Tutorial for making your own origami peace crane. Learn about the story of Sadako Sasaki and the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, whilst also folding a crane for peace.

Find out more about Hiroshima and Nagasaki here , or access our free educational materials about the attacks on Japan:

Once you’ve made your peace crane, show us on Twitter @CNDPeaceEd!

Discussion points:

  • Given that Truman knew how destructive his nuclear weapons were, why do you think he decided to drop the bombs on Japan?
  • According to Churchill, the atomic bombings should not be recognised as ending the war by themselves. He said  “It would be a mistake to suppose that the fate of Japan was settled by the atomic bomb. Her defeat was certain before the first bomb fell and was brought about by over-whelming maritime power.” Does this change your view of the bombings? Why?
  • Some may argue that using nuclear weapons secured peace. Is this an accurate statement?
  • Why do you think Sadako’s story has become so popular? Given that there are still approximately 14,000 nuclear weapons in the world today, do you think her story is important?
  • 9 counties in the world have nuclear weapons today (UK, USA, Russia, France, China, India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea). Japan has no nuclear weapons, why do you think this is?