This database includes articles, lesson plans and primary sources from the National WWI Museum and Memorial and our partners around the world, presented in collaboration with the United States World War One Centennial Commission.
Do you have resources that you want to share or have questions? Contact us at education@theworldwar.org.
Teaching Resource Database
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The Influenza Epidemic: Educator ResourceHow WWI Changed AmericaCreator: U.S. WWI Centennial Commission, Doughboy FoundationThe 1918–1919 Influenza Pandemic was one of the deadliest in history, affecting hundreds of millions of people worldwide and killing upwards of fifty million people. Occurring against and worsened by the global movements of World War I, the pandemic added to the devastation felt by communities worldwide. This video is made possible by a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and is a partnership of the U.S. WWI Centennial Commission, the Doughboy Foundation and the National WWI Museum and Memorial as part of the teaching and learning resources of "How WWI Changed America.”View Online |
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Pandemic Then and NowLessons from the 1918 InfluenzaCreator: Nancy Bristow, National WWI Museum and MemorialAs American soldiers mobilized for war in the spring of 1918, a handful of army physicians began noticing a worrisome influenza moving among their soldiers. Often resulting in a deadly pneumonia, it struck down previously healthy young men, sometimes with surprising rapidity. This timely article by professor/author Nancy K. Bristow, written in March 2020 for the National WWI Museum and Memorial, parallels the 1918 Influenza epidemic with the COVID-19/Coronavirus.outbreak.Read Online |
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Medicine in the First World WarCreator: University of Kansas Medical CenterDuring the war, the U.S. Army mobilized medical resources to create one hundred large base hospitals. This website has been created to tell the story of Base Hospital #28, the 2,500 bed military base hospital that was formed by Kansas City doctors and nurses and which arrived in Limoges, France, in July 1918. During the six months of its active operation it served nearly 10,000 patients. The hospital was led by doctors who were associated with the medical school of the University of Kansas before and after The Great War. The website will also examine unexpected medical challenges, e.g. the influenza epidemic of 1918 and gas gangrene.Explore Online |
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Western Front at the CinemaWorld War: Choices and ConsequencesCreator: Facing History and OurselvesThis short article about the 1916 British film Battle of the Somme looks at its effectiveness in stirring public sentiment during the war. From Facing History and Ourselves, this article is part of a larger collection of readings that look into how WWI affected people's attitudes towards war and the value of human life. Discussion questions are included for use in the classroom.Read Online |
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Propaganda During World War 1Creator: The Great War YouTube ChannelPropaganda existed for many years prior to the start of World War I; however, inventions in media made it easier to reach people on a massive scale. In this 8-minute video, host Indy Neidel with the Great War Channel explores mass propaganda during the war, specifically in Germany, Britain, and the United States. Want to learn more? Follow up with this video about propaganda films to go further in depth.Watch Online |
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Lawrence of ArabiaBattle for the Arab WorldCreator: PBSCreated in 2003, this website is a companion to the PBS program Lawrence of Arabia, Battle for the Arab World. Though older, this site still includes multiple articles and lesson plans on the Arab Revolt, Bedouin culture and biographies that can be used by a classroom with or without viewing the original television program.View Online |
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The Reel Story of the Great WarPrologue Magazine ArticleCreator: National ArchivesThe National Archives has preserved video resources since the Great War. From footage of the men in training camps and trenches, families at home and women working in factories and on farms, America at war can be viewed over 100 years later. Read this article to see just what’s available to educators and learners, and how the National Archives has preserved this footage for future generations.Read Online |
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They Shall Not Grow OldResources and ToolkitCreator: 14-18 NOW and Imperial War Museums14‑18 NOW, a project from the Imperial War Museums, worked with Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson to restore, and then colorize, footage from the First World War. The ensuing award-winning documentary, They Shall Not Grow Old, looks at the war, providing views of the battlefield and the homefront as the soldiers themselves saw it. 14‑18 NOW has also created multi-disciplinary resource toolkits for educators to use the film in the classroom.View Online |
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How Woodrow Wilson's Propaganda Machine Changed American JournalismCreator: Smithsonian MagazineThe Committee on Public Information, also known as the Creel Committee after chairman George Creel, was created by President Wilson to help control all war related news and promote the war effort at home. This article by Christopher B. Daly from Smithsonian Magazine highlights the various operations of the Creel Committee's propaganda machine that set the example for propaganda's use during later wars.Read Online |
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Razzle DazzleDazzle Camouflage Coloring SheetCreator: National WWI Museum and MemorialThis brief article and coloring sheet activity provides younger learners with more information on the “dazzle camouflage” used to protect ships in WWI. Used first by Britain’s Royal Navy, the idea behind dazzle camouflage was to create a mix of lines, shapes and colors that would help a ship better blend into the ocean or to make it difficult for spotters to pinpoint the ship’s exact location.Download PDF |
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Dazzle PaintingWorld War I Podcast SeriesCreator: MacArthur MemorialThis episode of MacArthur Memorial's World War I Podcast series explores Dazzle paintings of ships. This jarring, brightly colored paint scheme helped camouflage ships and made it hard for U-Boats to gauge the speed and direction of the vessel.Listen Online, Visit Website |
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Devastation Wrought by U-Boats in WWIInteractive MapCreator: Smithsonian magazine, Esri, Li ZhouGermany's use of unrestricted submarine warfare, where U-boat submarines were used to sink both military and merchant ships without warning, was very controversial and provocative. Smithsonian magazine and GIS-mapping company Esri have created an interactive map of the attacks by German U-boats during WWI. The accompanying article by Li Zhou details Germany's decision to use this type of warfare and how it forever changed the rules of war.View Online |
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Technology in World War ICreator: MacArthur MemorialUsing primary sources, students will use this worksheet to think critically about changes in technology that brought tanks, planes, and submarines to the battlefield. Download PDF |
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Destruction of the EcosystemCreator: Tait KellerThis article by Tait Keller posted to 1914-1918 Online: International Encyclopedia of the First World War examines the ecological impact of WWI, explaining in detail how large-scale environmental transformations came from expanded production and industrialization during the war rather than just the tolls of combat.Read Online, Download PDF |
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World War I and AmericaAmerican Women at WarCreator: Library of AmericaThis initiative from Library of America explores the continuing relevance of World War I by reading, discussing, and sharing insights into the writings of Americans who experienced it firsthand. Divided into topics, including: Why Fight?, The Experience of War, Race and World War I, American Women at War, The Home Front, America on the World Stage, and Coming Home, each subject area has both PDF reading guides and videos (hosted on Vimeo) of modern authors and scholars reading selected writings from the time period. In American Women at War, students explore the literary works of three WWI era women and then answer the question "Does women's wartime service transform gender roles and expectations?"View Online |
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about this project
The United States World War One Centennial Commission and the National WWI Museum and Memorial are dedicated to educating the public about the causes, events and consequences of the conflict and we encourage the use of these resources to better understand the Great War and its enduring impact on the global community.
Assisting in this endeavor are:
