Synergy: World War I

World War I (1914-1918) was one of the most deadly global conflicts in human history. In addition to the estimated 9 million people killed in combat, another 5 million civilians died as a result of the conflict. 

Read the recently published nonfiction book for young adults, then learn more at the websites:

WORLD WAR I: THE GREAT WAR TO END ALL WARS by Julie Knutson is part of the Inquire & Investigate series. This interdisciplinary text explores the events that led to the war along with key battles. Using photographs, graphic novel-style illustrations, and primary source documents, readers learn about both the home-front and global aspects of the war. Useful fact boxes, sidebars, and questions are likely to engage reluctant learners. ARC courtesy of Nomad Press.

1914-1918 ONLINE is an international encyclopedia focusing on the First World War. Readers can explore the website through a timeline, themes, regions, or article topics.

To visit the website, go to https://encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net/.

Book Review: The Button War

THE BUTTON WAR by Avi is a work of historical fiction of middle grade students focusing on peer pressure and obsession during war.

Avi’s latest work of historical fiction is set in a small Polish town during World War I. While the war rages around them, a group of boys play their own deadly game involving obtaining a military button.

Librarians will find readers intrigued by the parallels between the war and the boy’s contest. Some youth will be drawn to the action packed plot. However, others will be dismayed by the focus on the dark themes.

Published by Candlewick Press on June 12, 2018. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Website Review: World War I

WORLD WAR I from the Library of Congress is a comprehensive teacher’s guide providing a wealth of resources related to the time period and the war.

This resource-rich website includes historical context, primary sources, teaching materials, and links to online materials focusing on World War I.

Librarians will find the resource to include important documents related to key events found in the history curriculum. From posters and news clippings to multimedia documents and political cartoons, this website provides an excellent introduction to primary sources related to the war.

To visit the website, go to https://www.loc.gov/…/classro…/primarysourcesets/world-war-i.

Book Review: Wolf Hollow

WOLF HOLLOW by Lauren Wolk confronts the truths of bullying and injustice in this unforgettable work of historical fiction.

Set between World Wars I and II in rural Pennsylvania, this powerful tale follows the quiet life of Annabelle whose life changes when a bully named Betty moves to town. When Betty targets a strange and solitary World War I veteran, Annabelle becomes his defender.

Designed for both middle school and high school students, librarians will find this compelling story appeals to young people who may not traditionally read historical fiction. This haunting tale will ring true for many youth who have experienced bullying.

Librarian will find that the well-developed characters and heartbreaking story will have broad appeal in classroom settings. Many reviewers have made comparisons to Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird making it a good suggestion for teachers and students seeking a companion experience.

To learn more about the author, go to http://laurenwolk.com/.

Published by Dutton Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin on May 3, 2016. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

Website Review: The Great War Archaeology

THE GREAT WAR ARCHAEOLOGY website explores the work archaeologists are doing to learn more about World War I in France (1914-1918).

This amazing website is divided into five sections titled Called Up to the Front, Archaeological Remains, Day-to-Day Life, Day-to-Day Death, and Underground War and Technical Innovations. Each section provides short text segments, historical photos, maps, video, and other interesting materials.

In addition to the core materials, the chronology section provides an interactive timeline of events along with useful primary source documents and information. The links area provides websites where users can find out more about World War I. Finally, the glossary defines key terms and locations.

Librarians will find the archaeology focus a unique way to explore World War I topics and primary sources. This approach may also attract students who are drawn to the scientific and technical aspects of studying history. Foreign language teachers should note that the website is available in French and German in addition English.

To explore the website, go to http://archeologie1418.culture.fr/en/.

Website Review Europeana 1914-1918

EUROPEANA 1914-1918 is a huge website sharing both the official histories as well as the untold stories of World War I.

Co-funded by the European Union, the website brings together three major European projects focusing on different materials including documents from the public, national collections, and film archives.

Users can browse materials by type, subject, or front. Within each section, participants can explore sources from Europe as well as New Zealand, United States, Australia, and Canada. In addition, related items are presented that might be of interest. The interface is easy-to-use and presents high-quality digital representations that can be embedded, shared, or downloaded. Copyright information is provided for those who would like to share the resource. Users are encouraged to re-use the materials in projects.

The TYPES section provides access to letters, diaries, photographs, films, documents, and postcards. Of particular interest are the thousands of videos included in the collection.

The SUBJECTS section explores remembrance, propaganda, prisoners of war, trench life, aerial warfare, navel warfare, and women. Youth will be particularly interested in the wide range of propaganda posters, cartoons, and other materials.

The FRONT section features the Italian front, home front, Eastern front, and Western front. Break your high school history class into four groups. Each team can dive into the resources related to one of the four fronts.

The ADD YOUR STORY section is collecting Great War era stories from website visitors.

Brimming with easy-to-access primary source documents, this website provides excellent resources to address Common Core standards related to primary source documents. With commemorations being planned around the world during the next few years, this digital collection is likely to grow.

Many other excellent websites are emerging that focus on the World War I era from 1914 through 1918. Be sure to check out the International Encyclopedia of the First World War at http://www.1914-1918-online.net/.

The World War One area of the British Library contains over 500 historical sources and more than 50 original articles and lessons for teachers to use in their classrooms. To learn more about this source, go to http://bl.uk/world-war-one.

To visit the EUROPEANA 1914-1918 website, go to http://www.europeana1914-1918.eu/en.

Special Event Website Review: Veteran's History Project

In honor of Veteran’s Day, spend some time exploring the Library of Congress Veteran’s History Project.

The VETERAN’S HISTORY PROJECT from the Library of Congress gathers the personal accounts of American war veterans and makes them available online. First-hand accounts from U.S. veterans from World War I, World War II, Korean War, Vietnam War, Persian Gulf War, and the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts have been posted. From Army medical volunteers to Air Force pilots, a wide range of military positions are represented. Primarily an oral history program, most of the interviews are available in audio- or video-recorded formats along with transcripts. In many cases, memoirs and collections of photographs, letters, diaries, maps, and other primary source documents have been digitized and are included.

Since the project began nearly fifteen years ago, thousands of interviews have been uploaded to the database. Users can search by era, branch of service, gender, media type, and other categories. It’s also possible to search within fields such as location of service and highest rank.

Encourage students to seek out areas of interest such as female nurses of the Vietnam War, African American airmen of the Korean War, or Japanese American soldiers of World War II.

Visit the website at http://www.loc.gov/vets/.