Off to World War I?

Krista Ruud

Fellowship Lesson 2009

Champaign County Historical Archives

Lesson 3 – Serving America in the War

To download this lesson in PDF format, click here.

Length: 1-2 class periods

Set-up: Groups of 2 - 4

Procedures:

§ Review as a class student responses to the previous lesson’s question of what American men and women might have thought about WWI.

§ Pass out to each group the Letter Response Sheet and one copy of each of the following documents: A Letter from Bob Huff, Letters From Our Boys in France, Letters from Soldiers at Home and Abroad, WWI Soldier Photo, Letters from a WWI Nurse (Nettie Irle), and Letters from a WWI Nurse (Nettie Irle) – Transcripts.

§ In their groups, students should read through the letters from a WWI nurse and soldiers and fill out the Letter Response Sheet.

§ Discuss the documents as a class

o What did students find the most interesting?

o What did students find the most surprising?

o Were the letters all about the war or did the soldiers and the nurse talk about other things?

o Do students think the soldiers and the nurse left anything about the war out of their letters? Why/why not?

o What did American men and women really feel about serving in WWI?

o Had the students lived in 1917 or 1918, would they have joined the war effort as a soldier or a nurse?

§ Spend time reviewing what students have learned about WWI and Americans’ service in the war.

Local Primary Sources: Students will view letters from World War I soldiers printed in the Champaign-Urbana Courier, letters from a World War I nurse (Nettie Irle) that her family kept, and photos of local soldiers and Nettie Irle.

Assessment: Students will have completed the Letter Response Sheet based on the letters and used their knowledge of WWI and understanding of the letters to participate in a class discussion about American men and women who went off to World War I.