Prisoner in My Homeland

Learning Resource Type

Classroom Resource

Subject Area

Social Studies

Grade(s)

6, 11

Overview

This interactive game from WNET Thirteen“Prisoner in My Homeland,” puts players in the shoes of 16-year-old Henry Tanaka, in 1941, whose family is forced to leave their home on Bainbridge Island, WA, for a prison camp in Manzanar, CA. Players grapple with the choices and challenges faced by more than 120,000 Japanese Americans as they coped with their unjust incarceration during World War II. Teachers will need to register to play this game.  The game can be played in a whole group setting or individually.  Teachers can also download a teacher's guide.

Social Studies (2010) Grade(s): 6

SS10.6.7

Identify changes on the American home front during World War II.

UP:SS10.6.7

Vocabulary

  • internment camp
  • rationing
  • Birmingham steel industry
  • Port of Mobile
  • Tuskegee Airmen
  • retooling

Knowledge

Students know:
  • The types of rationing that occurred in the United States during WWII.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • Cite evidence to support changes on the home front using primary and secondary sources.
  • Evaluate the contributions of significant individuals and/or groups in the US during WWII.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • Many changes occurred in the United States during WWII.
Social Studies (2010) Grade(s): 11 - United States History II

SS10.US2.10

Describe the impact of World War II on the lives of American citizens, including wartime economic measures, population shifts, growth in the middle class, growth of industrialization, advancements in science and technology, increased wealth in the African-American community, racial and ethnic tensions, Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944 (G. I. Bill of Rights), and desegregation of the military. (A.1.b., A.1.c., A.1.d., A.1.e., A.1.g., A.1.i., A.1.k.)

UP:SS10.US2.10

Vocabulary

  • wartime economic measures
  • G.I. Bill of Rights
  • desegregation
  • Tuskegee Airmen
  • Aliceville POW camp

Knowledge

Students know:
  • The impact of WWII on national economic issues.
  • Population shifts that occurred as a result of WWII.
  • Social changes in the nation, including the growth of the middle class.
  • The growth of industrialization in the nation and the impact of this growth.
  • Advancements in science and technology and the lasting impact of these advancements.
  • Changes in racial dynamics, including increased wealth in the African-American community, desegregation of the military, and changes in the racial and ethnic tensions in the nation.
  • Political actions that impacted the effects of the war, including the Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944.
  • Alabama's participation in WWII, including the role of Tuskegee Airmen, Aliceville Prisoner of War camp, the growth of the Port of Mobile, production of Birmingham steel, and the establishment of military bases.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • Integrate and evaluate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media.
  • Evaluate an author's premises, claims, and evidence by corroborating or challenging them with other information related to historical events.
  • Read and comprehend historical texts independently and proficiently on various topics related to events that led to WWII and the effect of those events on American foreign policy today.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • There was a significant domestic impact from WWII with lasting effects on the political, social, and economic environment of the United States.

CR Resource Type

Interactive/Game

Resource Provider

Other

License Type

CUSTOM

Resource Provider other

Mission US

Accessibility

Audio resources: includes a transcript or subtitles
Video resources: includes closed captioning or subtitles
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