Introduction
The "Life in the Trenches: WWI Soldier WebQuest" was developed to engage students in a fun-filled, multi-discipline learning activity aimed to help students develop the necessary skills in the 11th grade-level, as outlined in the standards section below. Students not only learn about World War One and the life the actual soldiers that lived in the trenches, but students are given the opportunity to use actual primary sources as a basis for creativity. They construct their own letters -- simulated primary sources -- adapted to specific scenarios describing the lives of fictional soldiers in World War One. Students will use the different activities as checkpoints and assessments of their knowledge and understanding of World War 1 life in the trenches.
Learners
This lesson is designed for 11th grade students learning about World War I. The lesson itself is based strongly in English and History with support from Mathematics, Family & Consumer Sciences, and Science. Prior to this WebQuest, it would certainly be helpful for students to have had exposure to working with primary sources and some basic, prior historical knowledge about World War I, but it is not unconditionally necessary.
Standards
English ISBE: 3.A.5, 3.B.5, 3.B.5a, 5.B.5a, 5.B.5b, 5.C.5b
3.A.5 Produce grammatically correct documents using standard manuscript specifications for a variety of purposes and audiences.
3.B.5 Using contemporary technology, produce documents of publication quality for specific purposes and audiences; exhibit clarity of focus, logic of organization, appropriate elaboration and support and overall coherence.
3.C.5a Communicate information and ideas in narrative, informative and persuasive writing with clarity and effectiveness in a variety of written forms using appropriate traditional and/or electronic formats; adapt content, vocabulary, voice and tone to the audience, purpose and situation.
5.B.5a Evaluate the usefulness of information, synthesize information to support a thesis, and present information in a logical manner in oral and written forms.
5.B.5b Credit primary and secondary sources in a form appropriate for presentation or publication for a particular audience.
5.C.5b Support and defend a thesis statement using various references including media and electronic resources.
Family & Consumer Sciences FACS National Standards: 5.5, 9.2, 16.2, 16.5
5.5 Demonstrate a work environment that provides safety and security
9.2 Apply risk management procedures to food safety, food testing and sanitation.
16.2 Evaluate fiber and textiles products and materials.
16.5 Evaluate elements of textile, apparel and fashion merchandising.
History: African-American History ISBE: 16.A.5a. 16.D.5(US); CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.1
16.A.5a Analyze historical and contemporary development using method of historical inquiry (pose questions, collect and analyze data, make and support inference with evidence, report findings).
16.B.5a(W) Analyze worldwide consequences of isolated political events, including the events triggering the Napoleonic Wars and World Wars I and II.
16.D.5(US) Analyze the relationship between an issue in United State social history and the related aspect of political, economic and environmental history.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.1 Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, attending to such features as the date and origin of the information.
Math ISBE: 7.B.4, 7.C.3a, 8.C.5, 8.D.3a, 9.D.5
7.B.4 Estimate and measure the magnitude and directions of physical quantities (e.g., velocity, force, slope) using rulers, protractors and other scientific instruments including timers, calculators and computers.
7.C.3a Construct a simple scale drawing for a given situation.
8.C.5 Use polynomial, exponential, logarithmic and trigonometric functions to model situations.
8.D.3a Solve problems using numeric, graphic or symbolic representations of variables, expressions, equations and inequalities.
9.D.5 Analyze and solve problems involving periodic patterns (e.g., sound waves, tide variations) using circular functions and communicate results orally and in writing.
Science ISBE: 13.A.5a, 13.A.5b,13.B.5e
13.A.4a Estimate and suggest ways to reduce the degree of risk involved in science activities.
13.A.5b Explain criteria that scientists use to evaluate the validity of scientific claims and theories.
13.B.5e Assess how scientific and technological progress has affected other fields of study, careers and job markets and aspects of everyday life.
3.A.5 Produce grammatically correct documents using standard manuscript specifications for a variety of purposes and audiences.
3.B.5 Using contemporary technology, produce documents of publication quality for specific purposes and audiences; exhibit clarity of focus, logic of organization, appropriate elaboration and support and overall coherence.
3.C.5a Communicate information and ideas in narrative, informative and persuasive writing with clarity and effectiveness in a variety of written forms using appropriate traditional and/or electronic formats; adapt content, vocabulary, voice and tone to the audience, purpose and situation.
5.B.5a Evaluate the usefulness of information, synthesize information to support a thesis, and present information in a logical manner in oral and written forms.
5.B.5b Credit primary and secondary sources in a form appropriate for presentation or publication for a particular audience.
5.C.5b Support and defend a thesis statement using various references including media and electronic resources.
Family & Consumer Sciences FACS National Standards: 5.5, 9.2, 16.2, 16.5
5.5 Demonstrate a work environment that provides safety and security
9.2 Apply risk management procedures to food safety, food testing and sanitation.
16.2 Evaluate fiber and textiles products and materials.
16.5 Evaluate elements of textile, apparel and fashion merchandising.
History: African-American History ISBE: 16.A.5a. 16.D.5(US); CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.1
16.A.5a Analyze historical and contemporary development using method of historical inquiry (pose questions, collect and analyze data, make and support inference with evidence, report findings).
16.B.5a(W) Analyze worldwide consequences of isolated political events, including the events triggering the Napoleonic Wars and World Wars I and II.
16.D.5(US) Analyze the relationship between an issue in United State social history and the related aspect of political, economic and environmental history.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.1 Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, attending to such features as the date and origin of the information.
Math ISBE: 7.B.4, 7.C.3a, 8.C.5, 8.D.3a, 9.D.5
7.B.4 Estimate and measure the magnitude and directions of physical quantities (e.g., velocity, force, slope) using rulers, protractors and other scientific instruments including timers, calculators and computers.
7.C.3a Construct a simple scale drawing for a given situation.
8.C.5 Use polynomial, exponential, logarithmic and trigonometric functions to model situations.
8.D.3a Solve problems using numeric, graphic or symbolic representations of variables, expressions, equations and inequalities.
9.D.5 Analyze and solve problems involving periodic patterns (e.g., sound waves, tide variations) using circular functions and communicate results orally and in writing.
Science ISBE: 13.A.5a, 13.A.5b,13.B.5e
13.A.4a Estimate and suggest ways to reduce the degree of risk involved in science activities.
13.A.5b Explain criteria that scientists use to evaluate the validity of scientific claims and theories.
13.B.5e Assess how scientific and technological progress has affected other fields of study, careers and job markets and aspects of everyday life.
Process
Using the different school subjects, individual students each will write six different letters from the perspective of six different soldiers to go into a time capsule. Each different soldier faced different problems and had different experiences. Students will follow the instructions and requirements outlined in the Student Process Section so that they will know what to include for each specific letter.
Resources
To implement this lesson in a classroom, a teacher will require:
- An email address to accept electronic copies of student work and to be reached with questions if students are to be working outside of the classroom,
- A prepared worksheet for the mathematics portion of the assignment (example questions can be found here),
- Sufficient computers for the entire class (one per person),
- Adobe Flash Player software and headphones for viewing/listening to video/audio primary resources,
- Internet access granted on the student computers with unrestricted access to this website (inthetrench.weebly.com) and the Library of Congress website (www.loc.gov),
- A way for the students to save their work to come back to it later (i.e. flash drives, cloud services, individual accounts on the computers, etc.), and
- A printer and stapler for preparing the project to be turned in.
Evaluation
A downloadable copy of the rubric for this assignment is located here.
Conclusion
This project will combine Family and Consumer Science, English, Social Studies, Science, and Math give the students an insight to the lives of different soldiers during World War I. They will have experience using primary sources and use critical thinking to discover trench warfare and apply that to creating letters that will describe the soldiers' lives in the midst of this chaotic time.