Journey To Topaz
The Japanese in America

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Journey To Topaz is the story of eleven year old Yuki Sakane who, along with her family, is shipped to the relocation camp at Topaz in Utah after the bombing of Pearl Harbor by the Japanese in World War II.  The wartime tragedy of the forced removal of Japanese-Americans from their homes is based on the author's own experience.

First meet the author of this book, Yoshiko Uchida:
Uchida.jpg (10304 bytes)

Read these short biographies:
http://www.clarion.edu/edu-humn/libsci/buchanancoursesyl/uchida.htm
http://jarda.cdlib.org/collections.html

Now we will explore the experience of Japanese-Americans:
http://www.pbs.org/pov/pov1999/rabbitinthemoon/index2.html

Overview:
http://americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/experience/index.html

During this novel study you will be part of an expert group that researches one of the following topics:

wpe4.jpg (782 bytes)  Evacuation and Internment

wpe4.jpg (782 bytes)  Life in the Camps

japanbutton.gif (1754 bytes)  World War II

japanbutton.gif (1754 bytes)  Afterward

japanbutton.gif (1754 bytes)  Making Connections

japanbutton.gif (1754 bytes)  The Art of Haiku

Each group will select one of the following formats for presenting their research:

japanbutton.gif (1754 bytes)  Powerpoint Presentation
           Take a Powerpoint Tutorial:
           http://www.electricteacher.com/tutorial3.htm
           Powerpoint Presentation Rubric:
           http://www.esc20.net/etprojects/formats/webquests/summer99/northside/great_deserts/rubricmm.htm

japanbutton.gif (1754 bytes)  Children's Nonfiction Picture Book
           Read about picture books here:
            http://picturingbooks.imaginarylands.org/
           

japanbutton.gif (1754 bytes)  Children's Alphabet Book
           What is an alphabet book?

Picturing Books (click on Anatomy of a Picture Book at
top of page to learn about elements of design):
http://picturingbooks.imaginarylands.org/
Evaluating an alphabet book: http://falcon.jmu.edu/~ramseyil/alphbib.htm
           Example 1: http://www.acsamman.edu.jo/~el/2/abc/
           Example 2: http://americanhistory.si.edu/notkid/nmabc.htm

wpe5.jpg (782 bytes)  Inspiration Presentation
        Take an Inspiration Tutorial:
          http://aitt.acadiau.ca/tutorials/Inspiration/
          http://www.teachers-connect.net/cc/98-99/inspiration/inspiration.htm
             Inspiration Presentation Rubric:
             http://www.esc20.net/etprojects/formats/webquests/summer99/northside/great_deserts/rubricinsp.htm

wpe5.jpg (782 bytes) Poster Project
          Your project must include text and illustrations.
        Poster project rubric
            

Before you begin, look at the site below.   It will walk you through the steps of a research project. 
http://www.ri.net/schools/East_Greenwich/research.html#organizing
You might want to use this graphic organizer to help you organize your ideas:
http://www.teach-nology.com/cgi-bin/concept.cgi
You can use the following time line generator if you want to sequence your events:
http://teachers.teach-nology.com/web_tools/materials/timelines/
Here is a website that teaches you the correct bibliography format:
http://www.noodletools.com/quickcite/citbook.html

The Research Links:

Evacuation and Internment History

Internment defined and slide show of evacuation:
http://www.janm.org/breed/depart_t.htm
WW II Internment Timeline:
http://www.children-of-the-camps.org/history/timeline.html
WWII and Roundup:
http://www.jainternment.org/ww2/index.html
Timeline of the Japanese-American Internment:
http://www.intranet.csupomona.edu/~tassi/intern.htm#timeline
Another timeline (chronology) of WW II Internment:
http://www.janm.org/nrc/internch.html
Japanese American Incarceration Facts:
http://www.janm.org/nrc/internfs.html
Seattle Times article on Internment:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/centennial/june/internment.html
Internment of Japanese:
http://www.sfmuseum.org/war/evactxt.html
Instructions to all persons of Japanese Ancestory:
http://www.sfmuseum.org/hist9/evacorder.html
Maps of camps:
http://bss.sfsu.edu/internment/map.html
The Executive Order Page from the Virtual Museum:
http://home.jps.net/~gailhd/Hall_1.html
The Exclusion Order:
http://www.millardcounty.com/civilorder.html
War Department Newsreel explaining internment:
http://www.pbs.org/perilousfight/social/asian_americans/videos/

Evacuation and Internment, Student Powerpoint

The Camps

An introduction:
http://www.fatherryan.org/hcompsci/camp.htm
About Topaz:
http://www.millardcounty.com/topazcamp.html
Journey Through Topaz:
http://www.uen.org/utahlink/tours/tourFames.cgi?tour_id=14717
Life in the camp:
http://www.janm.org/breed/life_t.htm
The Camp Experience:
http://www.jainternment.org/camps/index.html
Images from Topaz:
http://www.lib.utah.edu/spc/photo/9066/topaz.htm
First hand account from San Francisco newspaper:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/examiner/archive/1997/04/20/METRO2044.dtl
Journey to Topaz:  A Virtual Museum (Visit halls 2, 3 and4):
http://home.jps.net/~gailhd/Journey_to_Topaz_-_A_Virtual_Museum.html
Visit the Family Album Project that shows pictures of daily life in the camps.  These pictures were taken by internees:
http://www.csuohio.edu/art_photos/famalbum/famalbum.html
List of camps with population of each, opening and closing dates:
http://www.children-of-the-camps.org/history/camps.html
Daily life in the camps worksheet:
http://www.eduplace.com/ss/hmss/4/unit/act5.2blm.html
Online exhibit:
http://www.scu.edu/SCU/Programs/Diversity/exhibit2.html
Video Interviews:
http://www.pbs.org/pov/pov1999/rabbitinthemoon/community/index.html
http://www.pbs.org/pov/pov1999/rabbitinthemoon/enemy/index.html
http://www.pbs.org/pov/pov1999/rabbitinthemoon/loyalty/index.html

World War II

Learn about the factors that led to war and the climate of fear in the United States that led to the internment of Japanese-Americans:

The Road to War from BBC:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/modern/roadwar/roadwhtm.htm
Thinkquest site on WWII
http://library.thinkquest.org/19090/
Thinkquest site on the background of the war:
http://library.thinkquest.org/J0110055/
Good site with brief background of WWII and Questions to Ponder:
http://www.learner.org/biographyofamerica/prog22/feature/

Afterward

Legal History of Internment:
http://www.cynthialeitichsmith.com/niseiww2.htm#cases
Post-War Resettlement:
http://www.jainternment.org/postwar/resettlement.html
Justice for Japanese Americans:
http://americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/experience/index.html
Health Impact:
http://www.pbs.org/childofcamp/history/health.html
President Ford's proclamation that ended Executive Order 9066:
http://www.ford.utexas.edu/library/speeches/proc4417.jpg
President George Bush's Letter of Apology:
http://www.fatherryan.org/hcompsci/aftermth.htm
The Letter of Apology from President Clinton following reparation checks sent to camp survivors:
http://www.children-of-the-camps.org/history/clinton.html
Civil Rights Act of 1988:
http://www.mtholyoke.edu/~csshort/aftermath.html
Video Interviews:
http://www.pbs.org/pov/pov1999/rabbitinthemoon/remembering/index.html
60 Years Later:
http://www.aaiusa.org/wwatch/021802.htm
A Nation's Apology:
http://www.sacbee.com/static/archive/news/projects/reparations/20011008_main.html

Making Connections
Face to Face:
http://www.itvs.org/facetoface/intro.html
Japanese Americans on 9-11:
http://www.aaja.org/html/news_html/media_watch/media_watch_010917.html
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/attack/39283_intern18.shtml
http://www.nosei.com/media/news/011208UKGuardian.html
Post 9/11 Hate Crimes:
http://www.esrnational.org/discrimincidents200109.htm

Haiku

Research the Japanese poetry form known as haiku.  Find sites on the
internet that explain its form, history, importance, masters and modern
usage.  Go directly to http://www.yahooligans.com/ to begin.  Type the
word haiku in the text box, then click on search.  Explore each site.

How do you write Haiku?
http://www.jinjapan.org/kidsweb/japan/d/q2.html

Also take a look at this beautiful haiku & photography webpage:
http://raysweb.net/haiku/

General Research Rubric for Journey To Topaz

Primary Source Documents:

Use the primary source document sites below to help you conduct your research.

Primary Source Documents:
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/8420/main.html
Lots of primary source photos:
http://www.archives.gov/search/index.html
More primary source photos:
http://bss.sfsu.edu/internment/photographs.html
Photographs of Japanese-American Evacuation and Relocation (click on Container List at left, then view photos from various camps):
http://www.oac.cdlib.org/dynaweb/ead/calher/jvac/?
See a variety of captioned photos:
http://historyproject.ucdavis.edu/imageapp.php?Collection2=US&Major=WR

This site will help you analyze any documents you find:
http://www.nara.gov/education/teaching/analysis/analysis.html
7 important questions to help you analyze documents:
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/ndlpedu/lessons/psources/studqsts.html

Political Cartoons:
http://www.tfaoi.com/am/8am/8am206.jpg
http://rutlandhs.k12.vt.us/jpeterso/Coljap.htm
http://www.sfmuseum.org/hist8/editorial4.html
Cartoon Analysis Worksheet:
http://www.nara.gov/education/teaching/analysis/cartoon.html

Primary Source Documents Slide Show

Persuasive Essay Model

http://www.sasinschool.com/software/us_history/pages/japanese.shtml

 

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