Today's Itinerary and Activities
Day 3: July 8
We started the day with an introduction to Axis and Allied strategy in the Second World War from 1940-44. In her blog post, tour participant Rachel shares her thoughts on continuity and change around this period. We then crossed the Scheldt Estuary to the south and introduced the Canadian campaign there with a study of fighting around the Breskens Pocket and the southern approaches to the port of Antwerp. We also visited Sapper Harold Allen, Private Hugh Perry Cameron, and Rifleman Leslie Bull at Adegem Cemetery in Belgium.
We started the day with an introduction to Axis and Allied strategy in the Second World War from 1940-44. In her blog post, tour participant Rachel shares her thoughts on continuity and change around this period. We then crossed the Scheldt Estuary to the south and introduced the Canadian campaign there with a study of fighting around the Breskens Pocket and the southern approaches to the port of Antwerp. We also visited Sapper Harold Allen, Private Hugh Perry Cameron, and Rifleman Leslie Bull at Adegem Cemetery in Belgium.
Professional pauseToday we took a moment to consider our best memories of professional education, and the responses fell within these 6 descriptions: Collaboration, active learning, self-directed, extended period of time, choice, immersive. Participants shared that professional development (PD) often feels like something done to them, just as school is often something done to students.
Professional education is more often than not professionally focused, not discipline focused, so teaching from a disciplinary perspective can be a challenge when many of us are not connected with the discipline of history. Do you view doing your own historical research and looking at the current debates among historians as part of your role? Part of the aim of this professional development program is to explore the notion that if we are to do history with students, we need to be doing it ourselves and be connected to the field. |
Student voiceOne of our student participants shared that she's not liked history since Grade 6, when her experience of history in school changed from hands-on to textbook-focused. She compared this with her experience of science , where students do experiments and "get to feel like scientists."
One of the aims of the Lest We Forget program is so that students can feel like historians - they have the opportunity to do some history and contribute to the bigger picture a small piece of the story that has never been told. Why not involve students in PD, to share their views on what we're looking to do in the classroom? Check out teacher participant Laura's blog post on this topic. What do you think? |
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In September 1944, the expectation based on WWI precedent is that the Germans will pull out, knowing the war is lost. Once the Allies see that this is not the case, they need to consider taking Antwerp and closing the south Beveland penninsula. In the next 2 days, we will look at the decision-making around the Scheldt estuary, a 4-day campaign that took 27 days to conclude. The purpose is to open up access to Antwerp to get supplies into the starving country, and attack the Ruhr industrial complex. Canada's operation becomes a multinational one as we work to clear the Schedule estuary.
Our preparation for entering the Vlissingen area involved looking at a map of the area and the locations the German army occupied (circled in red). From the Allied perspective, where did we need to attack? What sources did we require? What and whom could we afford to risk? These are the questions we pose every day as well engage in these activities. When setting up this activity for students, participants questioned whether it would be more advisable to provide some content first, for context. How can students do any more than a superficial overview if they have no content? The approach is to get them to think about what they need to know. What are the essential pieces of information required to make a decision? Let students wrestle with this first and decide what evidence they need to find. Then they are responsible for the research and presenting the evidence to make their arguments. |
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Cross-curricular considerationsIn these activities, we are engaging in interdisciplinary work which draws together multiple subject areas. When students are considering map coordinates, risk to civilians and policy decisions, taking stock of equipment and munitions and calculating statistics they are doing not only history but:
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ControversyCanada's minister of defense at the time resigns over the massive Canadian casualties.
We cannot sustain the troop replacements we require without conscription - we have a 15,000 man shortage. The intended and unintended consequences of this campaign:
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Classroom questions
Can you afford to let the civilian population starve? Can you afford to feed them?
Where were the people of the towns? Who was taking care of them/responsible for them?
Should the Canadian army be responsible for helping them?What doesbt this get highlighted as significant in our history? Why does Dieppe get so much space?
How did what was happening on the battle front affect the home front?
What has changed between WWI and WWII that might affect public perceptions?
Is it ever justifiable to require military service of citizens?
What was Mackenzie King's position at the beginning of the war? How has this changed by 1944, and why?
How would you wage a total war if you couldn't have conscription?
Why would 12,000 more Canadians have made any difference at all? Why did we feel the need to make this contribution given all of the international participation? Why us?
What is significant about killed and wounded for future operations and campaigns? What is significant beyond killed and wounded?
Where were the people of the towns? Who was taking care of them/responsible for them?
Should the Canadian army be responsible for helping them?What doesbt this get highlighted as significant in our history? Why does Dieppe get so much space?
How did what was happening on the battle front affect the home front?
What has changed between WWI and WWII that might affect public perceptions?
Is it ever justifiable to require military service of citizens?
- What other countries do this? Why?
- Who would be most affected by it today?
- Who would be included? Recent immigrants, etc? Role of women?
- Should anybody be exempt? For what reasons?
What was Mackenzie King's position at the beginning of the war? How has this changed by 1944, and why?
How would you wage a total war if you couldn't have conscription?
Why would 12,000 more Canadians have made any difference at all? Why did we feel the need to make this contribution given all of the international participation? Why us?
What is significant about killed and wounded for future operations and campaigns? What is significant beyond killed and wounded?