APRIL SMITH'S S.T.E.M. CLASS
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The Number One Infantry Weapon in WWI

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Rifles were the standard issue infantry weapon used in World War I.  They did the job and were fairly cheap to produce.  Unfortunately, rifles were not the best weapon to use because the were heavy, hard to shoot accurately, and required reloading often.  It was obviously not very convenient to carefully aim and constantly reload your weapon whenever you were being shot at.  

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Rifle Stats

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Most nations had very new army recruits.  There was not enough or time or officers to help these recruits learn speed and accuracy with every shot under all circumstances.  The average rate of fire for these weapons with new army recruits was about eight to twelve rounds per minute with a possible range of around  4,600 feet or 0.87 of a mile,  (In Moody, it would be about the distance from C.V.S. in Moody to Jack's in Moody).  Though it could shoot this far without any thing stopping the bullet it would not be an accurate shot.  An accurate shot could only be made at a range of about 1900 feet or 0.36 of a mile.  (In Moody, it would be about the distance from Moody Park to Freds.)

Rifle Operators

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The rifle was mostly used by soldiers in the infantry on the front line in order to shoot long range and by snipers.  Snipers could hide themselves and accurately shoot rifles over long ranges.  Snipers were valued soldiers.  They worked day and night, targeting any moving object behind enemy lines.  If a sniper was taken prisoner he could expect no mercy, on either side.  



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The rifle was the most used weapon because the rifle is a good offensive weapon.  Rifles are long range weapons and do significant damage to moving targets.  Bayonets could also be attached to rifles to make them a dual weapon.  When ammunition ran out in close range combat, the bayonet could be used for self -defense and offensive battle.

Inefficiencies Lead to Improvements

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The inefficiencies of the rifle led both sides to do extensive research in order to produce better rifles.  The most notable improvements to rifles were making the bore of the gun smaller and adding bolt-action.  These improvements allowed rifles to fire multiple rounds from a spring-loaded clip inserted into a rifle magazine.

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Surprisingly  over the course of the war, improvements were not made to rifles. It wasn't until after the Great War that these inefficiencies of the rifle were corrected.  During the war, the chief concern of nations was ensuring that their nation had the money, supplies, and people to keep up a high level of rifle manufacturing.  Research and development during the war was devoted to other weapons such as artillery, mortars, grenades and poison gasses.

Tool Box

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Vocabulary to Know

ammunition:  the bullets or shells shot from a weapon

bayonet:  a large jagged knife that attached to the end of a rifle barrel in order to turn the rifle into a thrusting weapon

bolt action:  when a sliding rod or bar shoves a cartridge into the firing chamber of a weapon

bore:  the hollow part inside a gun barrel or other tube

clip:  a device that is used to store multiple rounds of ammunition together as a unit to be inserted into a magazine

defensive battle:  a defense; when a nation or group of nations attempt to protect their territory from attack or invasion

defensive weapon:  a weapon - usually having a short range -  made or adapted for protecting a person by causing  serious injury or death to the attacker

front line:  the place where fighting is done face to face in a battle 

inefficiencies:  the inability to do something in the best way possible; when something valuable (ex. time, money, lives, ammunition) is wasted in the process of doing something

infantry:  Infantry is the branch of an army that fights on foot — soldiers specifically trained to engage, fight, and defeat the enemy in face-to-face combat; and thus bear the brunt of warfare, and suffer the greatest number of casualties

magazine:  the cylinder part of a weapon that holds a clip of ammunition; used to speed up the process of loading and reloading a weapon because several rounds of ammunition can be loaded at once, rather than one round being loaded at a time

manufacturing:  producing a large amount of one product in a factory using machines, an assembly line, and division of labor

offensive battle:  an invasion; when a nation or group of nations initiate an attack with the intent of taking over territory from the nation they are attacking

offensive weapon:  a weapon - usually having a long range -  made or adapted for attacking another person and causing  serious injury or death 

range: the distance something has covered or reached

rate of fire:  the amount of bullets or ammunition a weapons can fire without having to reload

rifle:  a gun, esp. one fired from shoulder level, having a long spirally grooved barrel intended to make a bullet spin and thereby have greater accuracy over a long distance.

sniper:  a gunman who's job is to pick of targets on the opposing side in a battle because he is an expert at shooting accurately over a long range 

standard issue:  the basic supplies given to everyone in the armed forces when they become a soldier
  • HOME
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  • DATA BASES
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    • AMERICAN BIOGRAPHIES
    • AMERICAN REVOLUTION
    • NON-FICTION RESEARCH
    • Animals
    • BIOMES
    • Native American Portal
    • NATIONAL PARKS
    • ALABAMA OUTDOORS
  • PARENT RESOURCES
    • LOGGING K - 1st INTO SCHOOLOGY
    • LOGGING 2nd - 5th GRADERS INTO SCHOOLOGY
    • HOW TO TAKE PICTURES ON A CHROMEBOOK
    • HOW TO HAND IN ASSIGNMENTS
  • CONTACT ME
  • U.S. History Teachers
    • HISTORY RESOURCES
  • NEXT TOP FIRM
    • LESSON 1: INTRODUCTION TO THE NEXT TOP FIRM
    • LESSON 2: UNDERSTANDING CLIENTS' WANTS & NEEDS
    • LESSON 3: INTERVIEWING YOUR CLIENT
    • LESSON 4: MARKETING PLAN
    • LESSON 5: DESIGNING A LOGO
    • LESSON 6: BRAND RECOGNITION
    • LESSON 6: BRAND RECOGNITION
  • FUN LAB
  • STEM CHOICE BOARD
  • THE NEW JEDI ORDER
  • ACAP