Army Code Talkers

AUTHOR’S PURPOSE

Why did the author include the information that at least one of the code talkers was taken prisoner?

Select the best words to fill each blank.

The information lets the 1. _____________ know that even when 2. _______________, the code talker 3. _____________ give away how to 4. ________________, which shows his 5______________.

• 1. reader 2. released 3. did 4. break the code 5. courage

• 1. author 2.released 3. did 4. build weapons 5. weakness

• 1. reader 2. captured 3. did not 4. break the code 5. courage

• 1. author 2. captured 3. did not 4. build weapons 5. weakness

Based on the information in paragraph 3, the reader can infer that —

World War I

3 In France during World War I, the 142nd Infantry Regiment, 36th Division, had a company of American Indians who spoke 26 languages and dialects. Two officers were selected to supervise a communications system staffed by 18 Choctaw individuals. The team transmitted messages relating to troop movements and their own tactical plans in their native tongue. Following the team’s success, soldiers from other tribes, including the Cheyenne, Comanche, Cherokee, Osage, and Yankton Sioux, also were enlisted to communicate as code talkers. Before their arrival in France, the Germans had broken every American code used, resulting in the deaths of many soldiers. However, the Germans never broke the American Indians’ “code,” and these soldiers became affectionately known as “code talkers.”

• the American Indian code talkers were treated better than other soldiers

• the 142nd Infantry Regiment, 36th Division, was entirely American Indian soldiers

• the first American Indian code talkers were from the Choctaw tribe

• German code breakers did not recognize American Indian languages

Which idea is supported by information throughout the selection?

• American Indian code talkers from across the United States served bravely in Vietnam and Korea.

• The brave efforts of American Indian code talkers resulted in the success of countless missions throughout numerous wars in the twentieth century.

• The 2002 Code Talkers Recognition Act honored the American Indian code talkers after years of silence.

• All American Indians were discouraged from practicing their native cultures until after the Vietnam War.

Which sentence from the selection best supports the idea that secure communications are important in warfare?

• For many years, the code talkers’ work remained classified, secret from all but a few people in the government.

• Before their arrival in France, the Germans had broken every American code used, resulting in the deaths of many soldiers.

• During World War II, the Army used American Indians in its signal communications operations in both the European and Pacific war zones.

• Many of the code talkers continued in their military careers, serving during the Korean and Vietnam wars.

Which sentence best expresses the controlling idea of the selection?

• Many American Indians, except for those who volunteered to serve in the U.S. military, were forced to abandon their culture and identity.

• In the early part of World War I, German code breakers made secret, reliable communication between the U.S. and its allies nearly impossible.

• By using their native language to secure military communications, American Indian code talkers saved lives and shortened twentieth-century wars.

• The U.S. military used a secret code with American Indian words to ensure its communications were safe from German code breakers.

Read this summary of the selection written by a student.

During the twentieth century, the U.S. military enlisted American Indian soldiers who used their native languages as secret codes. These code talkers had to use other words when their own languages did not have a match, such as hummingbird to mean “fighter plane.” The previously unbeatable enemy code breakers could not break the new American Indian codes, which made allied communications safer. The code talkers’ valuable contributions to saving soldiers’ lives and shortening the wars were a close-kept secret until the 2002 Code Talkers Recognition Act.

Which sentence in the student’s summary is unnecessary?

• The code talkers’ valuable contributions to saving soldiers’ lives and shortening the wars were a close-kept secret until the 2002 Code Talkers Recognition Act.

• During the twentieth century, the U.S. military enlisted American Indian soldiers who used their native languages as secret codes.

• These code talkers had to use other words when their own languages did not have a match, such as hummingbird to mean “fighter plane.”

• The previously unbeatable enemy code breakers could not break the new American Indian codes, which made allied communications safer.

The organizational pattern of the selection develops the central idea by —

• explaining what caused the U.S. military to enlist American Indians into their communications effort and the effect it had

• illustrating the problem of military communication that was not secure and how American Indian code talkers worked to solve it

• contrasting the treatment of the general American Indian population with the military’s treatment of the code talkers

• describing American Indian code talkers’ contributions to U.S. military communication throughout the twentieth century

Which of these facts from the selection supports the idea that American Indians were recruited to be code talkers because few people outside their tribes understood their language?

• Many American Indian languages had never been written down.

• A large number of American Indians from many tribes enlisted in the military.

• The code talkers participated in multiple wars around the world.

• The U.S. government kept code talkers’ contributions secret for many years.