Make it Authentic

Let’s face it, we all want fulfillment in life. Without that satisfaction our lives seem empty. This past week students, veterans, and myself have found this fulfillment. Granted there is one that fulfills me most, but that is not what I am here to talk about today. Today is all about how Project Based Learning has brought our community closer together by making connections with our Veterans.

This last year I had lost someone who made an impact on me and my daughter’s life. My uncle Dick was a child in Holland during WWII. He had shared his experience with my daughter, Brittany, who was doing a project for school. Uncle Dick spoke about how he was a school age boy when the Germans were coming into their community. Being told early on to hide if this happens, Uncle Dick and many other students ran to the church. The church only had one door. He remembered his father’s words to hide. He hid in the church organ. The soldiers came in and took the rest of his classmates. Uncle Dick had never saw his friends again.

Now fast forward years later. The war had ended and my uncle was grateful to the United States for all that they had done for them. He told his mother that he wanted to go to the United States. His new journey had begun. After entering Ellis Island, Uncle Dick was off to NW Iowa and met the Hofmeyer family. It was then that he and Bob had joined the military.

Everyone’s stories on how and why they joined the military are different, and each of these stories are important to our history. This is how our new PBL project came to fruition. I wanted students to be able to answer the question, “Why is it important to preserve our history?” and my desire was for students to honor our military men and women in the process.

As many of you may already know, in PBL, it is the entry event that stirs the excitement. The entry event that was developed was a letter from the “Veterans Affairs” asking for assistance to help honor our veterans in our community. Students were onboard from the start, and the questions commenced.

Now, lining this up is no easy challenge. My advice to you is “Don’t give up!”. This task may seem daunting, but is well worth it in the end. I had started made connections with one of my last year’s student’s father. He was so excited that he allowed us to use some of his podcasting equipment and came in on a snow day to show me how to use the equipment. Then, after speaking to a member of the American Legion, he started lining up veterans to come and help us out. I also reached out to other community members that were veterans. Our community is amazing, and the level of participation is remarkable.

Still, this participation didn’t come at a cost. These men and women gave up their lives to serve our country. They had family they left behind. Whether in a time of conflict or peace, each person sacrificed to give us the freedoms that we now have. I can’t thank these men and women enough.

Interviews are about completed. After the interviews, students are then given the task to make a documentary or video podcast. Research will need to be completed, analysis of the interviews to find the important information done, and they will have search out how to make video podcasting or documentaries. This will be both challenging and rewarding.

Once the documentaries are developed, they will present at the American Legion. Community members, Veterans, and parents will be invited to view their work. Once completed, these documentaries stories from these men and women will help preserve history and display their passion toward their country. Emotions were expressed and students were able to see, first hand, what it means to truly love their country. In the end, the goal of students understanding the importance of preserving history will be understood.

(Arlyce Kroese teaches seventh grade language arts at Nevada Middle School.)