The Dropping of The Atomic Bombs on Japan

Learning Objectives

  • Know about the dropping of the atomic bombs on Japan.
  • Understand the reasons for and against using the atomic bombs.
  • Complete ‘Evidence Gathering Sheets’ For and Against Dropping the Atomic Bombs.
  • Write a speech on ‘Should America Have Dropped The Atomic Bombs on Japan?’

Key Words: Evaluating Sources

  • HEADS
    • Reliable: can be trusted
    • Biased: Favours one side over another
    • Primary sources: come from the time you are studying
    • Secondary sources: come from later than the time you are studying
    • Fact: something that is definitely true
    • Opinion: what someone thinks
    • Useful: helps you to find something out
  • TAILS

Enola Gay

  • Image of the Enola Gay plane.
  • Reference to Aug. 1945.

Reading Material

  • Read the booklet ‘Was the dropping of the atomic bombs justified?’ (pages 198 – 201 – ‘Peace and War’)

Sources

  • Sources FOR the Dropping of The Atomic Bombs
    • 8, 9, 13, 14, 15, 19
  • Sources AGAINST the Dropping of The Atomic Bombs
    • 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, 18, 20

Reasons for Dropping the Bombs

  • Task: Read the section ‘Why did they drop the bombs?’ on page 199.
  • List all the reasons WHY America dropped the Atomic Bombs on Japan.

Speech Outline: Should America Have Dropped The Atomic Bombs on Japan?

  • Introduction
    • What are you going to talk about?
    • What decision are you going to make?
    • What? When? Where? Who? Why? How?
  • Paragraph 1
    • Reasons for dropping the bomb [PEEL: Point, Evidence, Explanation, Link]
  • Paragraph 2
    • Reasons against dropping the bomb [PEEL]
  • Conclusion
    • Decision and explanation.

Hiroshima

  • Image of school children
  • Distribution of work parties.
  • Numbers: 52, 61, 39, 30, 32, 36, 13, 35, 63, 62, 33, 55, 60, 54, 38, 53, 57, 59

Plenary

  • Choose TWO sources from the Sheet ‘Was The Dropping of The Atomic Bomb Justified?’.
  • For EACH one say:
    • Can we trust the person writing the source?
    • Do they favour one side over another? (biased)
    • Why did they write the source?
    • When was it written?

How Useful is a Source?

  • Who wrote it?
  • What side are they on – American or Japanese?
  • When did they write it? (What year – remember the atomic bomb was dropped in 1945)
  • What does the source tell us – A lot or not very much

Tasks

  • Read pages 198-199 – ‘Peace & War’
  • Why do you think the Americans would not let journalists visit Hiroshima?
  • Why do you think the Americans denied that there was such a thing as radiation sickness?

Class Vote

  • America was RIGHT to drop the Atomic Bombs
  • America was WRONG to drop the Atomic Bombs