Oklahoma Social Studies OKH.C.7.6.B
The Standard
- OKH.C.7
- Examine the challenges and accomplishments of Oklahomans as they encountered periods of economic depression and engagement in world conflict.
- OKH.C.7.6
- Summarize and analyze the impact of Oklahoma’s mobilization and engagement in World War II including
contributions to the war effort by military personnel and specific units, including the American Indian Code Talkers and the 45th Infantry Division.
Oklahoma Academic Standards for Social Studies (2026) · OKH.C.7.6
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students explain how Comanche Code Talkers helped troops send battlefield messages during World War II. They describe where the 45th Infantry Division fought and give an example of a soldier's service.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student can explain that Comanche Code Talkers helped troops communicate during the Normandy invasion. They can place the 45th Infantry Division in Sicily and Italy and describe Ernest Childers's service in Italy.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may assume all Code Talkers were Navajo or that the Comanche Code Talkers served in the 45th Infantry Division. Some place the 45th in the Pacific rather than Europe.
How to Assess It
- Exit ticket: Explain one contribution made by Comanche Code Talkers and one made by the 45th Infantry Division. Name one soldier who served in the division.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Give pairs blank maps of Europe; have them mark Normandy for Comanche Code Talkers and Sicily and Italy for the 45th Infantry Division.
Ask: How did battlefield messages in Comanche help troops, and how was that work different from an infantry division's job?
Run a card sort matching Comanche Code Talkers, Ernest Childers, and the 45th Infantry Division to their roles and wartime locations.
Find Broken Arrow on an Oklahoma map, then mark Italy and write how Ernest Childers's service connected the two places.
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