Fallen Soldiers Field Trip

Memorial Day at Gettysburg National Cemetery

NPS Photo

Theme

The Soldiers' National Cemetery and the Gettysburg Address are ever present reminders of the horror of war and of man's capacity to endure, overcome, and grow from tragic events.

Goal

The Fallen Soldiers Field Trip Program seeks to personalize history and the story of all American Soldiers who fell in the line of duty. We will look at original documents from some of these soldiers to get to know them as individual people and learn who they are were. We will relate their story to better convey to students the relevance of the Gettysburg Address, both historically and in the modern world.

Objectives

The students will:

• Discuss the Gettysburg Address and the Emancipation Proclamation within the context of Abraham Lincoln's personal and political views regarding slavery and democracy
• Describe the horrific conditions of the dead on the battlefield, and list several ways by which a majority of the Union dead were identified
• Relate personal accounts as to why individual soldiers were fighting and compare and contrast these with the war aims as expressed in the Gettysburg Address
• Determine the reasons why Lincoln came to Gettysburg in November 1863
• Analyze the Gettysburg Address in the context of the time
• Determine the significance of the Gettysburg Address as it transcends time and place

A Note to Teachers

Your students will gain the most benefit from this program if they are prepared for their visit. The preparatory information and activities in the above links are helpful as students retain the most information when they are prepared for the field trip, knowing what to expect, what is expected of them, and with some base of knowledge upon which the ranger can build. These activities should be reviewed in the classroom prior to, and after your visit. The grade level of enclosed information may not be appropriate to the level of understanding of your students. We leave the interpretation of this information up to you.

Pre-Visit Lesson

Post- Visit Lesson

Grade Level and Program Details

This program is targeted at students in grades 8-12 and includes pre-visit preparation in the classroom, an on-site, 90-120 minute program conducted by a park ranger, and post visit follow-up in the classroom.

The maximum class size for this program is 30 students and the minimum is 10. Please divide students into groups of 3 before leaving for Gettysburg! Each group needs to have a facilitator, a reader, and a reporter. (Adjustments can be made in cooperative group sizes to correspond to class size.) Groups should be comprised of students who work well together and who will complete their tasks in a given amount of time. The teacher may find it useful to use this same group format for doing the pre-visit work.

Students will become highly involved with both secondary and primary sources in the classroom and in the Soldiers' National Cemetery. The pre-visit activities are meant to help the teacher stimulate student interest, motivate them for their visit to Gettysburg, and provide a foundation of knowledge upon which the program ranger can build here at the site. It is extremely important, for the success of the on-site program, that the students complete the essential pre-visit readings and exercises. The supplemental materials provide additional information and enrichment exercises.

Please keep in mind that some of the material in this packet is very specific to the topic of Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and the creation of the Soldiers' National Cemetery. Other material is quite general. But in neither case is it comprehensive.

 

See curriculum standards on the NPS Education Portal

 

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