Merry Christmas

Happy Christmas Glastonbury Historians

Have a good break. I tried to find the most festive picture possible and I think we can all agree you can't get much more festive than this.

Assignments for Friday 6 January 2012

1. Describe the role of Hitler in helping the Nazis come to power (9).

2. Revise for the rise to power of the Nazis 1928-1933 Test.

Feel free to seek any assistance on the above two tasks or ask any questions about German History 1918-1945.

Assignment Assistance

Your assignment due in on Thursday 8 December is as follows:

What factors were crucial in helping the Nazis came to power in January 1933? You could include the following in your answer and any information of your own. (16)

§  Nazi Party policies

§  Fear of Communism

§  Impact of the Wall Street Crash

Simple statement some relevant knowledge (1-4)

Developed statements - material which is mostly relevant and accurate (5-8)

Understands focus of the question - supports with sufficient accurate and relevant detail (9-12)

Sustained focus on the question. Analysis supported by precisely selected and accurate material (13-16)

Feel free to ask for any assistance

Hitler Becomes Chancellor

Hitler broadcasts to the nation after becoming Chancellor

This week we will be drawing up all the loose ends and analysing exactly why Hitler became Chancellor on 30 January 1933. This will also help you in preparation for your assignment. Could there have been any other alternatives?

There will also be an opportunity on the blog to ask for any assistance with your assignment.

From Weimar to the Nazis

Nazi Rally in Frankfurt in 1932

This week we will be looking at the reasons for the end of the Weimar Republic and the forward march of the Nazis.

The following essay will be due in on Thursday 8 December 2011:

What factors were crucial in helping the Nazis come to power in January 1933? (16) You could include the following in your answer and any information of your own:

• Nazi Party policies
• Fear of Communism
• Impact of the Wall Street Crash

Assignment Guidance


In Introduction Define and Direct

Go for 6 Paragraphs in the body of the assignment. Each should have a clear Big Idea. Develop the point and analyse. Support with precisely selected evidence. Link points together.

In Conclusion make it clear what factor(s) was most important. What was crucial?

To get the top band - Level 4 (13-16) A/A*

You need to have a sustained focus on the question. You need to produce an analysis supported by precisely selected ansd accurate evidence.

Wall Street Crash, Depression and the end of the Weimar Republic

A German woman looks for work

This week we will be looking at the onward march of the Nazis in the second half of the 1920s; the effect of the Wall Street Crash on Germany and the effective end of Weimar democracy.

1919-1923 German History Examination and Weimar Culture

'The Agitator' by George Grosz (1928)

In this week's lessons you will be sitting an examination on Germany 1919-23. You have been given a copy of the examination paper - you will be allowed to bring in two sides of notes to help you. If you were not in the lesson / have not been seen by me previously do see me to get an exam paper or you'll find things more tricky than necessary. The examination is very similar to the one you will face next June. It is crucial that your timed answers are as strong as possible. You need to learn from these opportunities.

If you have not completed any of the tests due to absence you need to complete them asap. Anyone who did not hand in homework because of absence needs to do so asap as well. If you are absent, you need to photocopy work / do assignments straight away as lessons follow on from each other and a certain 'law' dictates if you've missed a session, that is the one you'll be questioned on in the end.

In the second part of the session we will return to the Golden Years of Weimar and Wemar Culture.

In the lesson I will collect in all exams, any outstanding homework including the 1919-1923 Grids before the Parents Evening.

Any questions feel free to ask....

The Golden Years of Weimar?

Was it all smiles in 1920s Germany?

This week we shall be looking at the remaining years of the 1920s. What were they really like for Germany?

Munich Beerhall Putsch

Crowds gather during the Munich Beerhall Putsch

This week we will be focusing mainly on the Munich Beerhall Putsch. The event was a catastrophic failure, yet less than ten years later Hitler was Chancellor of Germany. How?

We will also be reviewing the 1919-23 period of upheaval. Make sure you have all your notes with you and the 1919-23 Politcal Upheaval grid. Additionally, we will discuss your first major assignment on the Treaty of Versailles.

Bookwise - Mrs. Cassidy has forwarded you letters about the books she has been able to get a discount on. The 'Essential' one is very good to outline the basics; the Edexcel one is obviously directly focused on the particular course you are studying.

Early Nazi Test, Problems in 1923

In this week's batch of lessons you will face the Early Years of Hitler and the Nazis Test. You will then go onto the problems of 1923.

Remember to complete the Uprisings 1919-23 revision sheet and the revision for the test

German children watch those Marks pile up

Marks spreadsheet

The following in order got the highest marks in the Treaty of Versailles Test - AW, SB, BB, AG, GC/MW (in that order).

That means after two marks the top five are as follows: GC, AW, BB, MW, SB (in that order).

The following got an equal or higher mark on the second test than the first (remmberering that this test carried half the marks) - so keep up the improvement: SB, AG, DR, JC, TW, LW

Unrest and the early years of Hitler and the Nazis

Hitler during the First World War (Hitler is not surprisingly on the far Right)

This week we will be looking at further unrest in the early years of the Weimar Republic. You've probably gathered it was a fairly turbulent time. We will also be going on to analyse the early years of both Hitler and the Nazi Party. As you will see you cannot understand either without understanding the nature of Germany in the early years of the Twentieth Century.

Any Questions?

If anyone has any questions about the assignment or about anything covered so far do not hesitate to post a question here and I will endeavour to answer it. The period between 1919-23 witnessed a great many events that overlapped so don't be afraid of seeking clarification.

Stabbed in the Back?

The next lessons will take up the story of Germany in 1919.

Germany's lost World War I, they have a new government and there's trouble on the streets.

Then there's the Treaty of Versailles... when will the suffering end?

The French Prime Minister, Clemenceau. Did he kick Germany when it was down?

Much of Friday will be devoted to the Treaty of Versailles.

Your first essay will be due in for Friday 7 October 2011 (there will also be a short test on the Treaty)

Title:

'Why was the Treaty of Versailles unpopular in Germany?' (12)

You may use the following in your answer and any information of your own.

• Hitler called the Treaty of Versailles 'The Dictated Peace'
• The Treaty of Versailles reduced the German Army to 100,000 men
• Germany had to pay reparations

How the question will be marked

Level 1   1-4    Simple statements - Some relevant knowledge.

Level 2  5-8   Statements will be developed with support from material which is mostly relevant and accurate.

Level 3   9-12  Sufficient accurate and relevant detail. Top of level for range of factors explored or the links between factors shown.

Just to show you how much you are loved as a class I have dusted off some tips to help you do the best you can

1. Plan your answer

2. Use of paragraphs is important. Each paragraph should have a ‘big idea’ – first sentence in each paragraph which is linked back to the central question set and precisely outlines what the paragraph is to be about. Make sure each paragraph has a central theme.

3. Work out what your big ideas are then precisely support them with appropriately selected knowledge.

4. Be analytical – analyse, don’t narrate.

5. In answers try to show both sides of an argument / balance. Use terms like however,…nevertheless, on the other hand etc.

6. Link points together ( this was made worse by the fact that,….at the same time x was happening which made the problem worse as it meant that….)

7. Explain points carefully – use terms like because, this meant that, as a result of this.

8. Refer to all of the three areas in the question, but you must also refer to other factors.

9. Ensure your written communication is a clear and sophisticated as possible.

10. In the introduction define any key terms (what, when, where etc.) then direct (show where the answer is going) – define and direct.

11. Reach a balanced conclusion which is a logical extension of your earlier points. If relevant try to reach a hierarchy of causation, effect etc. This / these were the most crucial factors because they meant that….

12. Use specialist historical terms.

There are probably important points I’ve forgotten, but these are some crucial ones.

You have the potential to do well - you need to start reaching it now. Don’t rush work - each assignment will allow you to have a chance to review important areas of work which often come up in the examination - if you do your best you’ll have the chance to get good feedback if it is rushed, you won’t.

Friday 16 September 2011

Flag of Krgyzstan

Not only is Friday 16th met with trepidation by the people of  Krrgyzstan  but it also the date of your next lesson.   

The lesson will commence with an exam / test / quiz on the material covered in the first set of lessons. Thirty marks will be on offer - 15 on 'Ideology' and 15 on 'Germany and World War I'. The questions will focus on what you covered in class - you do not need to find out everything there is to know about the Battle of Verdun or the internal workings of German Socialism.

Later in the lesson you will have the opportunity to carry out some real work of the historian by undertaking some source analysis. You will also address some of the early postwar unrest and the formation of the new Republic.

Remember by the next lesson you need to have:

1. Stuck in the necessary sheets (in order and neatly).
2. Completed the political compass test and posted the results here.
3. Revised for the examination.

Where are you on the Political Compass?

Where are you on the Political Compass?

Have you any questions / comments on political ideology?

Germany 1919-1945

OK I am biased, but German History from 1919-1945 has to be one of the most fascinating and tragic periods in the history of mankind. And I don't make such claims idly.

The period is bookended by the loss of World War I and the total defeat of Germany in 1945 at the end of the World War II.

Just think someone born in Germany in the late Nineteenth Century would have lived in Imperial Germany, experienced the horrors of World War I, suffered the difficult postwar period including hyperinflation before being plunged into the depression. The period up to 1933 would have been hard enough, but then the person in question would have had to experience the barbarism of twelve years of Nazi Germany which would include further horrors in World War II. The person in question could then have found themselves in the German Democratic Republic (aka East Germany).

German Twentieth Century History is almost ridiculously rich and the period you are studying is the richest of all. I would honestly say studying the period is invaluable and will stay with you. However, some parts will have you thinking 'do I really want to be studying this'?