Path+to+War

=**VIETNAM - THE PATH TO WAR **=

You all know that the United States was involved in a major military conflict in Vietnam during the Cold War ... but why? What was America's "path to war"? Using the resources below and __Creating America__, your task this evening is to write a description in YOUR OWN WORDS of the causes of American involvement in Southeast Asia. Pretend you are writing it as a summary for on online encyclopedia or textbook. Your description should ...
 * be between two and four complete, well written paragraphs
 * contain the following terms - France, Ho Chi Minh, communism, Ngo Dinh Diem, military advisors, Gulf of Tonkin, Truman, Kennedy, Johnson, Rolling Thunder
 * be IN YOUR OWN WORDS (remember, it's easy to check this online)
 * contain two images THAT RELATE TO YOUR WRITING
 * Should end with the first Marines landing in Vietnam in 1965

The path to war in Vietnam was a long one. At first, Vietnam was a colony controlled by France. But Vietnam wanted freedom, but they needed a leader. That is where Ho Chi Minh stepped in and led a communist revolt for independence. He helped establish a communist government in North Vietnam.

There were many causes of American involvement in Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh leads a communist revolt for independence in Vietnam. VietMinh declared independence against France. They establish a communist government in northern Vietnam. US wants to contain the spread of communism. President Eisenhower believes in the domino theory in which if one country goes to communism they all will. US splits Vietnam temporarily. They say there will be free elections, but the communist leader will obviously win. Thus in the 1940s there is a war between North and South. Johnson sends 3,500 troops to Vietnam. Need some help? How about ... //Creating America// [|This cool animation] [|Into Vietnam (Overview)] from ABC-CLIO [|Timeline of the Vietnam War] [|Vietnam Online Timeline] Causes of the Vietnam War video below

media type="youtube" key="Fd8wKKfN7sM" height="344" width="425" and this voicethread, made by your favorite 8th grade American history teacher that you have this year (I like to limit my competition)

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