WW2 Battle or Operation Investigation

With so many countries involved in World War II, there were an incredible amount of pivotal battles. In this activity, students will be assigned one of the numerous battles of World War II and create a storyboard to summarize the causes of the battle, the events that transpired throughout the battle, and the outcomes.

It's helpful for students to be assigned a battle or to have them select battles as a class, in order to ensure that there are few duplicates. This way, students can share their research with each other digitally or present them to the class. As another option, students can create a poster instead of a frayer model. If this is the case, add some poster templates to the assignment and adjust the instructions accordingly!

Possible WWII Battles To Choose

• Battle of Belgium
• Polish Campaign
• Battle of France
• Winter War
• Battle of Crete
• Operation Sea Lion
• Norwegian Campaign
• Operation Barbarossa
• Juno Beach
• Battle of Anzio
• Invasion of Normandy
• Battle of Stalingrad
• Battle of Kursk
• Battle of the Bulge

Extended Activity

Students that wish to engage in this extension activity will participate in a theoretical history assignment. Students will be required to complete an additional storyboard that argues why the losing side of their researched battle lost and re-create a strategy that they believe could have resulted in a victory. Students should be encouraged to research prior wars and battle tactics throughout history to incorporate into their arguments and battle plans. Students may present their arguments to the class and may invoke a respectful debate among other students in the analysis of the proposed plan of victory.

Student Instructions

Create a frayer model that examines a battle from WW2, focusing on what it was, why it happened, the outcomes, and the conditions/tactics.

1. Click "Start Assignment".
2. In the center of the Frayer model, identify the battle.
3. In the title boxes, identify the elements of the battle you will examine.
4. Write a summary for each in the description boxes.
5. Create an illustration using appropriate scenes, characters, items, or photos from Photos for Class.
6. Save and exit when you're done.