Parent Guide > Speech to the Association of Los Alamos Scientists

This week in class, we’re reading "Speech to the Association of Los Alamos Scientists" by Robert Oppenheimer.

In "Speech to the Association of Los Alamos Scientists," Robert Oppenheimer discusses the development of atomic weapons a few months after the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

As we read, we will be discussing the themes of Morality, Technology, Progress & Industry, and War & Peace as they relate to the text. We are trying to answer these big questions :

"What is good and how do we know?", "What are the costs and benefits of technology?", and "How are we changed by war?"

Ways to support your child:

• Ask your child about this speech at home:
  • What was "Speech to the Association of Los Alamos Scientists" about?
  • What did you learn about Morality?
  • What did you learn about Technology, Progress & Industry?
  • What did you learn about War & Peace?
• Watch the following clips with your child at home:
  • 'J. Robert Oppenheimer: "I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds." | PlenilunePictures'
  • 'Harrowing Accounts from Hiroshima Survivors | Smithsonian Channel '