Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month (and beyond) Lesson Idea
Frequently primary sources can tell the story of wartime racism, stereotyping, and government misinformation. I came across this film in the Internet Archives made by the U.S. Office of War Information Bureau of Motion Pictures (1943) that certainly provides an example.
https://dn790001.ca.archive.org/0/items/Japanese1943/Japanese1943.mp4
Lesson Idea
Challenge students to research photos in the library of Congress on Japanese American Incarceration. Next they can design & create a Keynote using the built in Record Audio tool to capture their own narration that more accurately tells the story. They might even be able to interview family or community members to add to the narrative.
For example, how might students narrate these primary sources after researching valid sources on Japanese American Incarceration?
Certainly for history classes, viewing the film made by the Office of War Information Bureau of Motion Pictures and discussing, is one approach to learning. But having students work closely with the words and images to develop a media response takes that learning one step further. Asking students, “How do we correct misinformation or misrepresentation and misinterpretation of media?” and sending them on a media creation task, can lead to very powerful learning.
Resources:
- Ansel Adams's Photographs of Japanese-American Internment at Manzanar (Library of Congress)
- Forced removal and incarceration of Japanese Americans living in California during World War II (Images Library of Congress)
- Lost Liberty (Apple Books) Using Image Galleries.
Attach up to 5 files which will be available for other members to download.