Worksheets and No Prep Teaching Resources Reading Comprehension Worksheets World War II

Australia - Down Under Threatened World War II

---

Australia - Down Under Threatened
Print Australia - Down Under Threatened Reading Comprehension


Reading Level

	edHelper's suggested reading level:	grades 8 to 10
	Flesch-Kincaid grade level:	8.65

Vocabulary

	challenging words:		heartland, further, reestablished, thwart, grueling, mini, totally, command, homeland, defense, conquer, unable, invade, continent, effort, reluctant
	content words:		Pacific Ocean, Indian Ocean, Down Under, World War II, Pearl Harbor, General Douglas MacArthur, Bataan Peninsula, United States, Major General Tomitaro Horii, New Guinea

---

Australia - Down Under Threatened By Jane Runyon

---

¹     Australia is a large island. It is also an entire continent. Australia lies between the Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean. Many people call it the "Land Down Under" because it lies south of the equator. Location made Australia a key piece in the Japanese plan to conquer the Pacific Ocean in World War II.
 
²     The Japanese started their march across the Pacific in 1941. They attacked and crippled the American fleet at Pearl Harbor. They fought for all the islands they could find between Pearl Harbor and their homeland. Americans fought a long and grueling battle against the Japanese in the Philippine islands. The leader of the American forces, General Douglas MacArthur, departed from the Bataan Peninsula leaving his sick and tired troops to hang on. They were unable to do so and surrendered to the Japanese forces in April of 1942.
 
³     Taking control of such a large continent would take a massive effort. The Japanese realized that there was a bond between the Australian and United States governments. The Japanese decided that the first thing they would need to do was to isolate Australia from the United States. All communication between the two nations was successfully cut off. Major General Tomitaro Horii then took over an Australian territory in New Guinea. From here, the Japanese were able to launch air raids on Australian territories like Port Moresby in Papua.

Paragraphs 4 to 7:
For the complete story with questions: click here for printable

---

Weekly Reading Books

Create Weekly Reading Books Prepare for an entire week at once!

---

Feedback on Australia - Down Under Threatened

Leave your feedback on Australia - Down Under Threatened   (use this link if you found an error in the story)

---

World War II

World War II

---

More Lessons

High School Reading Comprehensions and High School Reading Lessons

---

Social Studies

Social Studies

United States History and Theme Units         American Government         Ancient America         Ancient China         Ancient Egypt         Ancient Greece         Ancient India         Ancient Mesopotamia         Ancient Rome         Biographies         Canadian Theme Unit         Country Theme Units         Crime and Terrorism         Economics         European History: 1600s-1800s

Explorers         Famous Educators         Geography         Grades 2-3 Social Studies Wendy's World Series         History of Books and Writing         History of Mathematics         How Can I Help?         Inventors and Inventions         Middle Ages         Renaissance         World Religion         World War I         World War II         World Wonders

---

United States

United States

American Government         Black History and Blacks in U.S. History         Children in History         Government Careers         Hispanic Heritage         How Can I Help?

Immigration         National Parks and Monuments         Native Americans         Presidents of the United States         Women's History

---

United States History

A Nation Divided (1840-1861)         A New Nation (1776-1830)         After the Civil War (1865-1870)         American Revolution         Cold War (1947-1991)         Colonial America (1492-1776)         Lewis and Clark (1804-1806)         Pearl Harbor         Spanish American War (1898)         The 1890's         The 1900's         The 1910's         The 1920's         The 1930's

The 1940's         The 1950's         The 1960's         The 1970's         The 1980's         The 1990's         The 2000's         The Civil War (1861-1865)         The Great Depression (1929-1945)         The United States Grows (1865-1900)         The War of 1812         Wild, Wild West         World War I (1914-1918)         World War II

---

50 States

Fifty States Theme Unit

---

Document Based Activities

Document Based Activities

Copyright © 2025 edHelper