Topic: Army movements. Operations on the Eastern Front until 1916

Target group

7th‑grade students of elementary school

Core curriculum

7th‑grade students of elementary school

XXV. First World War. Pupil:

3) discusses the specificity of warfare: position warfare, maneuvering, action air and sea.

General aim of education

Students get acquainted with the specificity of war operations on the Eastern Front and in the Balkans in the years 1914‑1916.

Key competences

• communication in foreign languages;

• digital competence;

• learning to learn.

Criteria for success
The student will learn:

• to list the most important battles on the Eastern Front and in the Balkans;

• to define the specifics of the operations on the Eastern Front;

• to give examples of military engagement of Polish people on the Eastern Front.

Methods/techniques

• expository

  • talk.

• activating

  • discussion.

• programmed

  • with computer;

  • with e‑textbook.

• practical

  • exercices concerned.

Forms of work

• individual activity;

• activity in pairs;

• activity in groups;

• collective activity.

Teaching aids

• e‑textbook;

• notebook and crayons/felt‑tip pens;

• interactive whiteboard, tablets/computers.

Lesson plan overview

Before classes

1. The teacher asks students to review the previous lesson.

Introduction

1. The teacher explains the students the subject, the purpose of the lesson and the criteria for success.

2. The teacher asks students to do Task 1. Students analyze the map of Europe during the World War I. The teacher provides feedback.

Realization

1. The teacher tells students about the specificity of the Eastern Front, pointing out the differences and similarities to the operations of the army on the Western Front. He notes that, unlike the Western Front in the East, the military situation was initially characterized by greater dynamics. Then he tells them about the first battles on the front, the defense of Przemyśl and the circumstances of the Kingdom of Poland's occupation by the central states in 1915.

2. Students do Exercise 1, recognizing the central state rulers in the illustration. Then they listen to the teacher's lecture on the situation in the Balkans - on this basis they assess the consequences of the accession of Bulgaria and Turkey to the central states.

3. The teacher proposes to students as a curiosity to find on the Internet a music video for the band Sabaton's Cliffs of Gallipoli - the students explain what information related to the battle appear in this music video. The teacher comments on the assumptions of the students, if necessary explaining the importance of this battle, the pronunciation of the music video, etc. He points to a similar lack of military effects as on the Western Front.

4. The teacher goes on to discuss the Polish contribution to activities on the Eastern Front. He reminds students about the mobilization of Poles to the partitioning armies. He discusses the goals set for the Polish Legions. He asks students to do Task 2. Students list places of the most important battles. The teacher makes sure that the task has been correctly completed and gives feedback. The teacher describes the most important achievements of the Legions.

5. Then the teacher asks to do Exercise 2. Students listen to a broadcast about women serving during the World War I at Józef Piłsudski's side. The teacher draws attention to the problem of the negligible presence of female soldiers on the fronts of the WWI (only a few Russian and British women served, but only in the further stages of the war), the teacher sums up the Polish specificity. He talks to students about its reasons.

Summary

1. The teacher talks about the importance of Brusilov's offensive and its consequences. Students do Exercise 3 - match events to their effects. The teacher makes sure that the task has been correctly completed and gives feedback.

2. The teacher briefly presents the most important issues discussed in class. He answers the additional questions of the proteges and explains all their doubts. Students complete notes.

Homework

1. The teacher sets homework (it is not an obligatory part of the script), which is the execution of Task 1.

The following terms and recordings will be used during this lesson

Terms

Texts and recordings

Army movements. Operations on the Eastern Front until 1916

In the beginning, the military situation on the Eastern Front was more dynamic than on the Western Front. Between August and September 1914, the Russian offensive was stopped by Paul von Hindenburg, defeating them in the Battle of Tannenberg. In early September 1914, Russian troops seized Lviv, and the Przemyśl Fortress was conquered in March 1915 after several months of siege. German and Austrian offensive in the Carpathian mountains started in May 1915. Russia losing the Battle of Gorlice in May of the same year, sent a clear signal that the situation changed. Russia had to retreat from Przemyśl and, soon after, from Lviv. Germans invaded Warsaw in early August. At that time, the front line was fixed along the line of the Second Partition of Poland. The status was maintained until 1916. The Balkans was also a theatre of fierce fighting. In October 1915, the Central Powers’ troops attacked Serbia and Montenegro. The situation was definitely changed with Bulgaria joining the Central Powers in the war. The defeat of Serbia by the Bulgarians ensured the coveted direct connection to Bulgaria and Turkey. Eventually, the Balkan operations did not lead to the conflict, being settled between the two factions.