Gail Halvorsen: The Candy Bomber

 We began the class by having the boys carry and/or drag one another to safety, once again simulating Desmond Doss's experience at Okinawa during World War II.

After the boys had some time for free play we had the boys do their workout and then recited the Pledge and our class rules and affirmations.

We reviewed our heroes from last week (Zamperini and Doss) and then talked about the end of World War II and the background of the Berlin Airlift.  We then talked about Gail Halverson who has come to be known as the Candy Bomber.  We watched this video about Halverson.  

We love his kindness and ingenuity in the face of the Germans' deprivation.  His acts of service for people who had so recently been seen as the "enemy" would help many hearts heal.  

Louis Zamperini and Desmond Doss: Heroes of World War II

 We started the class off with some rough housing, after which we did our work out and began the class with the Pledge of Allegiance and our class rules and affirmations.

We then reviewed last week's hero (Helmuth Hubener), after which we introduced two American Heroes: Louis Zamperini and Desmond Doss.

We began with Zamperini.  We shared this PowerPoint, telling his amazing life story.  It includes links to videos taken from the film Unbroken, a film based on his biography.   

After going over Zamperini and having a snack we pretended that there were sharks on the ground.

We then talked a little about Desmond Doss, whose story is also remarkable.  Though he never carried a gun due to his religious beliefs, he chose to enlist and serve as a medic.  At Hacksaw Ridge in Okinawa he rescued somewhere around 75 men (the exact number is unknown).   He dragged and carried them, one by one, and let them down a cliffside all through the night.  As he went along, he kept praying, "Help me find one more, Lord."

We finished the class by having the boys try to drag and carry one another, to simulate Doss's act of heroism.

Helmuth Hubener: A Teenage Hero

 We began class with a mini "Olympics."  We had the boys run a 100m race twice (they all beat their first time!) and then we had them run a 100m relay.  Those were two of the events that Jesse Owens won at the 1936 Olympics, as we had discussed the previous week.

After letting the boys get some water and have some play time, we began class in our usual manner, skipping the workout because the boys were exhausted.

We reviewed the previous week's information about the rise of Nazism and Hitler, and then shared the story of Helmuth Hubener, an incredibly brave boy who followed his conscience in a courageous way.  Feeling that their teachings were not correct, he dropped out of the Hitler Youth program.  He then started listening (illegally) to the radio.  As he learned the truth about what his country was actually doing and going through, he began making and distributing flyers to inform the public.  

For this crime, he was eventually arrested.  In an effort to protect his friends who had been helping him, he took all the blame.  Although he was only 16 he was tried as an adult and was executed.  He was the youngest German to be executed for such crimes.  His courage and integrity are amazing to me for someone so young.

After this we played hide and seek with the boys.

Jesse Owens and the Rise of Hitler

 After holding some staring contests like the week before we started our class in the usual way (workout, Pledge of Allegiance and reciting the class rules and affirmations.)

We then used a powerpoint to teach about Post World War I Germany and how it read to the rise of Nazism.  Then we shared a little about Jesse Owens (reading some selections from DK Life Stories: Jesse Owens.)  

Though he was a very small, sickly child and was born to a sharecropping family in the South his natural talent coupled with hard work helped him become the fastest man in the world.  In 1936 he traveled to Nazi Germany for the Berlin Olympics and not only did he smash world records (winning 4 gold medals!) but he proved all of the racist thinking that would motivate the Holocaust wrong.

We then had the boys take turns doing the long jump, marking where they landed and encouraging them to try to jump further and further.

The Great Depression: Laughter is the Best Medicine

Today we began with Silent Ball.  A few of our classmates were late so we had several rounds.  Then we started our class with a workout and our recitations.

Afterward, we reviewed last week's hero: Calvin Coolidge.  He really is probably the most underrated United States President. 

The main ideas we discussed were his nickname ("Silent Cal" due to his short speeches and documents), his economic policies and his overall conservative philosophy.  He is the only president to have successfully decreased the size of government (rather than do lip service to it.)  He balanced the budget by cutting spending and was actually able to reduce taxes in a responsible way.

We then introduced our next time period: the Great Depression.  You'll notice I didn't introduce a hero for this Era.  Many see Franklin D. Roosevelt as a hero but I disagree.  I shared this video with the boys to explain.  In short, his policies, often applauded for helping during the Great Depression, actually prolonged the economic crisis and prevented the natural forces within the market to allow recovery.

We didn't end on a low note, however.  In the midst of all the suffering and tragedy that took place during the 1930s (the word "depression" is very appropriate for the decade) there were many comedians and others who tried to help people forget their sorrows, at least for a time.  Celebrities like Charlie Chaplin, Bob Hope, the Three Stooges and others showed that laughter can be a very effective form of medicine.

After watching some fun clips from Charlie Chaplin and the Three Stooges we played a staring game (in which you try not to smile.)  It was so much fun.

We let the boys play at the end.

Calvin Coolidge: Shrinking the Government

 We started class with a fun review of WWI.  While simulating "trench warfare" again we paused every so often to ask questions and review some of the information we learned last week.

Then we began class, doing our workout, reciting the pledge and saying the class rules and affirmations.

We let the boys play a bit and then we let them have their snack, after which we introduced this week's hero: Calvin Coolidge.

Calvin Coolidge is the only United States President who successfully decreased the size of government.  He cut costs, balanced the budge and, by doing so, was able to decrease taxes.  The misery index was the lowest in history as a result.

He was nicknamed "Silent Cal," thanks to his short speeches and short documents, so after explaining the national debt and discussing what a good thing it is to balance the budget, we played Silent Ball.

The boys loved it!

Alvin York: Courage and Leadership Under Fire

 We started up our class again for the summer.  

The routine will be the same- start with some free play, do our workout and then begin class with the pledge and class rules and affirmations.

We then did a review of some of the heroes we covered in previous semesters before introducing our next hero and era: Alvin York and World War I.

We used a PowerPoint to introduce the war.  After watching selected scenes from the film 1917 we talked about Medal of Honor recipient Alvin York.

A man of great Christian faith, it took York time to overcome his reluctance to take any lives.  In the heat of battle, countless men fell around him, making him the highest ranking soldier present.  Rather than let nearby machine guns mow down his man he showed incredible courage and leadership by initiating an attack on a German machine gun nest.

I also recommend reading the book about World War I titled Where the Poppies Grow.  We didn't have time to do so in class but it has been such a treat to read with my boys- especially my 6-year-old.

We ended by reenacting trench warfare upstairs with balls.