BNCPJ: Bloomington-Normal Citizens for Peace and Justice

Sadako & The Thousand Paper Cranes

Sadako Sasaki, pictured here front row center,

was in sixth grade when this photo of the

Bamboo Relay Team was taken in 1955.

Sadako Statue, Hiroshima Sadako Statue, Seattle

This is our cry.

This is our prayer.

Peace in the world.

Lesson Plan 3 - 6 grade

1. Distribute the book Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr.

2. Either read the story as a class or assign the book for students to read individually at home�preferably with a parent.

3. In class: watch the 30 minute video companion Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes distributed by Informed Democracy. (For younger students, teachers may wish to turn on the English subtitles, so students can read the text to themselves while watching the video). To order this video: http://www.sadako.com/

4. Use the links to classroom activities, ideas for follow-up research, and online web sources to further enhance the lesson.

Links to classroom activities:

On How to fold a paper crane and send your cranes to Hiroshima:

http://www.sadako.com/howtofold.html

http://www.paperfolding.com/diagrams/

A printable crossword puzzle on Sadako's story:

http://www.abcteach.com/japan/sadako.html

A printable form for a report on the story:

http://www.abcteach.com/japan/sadako1.htm

Questions for Follow-up Research:

Why did theAmerican plane Enola Gay drop an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan on August 6,1945?

How manyJapanese people were killed by the atomic bombs that were dropped on Hiroshimaon August 6, 1945 and on Nagasaki, another Japanese city, on August 9, 1945?

What inspired the Japanese and American people to establish peace parks in Hiroshima and Seattle?

What are the objectives of the parks and the various projects that children and adults have organized to commemorate the bombings over the years?

What are people in your town doing to raise awareness about the consequences of war and the necessity for peace in the world?

What can you and your classmates do to promote conflict resolution in your classroom, at yours chool, in your neighborhood, in your town, in the country, and in the world?

On August 2, 1999 fifth graders from 50 schools in Japan and 24 schools from 7 other countries gathered at Peace Memorial Park inHiroshima to dedicate the thousands of cranes they had made to the victims ofwar. While there, the children of Hiroshima, made the following declaration:

The people of Hiroshima hereby proclaim that we will never bring on war again. We have learned a lot about the tragedies of war, and about the importance of keeping the peace, here at Nagatsuka Elementary School. Can you imagine the pain of ordinary people who suffer wounds and anger in the battlefield? It is so sad that thereare still so many people who experience the sacrifice and suffering of war inso many parts of the world.

LessonPlan 7 - 9 grade

1. Distribute the book Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr.

2. Have the students create a lesson plan for third and fourth graders that teaches themabout WWII, the role the atomic bombs played in the war, the human and diplomatic costs of the U.S. decision to use the atomic bomb.

3.Possible Discussion Questions and Paper or Poster Topics:

Was dropping the A-bomb on Japan a terrible mistake or a necessary evil?

What are the costs and benefits of using atomic (nuclear) energy today?

What are the similarities and differences between the U.S. bombing of Japanese people in1945 and the continued bombing of people in Iraq today?

Links to Online Web Sources:

On Hiroshima:

http://www.pcf.city.hiroshima.jp/index_e2.html

http://www.csi.ad.jp/suzuhari-es/1000cranes/nagasaki/index.html

http://www.exploratorium.edu/nagasaki/mainn.html

On Nagasaki:

http://www1.city.nagasaki.nagasaki.jp/na-bomb/museum/museume01.html

http://www-sdc.med.nagasaki-u.ac.jp/n50/start-E.html