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Chronological Reasoning and Causation

Rise of Nazism

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About this Activity

  1. Load Excerpts from the Treaty of Versailles (1919) in Main Document Viewer
  2. Load Germany After the Peace Treaty of 1919 in Main Document Viewer
  3. Load Political cartoon illustrating the stab-in-the-back myth in Main Document Viewer
  4. Load Excerpt from the Weimar Constitution in Main Document Viewer
  5. Load Excerpt from "The Second World War" in Main Document Viewer
  6. Load Excerpt from "My Three Revolutions" in Main Document Viewer
  7. Load Cover of "Franzosen im Ruhrgebiet!" (French in the Ruhr Area) in Main Document Viewer
  8. Load France & the Ruhr District in Main Document Viewer
  9. Load Excerpt from "The Second World War" in Main Document Viewer
  10. Load Excerpt from the Weimar Constitution in Main Document Viewer
  11. Load Excerpts from the Treaty of Versailles (1919) in Main Document Viewer
  12. Load Excerpt from "My Three Revolutions" in Main Document Viewer
  13. Load Unemployment in Weimer Germany in Main Document Viewer
  14. Load In a Berlin Bank in Main Document Viewer
  15. Load Berlin woman, realizing that fuel costs money, starts the morning fire with marks "not worth the paper they are printed on" in Main Document Viewer
  16. Load One billion mark note from the Weimar Republic in Main Document Viewer
  17. Load Translation of a communication from Count Brockdorff-Rantzau to the President of the Peace Conference Georges Clemenceau relaying the Report of the German Economic Commission in Main Document Viewer
  18. Load Translation of a communication from Count Brockdorff-Rantzau to the President of the Peace Conference Georges Clemenceau relaying the Report of the German Economic Commission in Main Document Viewer

Suggested Teaching Instructions

OBJECTIVES

· Students will examine how choices made by individuals and groups contributed to the rise of the Nazi Party in the 1920s and 1930s.

· Students will read parts of political platforms and make a reasoned judgement of how each citizen voted.

· Students will consider why voters may have chosen the Nazi Party.

ESSENTIAL QUESTION

· How did the social, economic, and political conditions after World War I contribute to the rise of Nazism?

RESOURCES

Document 1 - Excerpts from the “Treaty of Versailles” (1919) with map

Document 2 - “The Stab in the Back – Myth or Reality”

Document 3 - The Weimar Republic

Document 4 - “The Occupation of the Ruhr Valley (1923)”

Document 5 - “Hyperinflation  (1923)”

Document 6 - “Unemployment”

Document 7 - “The Election of 1932: Party Platforms”

 

INSTRUCTIONAL PLAN AND ACTIVITIES

IN CLASSROOM (Print out each document to place at stations around the classroom): 
Print out Graphic Organizer for students to fill out.

Gallery Walk Activity: Before the lesson, the teacher should hang a few copies of Documents 1-6 around the room so that students can visit each.

Do Now: Teacher sets the scenario and gives instructions by reading the following:

Imagine that you are a German citizen living between the World Wars. As you visit the six stations posted around the room, imagine that you are bearing witness to these events and issues as they are occurring. Answer the questions as you go to each station    

The Questions:
       YOUR NOTES (You should include the main idea & as many specific
       details as you can. You may use bullet form.
       How do you feel as a German about the event being shown?
       Explain.

Main Activity:

Have the students, either individually or with a partner, visit the stations with their graphic organizer.

Give 20-25 minutes depending on the class.

Share Out:

Take an opportunity to ask students to share out any information that they find interesting, or to clear up anything that they find confusing.

Ask about how they felt as Germans living at this time.

Election of 1932:

Hand out Document 7, “The Election of 1932: Party Platforms”

Have students read the platforms and decide which of the three political parties they might support in the coming election. Go over their responses and find out which party was elected.

Have students answer the “Essential Question: How did the social, economic, and political conditions after World War I contribute to the rise of Nazism?”

 

 

 

RETURN TO RESULTS