Safe at Home - Civil Defense in WWII

Safe at Home - Civil Defense in WWII

Safe at Home - Civil Defense in WWII
Reading Level

	edHelper's suggested reading level:	grades 4 to 5
	Flesch-Kincaid grade level:	4.33

Vocabulary

	challenging words:		blackout, rubble, warden, wearers, medical, zone, spite, drills, civil, planes, defense, lighted, germany, signal, warning, attack
	content words:		Pearl Harbor, United States, World War II

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Safe at Home - Civil Defense in WWII
By Toni Lee Robinson

¹     In 1941, the U.S. was attacked by Japan. The two nations were not at war before the attack. In spite of that, planes from Japan dropped bombs on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Thousands of people were killed. Japan sent word that they were at war with the U.S.

²     Germany and Italy were Japan's friends. They went to war against the U.S., too. American soldiers and sailors were sent into battle. They were fighting in Europe and in the Pacific. The places where the war was being fought were called "fronts."

³     The attack on Pearl Harbor was a big shock. After that, the people of the United States were nervous. Would there be more attacks on the U.S.? German planes bombed England again and again. Many people thought Japan would bomb the west coast of the U.S. They thought German subs might bring enemy soldiers to the east coast.

⁴     People wanted to protect themselves. They didn't want to be taken by surprise again. What could those on the "home front" do? Plans were made to handle attacks on U.S. cities. These public protections were called "civil defense."

⁵     Citizens learned what to do in case of attack. One lesson was how to spot enemy planes. Kids and adults alike studied charts that showed what a German or Japanese plane would look like from below. Then people could tell if a plane flying over was a U.S. plane or an enemy. That might give a few seconds of warning in the event of a surprise attack (raid).

Paragraphs 6 to 12:
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