Lesson by Peter Vermilyea
Essay by William Sturkey, University of Pennsylvania
Grade Level: 7–12
Number of Class Periods: 5
Primary Era: Post-World War II, 1945–1975
About This Lesson Plan Unit
The five lessons in this unit explore the experiences of American servicemen and servicewomen during and after the Vietnam War. Students will read a historical background essay by a leading scholar and analyze recruiting posters, photographs, newspaper articles, interviews, and other primary sources. You will assess students’ understanding through a research project that results in either a report or a creative piece.
Lesson Plan Author: Peter Vermilyea
Historical Background Essay by: William Sturkey, University of Pennsylvania
Additional Information About This Unit
Common Core State Standards
Common Core State Standards
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.6: Identify aspects of a text that reveal an author’s point of view or purpose (e.g., loaded language, inclusion or avoidance of particular facts).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.8: Distinguish among fact, opinion, and reasoned judgment in a text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.2: Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of how key events or ideas develop over the course of the text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including vocabulary describing political, social, or economic aspects of history/social studies.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.11-12.1: Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, connecting insights gained from specific details to an understanding of the text as a whole.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.11-12.3: Evaluate various explanations for actions or events and determine which explanation best accords with textual evidence, acknowledging where the text leaves matters uncertain.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.9-10.2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas, concepts, and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.
Essential Questions
Essential Questions
What assumptions, claims, and debates about military service existed in the Vietnam era?
How was the experience of living and serving in Vietnam different from civilian life for Americans?
How did the experience of war help Americans of different backgrounds work together for a common goal?
How did Veterans use VA benefits to help their families?
How have Veterans helped their fellow Veterans and their communities?
Documents
Documents
Interview with Jose Antonio Berrios, November 9, 2010
If You Really Care, This Is Your Chance of a Lifetime, US Air Force Nurse Corps, 1967
Anti-War Demonstration Poster, Fifth Avenue Vietnam Peace Parade Committee, New York, 1970
Doris Wright, “Youngsters Write to Servicemen,” San Antonio (TX) Express/News, January 26, 1969
Photograph of United States Army soldiers participating in Operation Oregon near Duc Pho, Quang Ngai Province, South Vietnam, April 24, 1967
Photograph of young soldiers who have just been drafted at Fort Jackson, Columbia, South Carolina, May 15, 1967, by Warren K. Leffler
Photograph of United States Army soldiers in Tây Ninh Province, South Vietnam, January 18, 1968
Photograph of members of the United States Army’s Delta Company, 31st Combat Engineer Battalion, 20th Engineer Brigade at Landing Zone Buttons/Sông Bé Base Camp, South Vietnam, 1970
Letter from Paul D. Milhouse to His Wife, Martha, September 17, 1965
Interview with Gordon Ross Nagakawa, May 28, 2005, interviewed by Kimberly Peach and George Liki
Thomas Cheatham, “Dead and Wounded Lay Thick at Hill 875,” Red Bluff (CA) Daily News, November 22, 1967
Jack K. Graeme, “Soldier Volunteered for Dangerous Work,” Clovis (NM) News Journal, January 15, 1967
John Podlaski, photographer, Vietnam Veterans Welcome Home Parade, Chicago, Ill., June 13, 1986
Interview with Jose V. Orozco, October 4, 2004, interviewed by Audrey Wing Chi
Interview with Lester W. Elam, April 24, 2012, interviewed by Regina Korthals and Julia E. Shane
Interview with Judy Reed Russell, January 9, 2004, interviewed by Michael Lloyd Willie
Interview with Michael Linden, April 15, 2009, interviewed by Tracey Flynn, Hickory High School, and James Galantis
Interview with Mary Jane Crumpler, interviewed by Alice Marie Stratton on October 9, 2012
Interview with Claire Brisebois Starnes, “‘Some Good Days, Some Bad Days’: A WAC Serving in Vietnam,” interviewed by David Siry, April 4, 2016
Interview with Clarence E. Sasser, undated, interviewed by an unknown interviewer
Jim Olson, “Guard Duty,” Minnesota Remembers Vietnam: The Story Wall