Lesson Plan: Atomic Vets – Teaching With Primary Sources (Scaffolded Writing Resources)

Subjects:

U.S. History, Civics/Government

Grade Level:

8-12

Lesson Duration:

• Two 40-55 minute class periods

Essential Questions:

• What are the long-term consequences of government secrecy and denial on the lives of veterans and public trust in institutions?

• What led Congress to finally pass a compensation bill for veterans affected by nuclear tests?

Lesson Objectives:

Students will:

• Develop a position and present a viewpoint based on historical evidence.

• Analyze how U.S. military atomic testing impacted soldiers’ health, lives, and trust in government through exposure to radiation and the dismissal of safety concerns.

• Explain the reasons Congress passed the Atomic Veterans’ Compensation Bill by watching a video, answering questions, completing an outline, and drafting a paragraph.

Materials:

• Retro Report video “Atomic Vets” (Transcript)

• Video Guide and Question Sheet

• Paragraph Outlines

  • No scaffolds

  • Partial w/Topic and Concluding Sentence

  • Partial w/Evidence to Sort

  • Full Scaffolding – Sorted Evidence

• Primary Source Pack

• Primary Source Analysis Activity

Key Vocabulary:

• Operation Crossroads: experiments to see how naval warships withstand nuclear explosions

• Radioactive: substance or particle that produces harmful release of radiation that is dangerous to humans

• Nuclear Test Ban Treaty: 1963 treaty signed banning above-ground atomic testing (not underground)

• Compensation: the action or process of rewarding someone, usually with money, for loss, injury, or suffering

• Atomic Veterans: Soldiers who were exposed to radiation during U.S. atomic testing programs.

• Veterans Administration (VA): A government agency that provides military veterans with benefits and services.

• Cold War: A time of political tension between the United States and the Soviet Union after World War II, during which atomic testing increased.

• Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA): A law passed in 1990 that gave money and an apology to people, including veterans, who got sick from radiation during U.S. atomic testing or uranium mining. It was created to take responsibility for the harm caused by these activities.

Procedure:

1. Review: This lesson is best used in a U.S. History class to explore the impact of atomic testing on soldiers and the ethical concerns of government secrecy or in a Civics/Government class to examine government accountability, veterans’ rights, and policies addressing harmful exposures.

   1. Potential discussion and review topics for U.S. History:

      1. U.S. atomic testing programs after World War II exposed soldiers to radiation, leading to long-term health issues and raising questions about the treatment of veterans.

      2. The ethical and historical implications of secrecy in government programs, mainly how the military’s decisions affected the lives of atomic veterans.

      3. The impact of delayed government recognition and assistance for atomic veterans on public trust and the historical record.

   2. Potential discussion and review topics for Civics/Government:

      1. What is the government’s responsibility to protect and compensate soldiers harmed by its policies or actions?

      2. Decisions about transparency, accountability, and justice for harmed individuals shape public trust in government.

      3. Connections between the struggles of atomic veterans and modern issues like soldiers exposed to burn pits, exploring how policies addressing harmful exposures have evolved.

   3. The teacher can ask: “How should the U.S. government balance its responsibilities to protect soldiers while pursuing national defense goals?”

      1. Students may recall evidence from the treatment of atomic veterans, considering the long-term health consequences of radiation exposure and the government’s delayed response. Additionally, the modern parallels, such as the government’s response to burn pits and other harmful exposures, while reflecting on whether lessons from the past are being applied today.

2. Guided Instruction: Have students watch the “Atomic Vets” video.

   1. This can be done as a whole class, individually on computers, or using the EdPuzzle platform.

   2. The video guide and question sheet pose two guiding questions for the film, and several sentence stems that students can complete as they watch.

   3. After reviewing responses and highlighting exemplary answers, the teacher will distribute the scaffolded outlines to students.

3. Outline and Writing Prompt: Each outline version has the same writing prompt. For this activity, students will respond to the following prompt:

   1. What led Congress to finally pass a compensation bill for veterans affected by nuclear tests?

   2. Demonstrate how responses on the video guide and question sheet could be used to craft topic and concluding sentences.

   3. Guide students through creating categories and details on their version of the Outline form.

      1. Students can work together or independently to turn their categories and details into full sentences, depending on the time and classroom setup.

      2. Be sure to emphasize that each detail can be more than one sentence.

4. Primary Source Analysis: Have students complete one or more of the Primary Source Analysis activities provided for this lesson.

   1. Students are encouraged to draw upon one or more primary sources to support their answers and evidence while constructing their outline.

5. Outline Construction: Have students complete whichever scaffolded outline they were given.

6. Paragraph Construction: Have students construct their full paragraph using the outline that students completed.

About the Author:

This lesson and associated materials was originally developed by teachers at the Windward School.

About the Editor:

Jaclyn Jecha is an educator with over 15 years of experience in formal and informal education. She teaches social studies at New Berlin West Middle and High School, where she develops curriculum emphasizing critical thinking, research, and communication. As a Media Literacy Consultant for the Center for Civic Education, Jaclyn focuses on combating disinformation and fostering informed citizenship. She has collaborated with organizations such as the National Park Service and PBS Wisconsin to create innovative educational materials.

Standards

College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social Studies

• D1.5.6-8. Determine the kinds of sources that will be helpful in answering compelling and supporting questions, taking into consideration multiple points of views represented in the sources.
• D2.Civ.2.9-12. Analyze the role of citizens in the U.S. political system, with attention to various theories of democracy, changes in Americans’ participation over time, and alternative models from other countries, past and present.
• D2.Civ.5.9-12. Evaluate citizens’ and institutions’ effectiveness in addressing social and political problems at the local, state, tribal, national, and/or international level.
• D2.Civ.13.9-12. Evaluate public policies in terms of intended and unintended outcomes, and related consequences.
• D2.His.1.9-12. Evaluate how historical events and developments were shaped by unique circumstances of time and place as well as broader historical contexts.
• D2.His.4.9-12. Analyze complex and interacting factors that influenced the perspectives of people during different historical eras.
• D2.His.5.9-12. Analyze how historical contexts shaped and continue to shape people’s perspectives.
• D2.His.14.9-12. Analyze multiple and complex causes and effects of events in the past.
• D3.1.6-8. Gather relevant information from multiple sources while using the origin, authority, structure, context, and corroborative value of the sources to guide the selection.
• D3.3.6-8. Identify evidence that draws information from multiple sources to support claims, noting evidentiary limitations.
• D4.1.6-8. Construct arguments using claims and evidence from multiple sources, while acknowledging the strengths and limitations of the arguments.

Common Core Literacy Standards

• CCSS.ELA.LITERACY.RI.11-12.3: Analyze a complex set of ideas or sequences of events and explain how specific individuals, ideas, or events interact or develop over the course of a text.
• CCSS.ELA.LITERACY.RH.11-12.7: Integrate and evaluate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media (e.g., visually, quantitatively, as well as in words) in order to address a question or solve a problem.