April 26-May 2, 2012, Current Events Lesson Plan
Current Event:
Although not yet topped out, the new One World Trade Center on April 30 surpassed the Empire State Building as New York City‘s tallest building. When completed, One World Trade Center will include a 408-foot (124-meter), cable-stayed spire, making it 1,776 feet (541 meters) tall and the tallest building in the United States.
Objective:
One World Trade Center is under construction on the site of the original World Trade Center, the twin towers destroyed in terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. The Behind the Headlines news story and related World Book articles take a look back at the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the worst acts of terrorism ever carried out against the United States, and the new building being constructed at the site of one of the attacks.
People And Places:
- al-Qa`ida
- Chicago
- Empire State Building
- New York City
- Osama bin Laden
- Pentagon Building
- terrorist
- United States
- Willis Tower
- World Trade Center
Discussion Topics:
1. On Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001, terrorists hijacked four commercial jetliners and crashed two of them into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City and one into the Pentagon Building near Washington, D.C. Hijackers crashed the fourth jet in a Pennsylvania field to prevent passengers from gaining control of the plane. The attacks killed about 3,000 people, including the 19 hijackers. Ask your students what else they know about the September 11 terrorist attacks.
2. Ask your students to use World Book’s Timelines feature to map out the major events of September 11. Tell them that they can include personal details about where they were at the time of the attacks, if they wish.
3. The U.S. government linked the attacks to al-Qa`ida, an Islamic extremist group founded by the Saudi-born millionaire Osama bin Laden. Bin Laden had previously called on Muslims to kill Americans. Ask your students if they know what happened to bin Laden in the aftermath of the attacks. (In September 2001, U.S. government officials named bin Laden as the prime suspect in the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Shortly after the 9/11 attacks, U.S. President George W. Bush addressed a joint session of Congress to declare a “global war on terrorism.” In October 2001, the United States launched a military campaign against the Taliban in Afghanistan. The support of U.S. forces enabled an alliance of Afghan rebel groups to overthrow the Taliban in December 2001. Numerous members of al-Qa`ida were captured or killed. However, many others, including bin Laden, escaped across the border to a largely ungoverned region of neighboring Pakistan. United States and allied forces continued to search for bin Laden and other al-Qa`ida leaders in the years after the attacks. Many of the leaders were captured or killed. After nearly 10 years, intelligence efforts traced bin Laden to a heavily guarded compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. A U.S. Navy SEALs team attacked the compound early on May 2, 2011, Pakistani time. After a brief firefight, bin Laden was shot and killed. He was later buried at sea.)
4. When completed, One World Trade Center will be topped by a 408-foot (124-meter), cable-stayed spire, making it 1,776 feet (541 meters) tall and the tallest building in the United States. The current tallest building in United States is Willis Tower in Chicago. Formerly named Sears Tower, the building is 110 stories, reaching 1,450 feet (442 meters) high. The north tower of the original World Trade Center was 1,368 feet (417 meters) in height. Which other tall structures can your students name around the world? (They might say the Burj Khalifa skyscraper in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates; the Canadian National (CN) Tower in Toronto, Canada; and the Shanghai World Financial Center in China.)