key point for a school student is that unless you are going to write a very superficial overview, then it is better to pick a much more restricted topic than the whole war and research it in more detail.

[angie999]

Originally posted by QuickFingers@Feb 13 2005, 07:54 PM
I

When Hitler invaded Poland, Britain, France, Amsterdam, Australia and New Zealand issued a 'back-off' last warning to Hitler, which was ignored, and declared war on Germany on September 3, 1939.

Quoted post

Amsterdam is a city in the Netherlands, which stayed neutral until invaded by the Germans in 1940. The "back off" warning was an ultimatum, part of established diplomatic process inthe run up to war. It set out the terms for avoiding war.

[smc66]

The Pink Floyd track you refer to is 'When the Tigers broke free' lamenting the death of his father who was killed on the Anzio bridgehead during the Italian Campaign.

[Ian987725]

Thanks alot the info helped me on my world war 2 project but we get 4 WEEKS and we are 1/2 way through can you help me or anyone else help me by emailing me!!!

[angie999]

Originally posted by Ian987725@Feb 14 2005, 04:17 PM
Thanks alot the info helped me on my world war 2 project but we get 4 WEEKS and we are 1/2 way through can you help me or anyone else help me by emailing me!!! X X

Quoted post

But you need to be more specific about the title of your project and the help you need. Nobody is going to write you long e-mails setting out a dissertation on the whole of WWII.

[DirtyDick]

There is another view concerning when WWII became a World War.

One contention is that until the USA and Japan entered the War in late 1941 it was only yet another a European struggle, broken down, broadly, into an Anglo-Franco vs Germany campaign and an Anglo-Russian vs Germany and Italy; those in the Far East being an Asian struggle (equivalent of the Sino-Japanese War of 1894) rather than the first shots of WW2.

The Seven Years' War of 1756-63 has also been ascribed the status of a World War by some, since it was fought by much of Western Europe across the globe (a product of imperial expansion and the protection of trade routes).

Semantics and terminology really, so no clear cut off point; although 1939 is generally chosen for purposes of clarity since it marked the start of hostilities between the major European powers and was not ended (at least in the case of UK & Empire) until 1945.