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History 7-10 / Year 10 / Knowledge and understanding / World War II

Curriculum content descriptions

the significant events and turning points of World War II, including the Holocaust and use of the atomic bomb (AC9HH10K03)

Elaborations
  • explaining why particular events were significant turning points in the European theatre of war, such as Germany’s invasion of Poland in 1939, the Blitzkrieg, the Battle of Britain, Operation Overlord (the invasion of Normandy), the Battle of the Bulge, and the Soviets’ capture of Berlin
  • explaining why particular events were significant turning points in the Asia-Pacific theatre of war, such as the Japanese occupation of China, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, the fall of Singapore in 1942, the bombings of northern Australia, the American victory at the Battle of Midway in 1942, the Battle for Kokoda and the Battle of Iwo Jima
  • examining the historical context in which the Holocaust occurred, including anti-Semitism and Nazi race theory
  • investigating the scale and significance of the Holocaust using primary and secondary sources, such as survivor testimonies
  • discussing the short- and long-term impacts of the Holocaust on the Jewish community post–World War II, such as coming to terms with the scale of loss, migration to Israel, Australia and the United States, and the creation of Yad Vashem and other Holocaust centres, museums and memorials
  • identifying the race to build the atomic bomb by Germany, Japan and the USA, and analysing why the atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
  • investigating the effects of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, including short- and long-term effects on human health, and short- and long-term environmental effects on the cities and surrounding areas
General capabilities
  • Ethical understanding Ethical understanding
  • Intercultural understanding Intercultural Understanding
ScOT terms

Contemporary world,  Human rights,  Civil rights,  Freedom,  Decolonisation

Video

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Work sample Year 10 History: Second World War

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