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Source set · 6 sources ✓ Lesson ready

Could World War II have been prevented?

Appeasement, the Nazi-Soviet Pact, and wartime speeches let students judge the choices of the late 1930s.

Timeline of key events →

Teach it

✓ Lesson ready

A ready-to-run lesson for this set: Four Corners Debate. Slides include a hook, one slide per source, directions, a take-a-stand vote, an exit ticket, and a teacher script in the speaker notes.

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1. Hook: a striking quote 3-5 min

My good friends this is the second time in our history that there has come back from Germany to Downing Street peace with honor. I believe it is peace in our time.
Neville Chamberlain, London (September 30, 1938)

Ask: Chamberlain had just signed the Munich Agreement with Hitler. Less than a year later, Britain was at war. What went wrong?

2. Main activity: Four Corners Debate

Grouping: Whole class, moving among four corners; small corner groups

Materials (printables are in the Lesson Plan Doc)
  • Four corner signs (printable pages in the Lesson Plan Doc)
  • Evidence cards for all 6 sources
  1. Preview evidence 5 min
    Pairs read the six evidence cards in date order (1938 to 1940).
  2. Move 3 min
    Read the four positions on the vote slide. Students walk to a corner.
  3. Build the case 8 min
    Corner groups choose their two strongest pieces of evidence and write a 45-second argument.
  4. Make the case 12 min
    Each corner presents. Students may switch corners after each speech.
  5. Respond 8 min
    Each corner answers one question from another corner.
  6. Final position 5 min
    Students write their final position with one source.
  7. Exit ticket 5 min
    Students answer on a slip before leaving.

Take a stand: Could World War II have been prevented?

  • A. Yes, if Britain and France had stood firm at Munich (Munich Agreement, Chamberlain, Roosevelt)
  • B. Yes, if the Soviet Union had not made a pact with Hitler (Nazi-Soviet Pact)
  • C. Yes, if the United States had acted sooner (Roosevelt, “Arsenal of Democracy”)
  • D. No, Hitler was set on war regardless (Churchill’s speeches, the speed of events)

3. Pacing options

15-minute bell-ringer

  • 3 min Hook: Chamberlain
  • 8 min Read the Munich terms and FDR’s “no nation can appease the Nazis”; students move to “preventable” or “not preventable” sides
  • 4 min Exit ticket question 1

Full 50-minute lesson

  • 4 min Hook: Chamberlain
  • 5 min Preview evidence
  • 3 min Move
  • 8 min Build the case
  • 12 min Present and switch
  • 8 min Respond
  • 5 min Exit ticket
  • 5 min Buffer

4. Exit ticket

  1. Which source best supports your corner? Explain.
  2. Why did appeasement seem reasonable to many people in 1938?

5. Differentiation

Support

  • This set has no Adapted Docs yet; read key passages aloud or chunk them for struggling readers.
  • Give each corner its supporting sources on its sign.
  • Provide a simple 1938-1940 timeline.

Extension

  • Research the secret protocol of the Nazi-Soviet Pact. How does it change your answer?
  • Write Chamberlain’s defense of Munich in 1940, after the war began.

Suggested sequence

  1. Munich Pact
    Document · Yale Avalon Project · Great Depression & WWII (1929-1945) · Grades 9-12 · ⏱ 10 min
    The 1938 agreement letting Germany annex the Sudetenland.
    Ask: Was appeasement a reasonable policy in 1938?
    Open with this source to frame the question.
    Original ↗Copy DocSOAPSToneHIPP / HAPP
  2. Chamberlain: Peace in Our Time (1938)
    Speech · Fordham University · Great Depression & WWII (1929-1945) · Grades 9-12 · ⏱ 5 min
    Neville Chamberlain's statements after the Munich Agreement.
    Ask: Was appeasement cowardice or caution?
    Original ↗Copy DocSOAPSToneHIPP / HAPP
  3. Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact
    Document · Yale Avalon Project · Great Depression & WWII (1929-1945) · Grades 9-12 · ⏱ 10 min
    The 1939 treaty between Germany and the Soviet Union.
    Ask: Why did Hitler and Stalin sign a pact?
    Original ↗Copy DocSOAPSToneHIPP / HAPP
  4. Churchill: Their Finest Hour (1940)
    Speech · Fordham University · Great Depression & WWII (1929-1945) · Grades 6-8, 9-12 · ⏱ 15 min
    Churchill's June 1940 speech after the fall of France.
    Ask: How do leaders inspire people in desperate times?
    Original ↗Copy DocSOAPSToneHIPP / HAPP
  5. Churchill: We Shall Fight on the Beaches
    Speech · International Churchill Society · Great Depression & WWII (1929-1945) · Grades 6-8, 9-12 · ⏱ 10 min
    Churchill's June 1940 speech.
    Ask: How did Churchill keep Britain fighting in 1940?
    Original ↗SOAPSToneHIPP / HAPP
  6. FDR: Arsenal of Democracy (1940)
    Speech · Fordham University · Great Depression & WWII (1929-1945) · Grades 6-8, 9-12 · ⏱ 20 min
    Roosevelt's fireside chat urging the U.S. to arm Britain.
    Ask: How could the U.S. help Britain without going to war?
    Close with this source before writing.
    Original ↗Copy DocSOAPSToneHIPP / HAPP

Watch

Free videos to pair with this set. Preview before showing in class.

Teach with (more from Hillsdale): Unit 6: The Interwar Years and World War II (1919-1945) (free K-12 curriculum unit)

Culminating writing prompt

Using evidence from at least three sources in this set, write an argument that answers the question: “Could World War II have been prevented?” Cite each source by title, explain how its author, audience, and purpose affect its reliability, and respond to at least one counterargument.

Printable writing sheet (make a copy)

Students can plan with the Claim-Evidence-Reasoning organizer.