Annotated+Grunt


 * What was life like for the grunts in country, humping the boonies? Using the various resources in and out of class, your task is to give a voice to a Vietnam soldier. Your soldier will be in the form of a** [|**voicethread**] **that will be embedded in your Unit 8 notebook. You may work with up to two other people on the assignment, as long as you all work together! The expectations are …**
 * You have a **voicethread with images of soldiers** from Vietnam. You should have no more than four images or four slides on your voicethread. Please identify the source of each image.
 * Your annotations should all be completed in **first person** and should contain **detail and historical fact**.
 * Your annotations must cover the following topics:
 * One annotation about the **challenges** you faced in guerilla warfare
 * One annotation describing **the enemy** (the Viet Cong and/or NVA)
 * One annotation describing **the tunnels**
 * One annotation describing the **use of chemicals** by the military
 * One annotation describing **search and destroy missions**
 * One annotation describing the **Tet Offensive**
 * One annotation describing **escalation**
 * One annotation describing **the draft**
 * One annotation describing **your feelings** as a soldier
 * One annotation that is an actual meaningful quote from a soldier who served in Vietnam
 * Two to three of your annotations **should be spoken**

http://www.bored.com/findquotes/cate_758_Vietnam.html
 * Notes:**
 * I kept looking around my surroundings, prepared for another guerilla attack. The last one had really shook me up. We were heading to one of the villages and we all were walking slower than usual. Mainly because of the fear that one of use would step on a mine or a booby trap, since they were stationed near villages. Unfortunately one of us did, but it was a few meters away from me. The poor fella went down as well as myself. The sound was thrashing into my head and i lay there for a while, just breathing. Everything was blurry and there was shouting and bullets were being shot from all corners. Now we all walk, as upon thin sheets of ice, making our way threw the dense forest, searching for any Viet Congs hiding in their menacing tunnels.
 * The Viet Congs were mostly teenagers, they were pretty young. Also, as other soldiers were, the Viet Cong weren't that confi dent. They were far less confident. For the most part, recruits were young teenagers, and while many were motivated by idealism, others had been pressured or shamed into joining.
 * The VIet Cong had this unique, but very inhelpful strategy. I think i've figured it out. They build these tunnels and hid in them for long periods of time, until they hear some Americans coming. They quickly climb out and attack, then they sudddnely dive back into the tunnels and hide. Most tunnels were narrow and a couple feet high. Even the villagers, who were under attack, would go into the tunnels. It was as if there was an underground city. There were even tunnel rats who were responsible for clearing out the Cu Chi tunnels, which was an important Communist base area.
 *  Even though the Viet Cong had a smart hiding area, we used chemicals that ruined the landscape. The United States planes dropped bombs of napalm, jellied gasoline the burns violently. Planes also dropped Agent Orange, a chemical that kills plants, over the jungles. This really helped destroy their hideouts and food supplies. But, unfortunately, this form of warfare hurt the innocent Vietnamese villagers.
 *  Another one of the war tactics I learned to use, alongside my troops, was the search-and-destroy mission. In such missions, we searched Viet Congs and the villages we assumed that were covering them and burned or bombed them. Although, this method won over the Viet Congs, it wasn't as helpful towards the villagers. Turns out, they weren't as pleased with us. Also, we were never sure if we attacked all of the members, some could have been alive and some could come back to rebuild.
 *  Now, this next thing, I probably will never forget. On January 30 and 31, 19568, during Tet, the Vietnamese celebration of the lunar New Year, we were attacked with about 100 other Southern Vietnamese cities and towns. Somehow, the Viet Congs disguised themselves and smuggled in weapons in South Vietnam. However, the Tet offensive was a military defeat for the Communists. They gained no cities and lost 45,000 soldiers, a huge difference from the loss of the United States soldiers.
 *  Now a days, more soldiers are heading into Vietnam. We just heard about the escalation policy. It's when its the increase of military involvement in Vietnam by the United States. Turns out, it was WIlliam Westmoreland who asked for all these new soldiers.
 *  When I was drafted, I found out over the television. My birthday was picked and i had to report the next few days and get drafted. It was one of the worst days of my life. My heart fell in my stomach and i felt as if everything was going away. I still miss home and everyone. I always wish that somehow, the had picked the wrong birthday and i can come back home
 *  I can't really describe how it feels to be a soldier. I feel like i'm home, with the barbeque running and soldiers smoking while playing cards. It feels like summer, but when I put on my hat and grab my gun, I'm frightened to death. I don't know if i should be scared or strong. The way i see my friends being pushed on the grounds by the incoming bullets and blood rushing out of their insides, I feel like running away. I don't want any of that to happen to me. So far, it's been good, but who knows? All i want is to come home and live my life like i want to.
 * "We had to destroy the village to save it." -- Vietnam Soldier.

Voicethread:

media type="custom" key="6286329" width="320" height="320"

Use our class activities and video, Creating America (pp 840-845) and some of the links below for information. Looking for primary sources? Check out [|Vietnam Oral History Project from Texas Tech], [|The Vietnam War - Oral histories],[|Letters from Vietnam]
 * Vietnam - Combat sources
 * From ABC-CLIO - [|Tet Offensive], [|Agent Orange], [|tunnel rats], [|napalm]
 * [|Guerilla Warfare in Vietnam]
 * [|The Tet Offensive]
 * [|Vietnam Era Lottery Results]
 * animations - [|war in Southeast Asia], [|tunnels], [|Tet Offensive]
 * video - [|Underground Tunnels] and [|The Tet Offensive]

Want to spice up your annotations with some grunt language? Check out[]

Images of soldiers from the Vietnam conflict
 * [|www.**vietnamsoldier**.com]
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**VOICETHREAD INSTRUCTIONS - READ CAREFULLY!!!!!**

When you create your [|voicethread] and and your annotations and comments, click on "**PUBLISHING OPTIONS**" on the bottom of the screen and make sure you "**ALLOW ANYONE TO VIEW**" the voicethread. If you want a partner to comment on it, allow "**ANYONE TO COMMENT**". Embed your voicethread on a new page in your Unt 8 notebook by clicking on "**EMBED**" on the bottom of the voicethread, copying the code, clicking "Embed Widget" in wikispaces (the little TV set), and paste the code in the "Other HTML" section. Easy stuff.