NOTEBOOK GUIDE C H A P T E R Facing Frustration in Vietnam 52 What made the Vietnam War difficult to win? K e y C o n t e n t T e r m s As you complete the Reading Notes, use these Key Content Terms in your answers: North Vietnamese Army (NVA) Agent Orange war of attrition Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) P R E V I E W napalm credibility gap Tet Offensive Examine the title and Essential Question for Chapter 52. Then examine all of the photographs, captions, and text headings in the chapter. As you do this, record in your notebook any examples you find that might indicate difficulties of fighting the Vietnam War. For example, when you examine the photograph of coffins draped with American flags in Section 52.1, you might write, America lost lots of soldiers during the war. R E A D I N G N O T E S As you read Sections 52.2 to 52.4, answer the questions below. Label each set of answers with the section number and title. Section 52.2 1. Describe at least two geographic difficulties U.S. soldiers faced in Vietnam. Also describe at least one way they overcame a geographic difficulty. 2. List at least three reasons why it was difficult to fight the Viet Cong and the NVA. 3. Why was the limited war the United States fought ultimately ineffective? Section 52.3 1. Describe the two main programs of the U.S. and South Vietnamese pacification campaign. 2. List at least two reasons the Viet Cong were able to maintain popular support among the South Vietnamese. Section 52.4 1. How did media coverage of the war change as the fighting continued? 2. List at least three reasons the war became unpopular with the American public. 3. Describe at least two ways in which Americans protested the war in Vietnam. Teachers Curriculum Institute Facing Frustration in Vietnam 489
Notebook Guide 52 Section 52.5 After reading this section, write one or two paragraphs in response to this question: Historian and author Charles Kaiser writes that 1968 was the most turbulent twelve months of the postwar period and one of the most disturbing intervals we have lived through since the Civil War. What made 1968 such an important year in American history? P R O C E S S I N G Using your Reading Notes, create a political cartoon that depicts at least one of the reasons the Vietnam War was difficult for the United States to win. Your cartoon should clearly highlight a difficulty of the war and include at least three of these elements: exaggerated details symbols labels that identify parts of the cartoon thought or speech bubbles a caption 490 Chapter 52 Teachers Curriculum Institute
Information Master 52A Tug-of-War Rule Changes Conduct the tug-of-war activity the first time by following the steps in the Lesson Guide. For subsequent activities, follow these abbreviated directions. Before each rule change: Prepare students to pull. Then, just as you are about to yell Pull, dramatically stop the game and announce the rule change. After the rule changes: After each rule change, ask students, Which team do you think will win? Why? After the second rule change only, ask, Do you think cheering and booing will affect the outcome of the game? Why or why not? After the fifth rule change, allow teams to complete the Rule Change 1 Blue team: Give three Draft cards to team members not yet on the rope and two Don t Pull Very Hard cards to two others. Put all five students on the rope. Red team: Call four additional team members to the rope. Rule Change 2 Red team: Assign four students to be vocal supporters, and have them practice clapping and cheering. Have all other Red team members join their teammates on the rope. Blue team: Assign half of the remaining team members to be supporters, and have them practice clapping. Assign the other half to be protesters, and have them practice booing. Rule Change 3 Blue team: To win the game, the Blue team must pull the handkerchief 20 feet beyond the line. Anyone who received a Draft card can use only one arm to pull. Red team: To win the game, the Red team only has to keep the Blue team from pulling the handkerchief across the line. Rule Change 4 Give the Blue team two minutes to find the two traitors on their team and sit them on the ground with their hands in their laps and their heads down. During this time, the Red team should train by doing jumping jacks and running in place. Rule Change 5 After students have pulled for a few seconds, stop the game. Inform the Red team that if it looks as though the Blue team will win, the sideline supporters should stop cheering and jump into the game to help the Red team. Then allow students to complete the Teachers Curriculum Institute Facing Frustration in Vietnam 491
Student Handout 52A Pull the Other Direction During the tug-of-war, secretly pull the wrong direction on the rope. You must hide that you are pulling the wrong direction. You must pretend to be helping the Blue team. Tug-of-War Cards Pull the Other Direction During the tug-of-war, secretly pull the wrong direction on the rope. You must hide that you are pulling the wrong direction. You must pretend to be helping the Blue team. Don t Pull Very Hard During the tug-of-war, do not pull very hard on the rope. Pull just hard enough that the Blue team will think you are working hard to help them win. Don t Pull Very Hard During the tug-of-war, do not pull very hard on the rope. Pull just hard enough that the Blue team will think you are working hard to help them win. Draft Card You have officially been drafted, on behalf of the Blue team, to pull on the rope during the Draft Card You have officially been drafted, on behalf of the Blue team, to pull on the rope during the Draft Card You have officially been drafted, on behalf of the Blue team, to pull on the rope during the 492 Chapter 52 Teachers Curriculum Institute
Student Handout 52B Tug-of-War Diagrams Tape this diagram into your notebook. Then annotate it by matching each group of figures on the diagram to the historical group it represents. Choose from the historical groups below. You will use one of the historical groups twice. When your diagram is complete, record at least four similarities between the tug-of-war and the Vietnam War. Also list at least two differences between the tug-of-war and the Vietnam War. U.S. military advisers and troops ARVN doves drafted U.S. soldiers China and the Soviet Union NVA hawks Viet Cong Red Team Blue Team Red team supporters = Blue team supporters = Students with Pull the Other Direction cards = Blue team protesters = Red team = and Students assigned to the rope by the teacher = Students with Draft cards = Students with Don t Pull Very Hard cards = Tape this diagram into your notebook. Then annotate it by matching each group of figures on the diagram to the historical group it represents. Choose from the historical groups below. You will use one of the historical groups twice. When your diagram is complete, record at least four similarities between the tug-of-war and the Vietnam War. Also list at least two differences between the tug-of-war and the Vietnam War. U.S. military advisers and troops ARVN doves drafted U.S. soldiers China and the Soviet Union NVA hawks Viet Cong Red Team Blue Team Red team supporters = Blue team supporters = Students with Pull the Other Direction cards = Blue team protesters = Red team = and Students assigned to the rope by the teacher = Students with Draft cards = Students with Don t Pull Very Hard cards = Teachers Curriculum Institute Facing Frustration in Vietnam 493
Information Master 52B Tug-of-War Diagram Annotations Diagram annotations: Red team supporters = China and the Soviet Union Red team = NVA and Viet Cong Blue team supporters = hawks Blue team protesters = doves Students with Pull the Other Direction cards = Viet Cong Students with Draft cards = drafted U.S. soldiers Students assigned to the rope by the teacher = U.S. military advisers and troops Students with Don t Pull Very Hard cards = ARVN Some similarities students might note: The Blue team was made up of stronger students and initially had more people on the rope, just as the U.S. was a superpower and was initially able to send many professional soldiers to Vietnam. At the beginning, it looked as though the Blue team might easily win, just as it initially appeared to some people that the U.S. would easily prevent communism from spreading to South Vietnam. Some members of the Blue team were given Draft cards for the tug-of-war, just as U.S. men were drafted to fight in the war. Drafted students were allowed to use only one arm, just as some drafted soldiers, whose goal was just to stay alive for their one-year tour of duty, did not fight very hard. Members of the Blue team holding Don t Pull Very Hard cards were not particularly helpful to their team, just as the ARVN sometimes tried to avoid direct conflicts with the Viet Cong. The Blue team was divided between protesters and supporters, just as the U.S. public was divided in its support for the war. Protesters were more vocal than supporters in both the game and in history. The Red team had vocal supporters, just as countries such as China and the Soviet Union were vocally and financially supportive of North Vietnam. Many Red team students joined the tug-of-war at once, just as North Vietnam and the Viet Cong were able to recruit and train new soldiers easily. All Red team members worked hard to help their team win, just as all members of the NVA and Viet Cong fought hard. The Blue team had to pull the handkerchief 20 feet beyond the line to win, whereas the Red team only had to keep the Blue team from doing so just as the U.S. had to eliminate the enemy s ability to wage war, whereas the Viet Cong had only to prevent the U.S. from winning until they withdrew. The Blue team had difficulty identifying team members who were pulling in the opposite direction, just as the U.S. military had difficulty identifying members of the Viet Cong. The Red team s supporters were told they could join at any time if it looked as if the Red team would lose, just as the U.S. feared that China and the Soviet Union would help North Vietnam if they were invaded. The Red team was able to prevent the Blue team from winning (or the Red team may even have won), just as the Viet Cong were able to prevent the U.S. from winning long enough to force them to withdraw. Some differences students might note: The tug-of-war was not truly dangerous. The Vietnam War was very dangerous for both soldiers and civilians. No one worried about losing a loved one or his or her own life during the No deaths or atrocities occurred during the There was no great cost, personal or financial, in the The Red team did not lead surprise attacks against the Blue team, whereas during the Vietnam War the Viet Cong led guerrilla attacks on U.S. and ARVN soldiers. Members of the Blue team who received Draft cards were allowed to pull with only one arm, whereas many drafted soldiers fought wholeheartedly and bravely. In some classes the Red team supporters, who repre - sented China and the Soviet Union, may have joined their team members on the rope, whereas these countries did not actually fight in the Vietnam War. 494 Chapter 52 Teachers Curriculum Institute