Year 12 Modern - LIMP PAPER

LIMP PAPER? What am I talking about? Well, it's a way of remembering how Hitler rose to power, courtesy of John Clare, who has lots of helpful Germany resources online.
LIMP PAPER is an acronym for the main reasons that Hitler came to power, as follows:

Long-term bitterness (over WW1 and Versailles)
Ineffective Constitution (Article 48, proportional representation)
Money (finanical support for the Nazis from big business)
Propaganda (the Nazis were good at publicising themselves and their ideas)

Program (Hitler's 25-point program of ideas to 'save' Germany appealed to almost everyone
Attacks on other parties (the SA used violence to intimidate Hitler's opponents)
Personal qualities (Hitler was a mesmerising speaker who had a lot of power/charisma)
Economic Depression (Germany's economy collapsed and support for the Nazis soared)
Recruited by Hindenburg (after Bruning, Papen and Schleicher, the Pres gave Hitler a go...)

Check it all out here.

Year 12 Modern - Half-Yearly Advice

That time is upon upon us, Modern Historians...the half-yearlies start on Monday. I'm sure you will be spending the weekend preparing for your English exam, but History follows hot on its heels, so you should fit in some revision before doing some last-minute cramming on Monday night...

The exam will be in two sections:

1) World War One - a series of source-based sections, ranging from simple 1/2 mark questions where you select info from a source, to long, 8/10 mark questions which ask you to 'use the sources and your own knowledge' to discuss a feature of the War.

2) Weimar Germany 1918-1933 - a choice of two essays, both dealing with some aspect or aspects of Germany from the birth of Weimar (Nov 1918) to the beginning of Hitler's chancellorship (Jan 1933).

First, some tips based on what I saw from the last assessment:

1) Write more than one page for an essay! Leave plenty of time and try to squeeze out two pages. You are a lot more likely to get a pass mark.

2) ALWAYS mention ALL sources. they are presented to you for a reason - to assess your source analysis skills. Name the source, then briefly mention its PERSPECTIVE, how RELIABLE it is, and whether it is USEFUL.

3) When a question says 'use your own knowledge'...then do it! And plenty of it, too.

4) If in doubt about dates, or figures, then make them a bit more general. If you are not sure whether something happened in 1924, or 19925, then say, 'in the mid 1920s...'

5) If a question asks you to discuss two or more things, then discuss all of them, e.g. 'Describe the main social, political and economic issues...' means discuss all three of them, not just one. Be as obvious as starting each paragraph with something like, 'Germany faced many serious economic issues in the 1920s. The major one was hyperinflation...' etc.

6) Revise by writing a practice essay. The best way to do this is to compose a very general question which covers most of the topic, and then sit down and write it for 30 minutes, without consulting your notes. Afterwards, read through it, and then go to your notes to add or change any details. This way, you will have enough general info in your head to tackle any essay we throw at you - all you need to do is save some more facts in your head to modify your essay so that it fits the question in the exam.

A good general essay on Weimar might be something like:
"Describe the main issues faced by Weimar Germany from 1918 to 1933"
or "Evaluate how successful the Weimar Republic was as a democracy" (this one is harder)
Both essays cover the whole period and you could talk about anything.

A good general essay on WW1 could be:
"Describe the main features of the war on the Western Front"
or "Explain how Germany and Britain responded to the war on the Home Front"

Now, some links to help you:

This essay by Paul Kiem summarises the main events in Weimar until 1929. there are some activities that follow it.

This document by Stephen Tonge describes the period in more detail, and goes right up to 1933.

Finally, some practice essay questions. You can try these and email me them for comments/feedback.

From last year's HSC exam:

Assess the impact of tactics using new weapons in attempts to break the stalemate on the Western Front. (10 marks)

Account for the successes and failures of democracy in Germany in the period 1918– 1933. (25 marks)

From 2007's HSC exam:

To what extent was the failure of Ludendorff’s Offensive responsible for Allied victory and the German collapse? (10 marks)

From 2006's HSC exam:

Assess the importance of nationalism as a cause of the failure of democracy in Germany in the period 1918–1934. (25 marks)

Year 12 Ancient - Gods Poll

The Greek Gods poll has closed, and the most popular response (for the 8 of you who voted...I really need a more engaging poll topic!) was Athena (62%). Apollo and Zeus both rated at 37%. For the record, I think my response was Apollo. Come on, he was like the Brad Pitt of Ancient Greece!

Year 12 Modern - Weimar Poll Closed

So, according to the vast majority of you (72%), it was Gustav Stresemann who turned around Weimar Germany's fortunes in the late 1920s. I guess they didn't call it the 'Stresemann Era' for nothing, then...

New poll up soon.

Year 12 Ancient - Spartan Beliefs Powerpoint

Hi Ancient Historians. Here is the powerpoint on Spartan mythology and religion, which gives an overview of that topic:


Uploaded on authorSTREAM by tomgriffith


Or download the presentation here.

Year 12 Ancient - Work While I'm Away

Hi folks. As you know, I am away for the first three days of next week. I will be back Thursday to help you with any queries regarding the half-yearly.

I have left textbook/booklet work for you on Spartan religion. The most important thing for you to do is add some depth to the general powerpoint we did, by reading the relevant chapters in the Antiquity 3 textbook, and your Sparta booklets. Take notes on the following areas in particular:

1) Apollo, Poseidon and Artemis Orthia
2) The myths of Lycurgus and the Dioscuri
3) The religious roles of Spartan kings
4) The Karneia, Gymnopaedia, and Hyankinthia
5) The Sanctuary of Artemis Orthia, Amyklaion, and Menelaion
6) Funeral customs of Sparta

I will upload the powerpoint soon as well.

There will be a practice exam for you to do on Wednesday. Hand it in to be marked, and I will email you some comments before your half-yearly.

Year 12 Ancient - Lycurgus Poll

So, according to you guys, did Lycurgus actually exist? Here are the results:

15% each voted for either he was completely real, or he was an amalgam of more than one person

31% said he may have existed, but

36 % said he was a complete myth.

I'm with the last group, but remember - it's your opinion on this guy!

Year 12 Modern - Last Minute Exam Advice

I'm sure you'll all go great tomorrow, but just a final piece of advice...

When analysing sources in your exam (which you will do, as it is a source-based assessment) - make sure you refer to these three things:

1) Reliability - can we trust the source? Is it biased?

2) Usefulness - can we use the source? Does it give us good historical information? What information does it give us? Is it complete? What doesn't it tell us?

3) Perspective - whose opinion are we getting? Is it biased? Is it an official or unofficial perspective? Was it written at the time, or with the benefit of hindsight?

Year 12 Modern - Assessment Week 8

Modern Historians, your first assessment will be this Thursday, so we will be doing a spot of revision in class tomorrow. However, for your home study, here are some resources you could use:

Try your hand at some past HSC papers. The World War One sections are always at the beginning.

2007 paper 2007 source booklet
2006 paper

And finally, the relevant syllabus dot points. You may be tested on any or all of the points below.

World War One

1 War on the Western Front

– the reasons for the stalemate on the Western Front

– the nature of trench warfare and life in the trenches dealing with experiences of Allied and German soldiers

– overview of strategies and tactics to break the stalemate including key battles: Verdun, the Somme, Passchendaele

– changing attitudes of Allied and German soldiers to the war over time

2 The home fronts in Britain and Germany

– total war and its social and economic impact on civilians in Britain and Germany

– recruitment, conscription, censorship and propaganda in Britain and Germany

– the variety of attitudes to the war and how they changed over time in Britain and Germany

– the impact of the war on women’s lives and experiences in Britain

3 Turning points

– impacts of the entry of the USA and of the Russian withdrawal

– Ludendorff’s Spring Offensive and the Allied response

4 Allied Victory

– events leading to the Armistice, 1918

– reasons for the Allied victory and German collapse

– the roles and differing goals of Clemenceau, Lloyd George and Wilson in creating the Treaty of Versailles

National Study: Germany

1 Weimar Republic

– emergence of the Democratic Republic and the impact of the Treaty of Versailles

– political, economic and social issues in the Weimar Republic to 1929

Year 12 Ancient/Modern - The Polls Have Closed!

Well, the results of the first Modern and Ancient blog polls are in. OK, not many of you voted, but I'm going to publish the results anyway...

In answer to the question,

What do you think was the major problem faced by the Weimar Republic?

44% of you thought it was economic collapse. 33% thought it was the humilation of Versailles. The rest thought it was uprisings by the Right.

And, in Ancient, in response to the question

Which class of Spartans would you like to have been born into?

The vast majority (60%) said the perioeci , possibly because they had few rights but equally few responsibilities. Next was Spartiates with 26 %. Helots and Inferiors got one vote each...though I can't figure out why.

There'll be new polls up soon, plus there's one on Lycurgus for you Ancient Historians to have a go at.