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CONTENTS
4Introduction
5
About this Resource
10 Mapping and Linking Resources to KS2 – KS3 Curriculum
11 Lesson 1 – Fact Finders: Researching the First World War
13 Lesson 2 – Dog Tired: Writing Poetry about Life in the Trenches
15 Lesson 3 – Every Picture Tells a Story: Paul Nash’s Vision of the First World War
17 Lesson 4 – How to be a History Guide
19 Lesson 5 – Power of Poppies
21 Lesson 6 – One Hundred Years On: In Flanders Fields
23 Poppies Tour On-site Class Activity – Wave and Weeping Window
25 Take It Further – Pin Your Poppy Commemoration
27 First World War Web Links
Photocopiable pupil worksheets
Emotions Grid – Express Yourself
Cover image: Poppies: Weeping Window by artist Paul Cummins and designer Tom Piper
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INTRODUCTION
ABOUT THIS RESOURCE
14-18 NOW is presenting the iconic poppy sculptures Wave and Weeping Window by artist Paul Cummins
and designer Tom Piper at selected locations around the UK until 2018.
The learning sequences in this pack are full of creative and practical ideas for primary and secondary
teachers visiting the Wave and Weeping Window sculptures at various venues in the UK and equally
for those searching for standalone activities to explore the First World War and the significance of the
Remembrance Poppy.
Weeping Window is a cascade comprising several thousand handmade ceramic poppies seen pouring from
a high window to the ground below; Wave is a sweeping arch of bright red poppy heads suspended on towering
stalks. These two sculptures, marking the centenary of the outbreak of war, are now brought to audiences at
venues across the country as part of the 14-18 NOW, the UK’s art programme to mark the centenary of the
First World War.
The breath-taking sculptures were initially conceived as the key dramatic sculptural elements in the installation
Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red at the Tower of London in 2014, marking 100 years since the start of the
First World War. Over the course of their time at the Tower, the two sculptures were gradually surrounded by a vast
field of ceramic poppies, each one planted by a volunteer in memory of the life of a British and Colonial soldier lost
during the First World War. In their original setting they captured the public imagination and were visited by over
five million people.
This resource has been designed to help pupils develop a deeper understanding of the First World War
through the enduring symbol of the poppy and to mobilise rich literacy outcomes through art, history and literature.
All of the activities included in this pack resource promote pupil talk and encourage independent thinking from pupils
about Wave and Weeping Window and how these installations link to the wider themes of the First World War.
Each activity foregrounds images of the Wave and Weeping Window installations in order to reflect on the
stories behind the poppies and to foster dialogue about the war. The lessons go on to tackle the views and
history expressed through the poetry of Siegfried Sassoon and John McCrae and the provocative paintings of
John Nash and Christopher Richard Wynne Nevinson. In response to these perceptions about the First World
War, pupils are encouraged to write their own poetry, paint their own pictures and tell their own stories.
The resources are primarily designed for Years 5 – 8 in England and Wales, Years 6 – 9 in Northern Ireland
and P6 – S2 in Scotland, but they are easily accessible for lower or upper age ranges. Each of the learning
sequences focuses on a scaffolded route into an activity and can be adapted to suit pupil needs. Sequences
are pupil-facing with:
• Key objectives and outcomes
• Starter and main activities
•Plenaries
• Extension activities
• Ideas for additional lessons
All of the learning sequences aim to enrich pupils’ oral skills and act as a springboard for questioning, discussion,
performance, presentation and critique.
Image credits left to right:
Image credit: Poppies: Weeping Window at St George's Hall, 2015. By Mark McNulty
Image credit: ©Richard Lea-Hair and Historic Royal Palaces
Image credit: Wave at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, 2015. Getty
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POPPIES: WAVE
LINCOLN CASTLE
Image credit: Andy Tryner © Lincolnshire County Council, 2016
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POPPIES: WEEPING WINDOW
ST MAGNUS CATHEDRAL, KIRKWALL
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Image credit: Michael Bowles © Getty Images, 2016
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MAPPING AND LINKING RESOURCES TO
KS2 – KS3 CURRICULUM
LESSON 1: FACT FINDERS
9 – 13 YEAR OLDS
60-MINUTES
All of the resources have been mapped to the English Programme of Study and the literacy curricula of
Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales:
Reading
Age 9-11
• Read for pleasure and discuss an increasingly wide range of fiction, poetry, plays, non-fiction and reference
books or textbooks
• Prepare poems to read aloud and to perform, showing understanding through intonation, tone and volume
so that the meaning is clear to an audience
• Discuss and evaluate how authors use language, including figurative language, considering the impact
on the reader
• Encourage pupils to explain and discuss their understandings of what they have read through formal
presentations and debates, maintaining a focus on the topic and using notes where necessary
Age 11-13
• Read for key ideas, enjoyment, engagement and empathy
• Engage with a broad range of increasingly complex texts including English, Irish, Scottish and Welsh texts
• Read critically through knowing how language, including figurative language, vocabulary choice, grammar,
text structure and organisational features, presents meaning
• Read around a topic of interest and develop a broader understanding of it through research
• Synthesise ideas and apply their learning in unfamiliar contexts, with increasing independence
• Develop critical literacy skills, including the ability to distinguish between fact and opinion
• Recognise persuasive language and evaluate the reliability and relevance of sources
Writing
Age 9-11
Age 11-13
• Choose and use a wide range of adventurous and imaginative vocabulary with precision
• Identify the audience for and purpose of writing, selecting the appropriate form and using other similar
writing as helpful models
• Draft writing by selecting appropriate grammar and vocabulary, understanding how such choices can
change and enhance meaning
• Proofread work and that of others, assess and evaluate it and make clear recommendations for improvement
• Write for pleasure and to produce information with grammatical accuracy, varying the length and structure
of sentences to make meaning clear
• Plan, draft, edit and proof-read work by considering how writing reflects the audiences and purposes
for which it was intended and amending the vocabulary, grammar and structure to improve its coherence
and overall effectiveness
• Write a comprehensive account of a topic presenting information, processes and ideas clearly
and appropriately
Oracy
Age 9-11
• Speak clearly, using formal language and projecting voice effectively to an audience
• Explain information and ideas, exploring and using ways to be convincing, e.g. use of vocabulary, gesture,
visual aids
• Respond to others with questions and comments which focus on reasons, implications and next steps
• Express opinions clearly about topics and written texts and include supporting reasons
Age 11-13
• Give short speeches and presentations, expressing ideas and keeping to the point
• Participate in formal debates and structured discussions, summarising and/or building on what has been said
• Rehearse and perform poetry and discuss language use and meaning, using role, intonation, tone, volume,
mood, silence, stillness and action to add impact
• Engage, through language, with fictional and real-life characters and situations, to explore emotions
and develop creative potential
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Researching the First World War
Learning Objective
• To explore, discuss and engage with images of the Wave and Weeping Window installations
• To become a FACT FINDER and research and present information about WW1
Learning Outcome
• I can express my personal interpretation of the Wave and Weeping Window installations
and share it with my peers
• I can watch a short documentary and listen carefully for key information and take useful notes
• I can select key facts about WW1 and, with my partner, produce a two-minute presentation
Resources
• Images of Wave and Weeping Window
• ICT suite for pairwork activity
• BBC Schools WW1 films: www.bbc.co.uk/schools/0/ww1/
•Earphones
• Pupil activity sheet
• Web Links (at the back of pack)
• Post-it notes
Let’s Get Started
15 minutes
Show pupils images of the Wave and Weeping Window installations on the electronic whiteboard.
Put pupils in pairs and give them five minutes to work through these quick prompts:
• What are the artist and designer saying to you?
• What is the idea behind the installation?
• Choose five words to describe what you see
Now offer pupils background information about the installations:
• Weeping Window and Wave were originally presented as the two central sculptural elements
of the installation Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red at the Tower of London – poppies
and original concept by artist Paul Cummins and installation designed by Tom Piper.
• Each day, from 17th July to 11th November in 2014, to mark the centenary of the start of the
First World War, poppies were planted in the grass surrounding the sculptures until the total
number matched the count of 888,246 British and Colonial military fatalities in the First World
War. At sunset, the names of 180 victims of war, nominated by the public, were read out in a
ceremony followed by the Last Post
• The poppy was a familiar sight on the battlegrounds of the Western Front during the First
World War, where it flourished amidst the devastation of trench warfare. It was adopted
as a symbol of remembrance
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Give each pupil a post-it note and ask pupils to write down in their own words what
Wave and Weeping Window mean to them.
Does the installation…
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Represent war victims in a different way?
Relate to ‘going over the top’ or into battle?
Help you to understand the numbers of men and women who died?
Symbolise the bloody battles of WW1?
LESSON 2: ENGLISH
11 – 13 YEAR OLDS
90-MINUTES
Ask them to read from their post-it note either a word or sentence which sums up their personal
reading of Wave and Weeping Window.
The Big Task
35 minutes
In pairs, pupils will become WW1 FACT FINDERS and research the challenges of soldiers
and civilians during the First World War.
Their job is to work in pairs and:
• Take notes as they watch a short documentary film about WW1
• To agree, as partners, what is the most relevant and interesting information
from the documentary
• To produce a two-minute presentation using key facts
Pupils have 20 minutes to watch the short film, discuss what facts resonated with them
and to plan what they will say to the class.
Remind pupils that note-taking is about:
• Writing quickly
• Picking out key words
• Avoiding writing in full sentences
Dog Tired: Writing Poetry about Life in the Trenches
Learning Objective
• To explore, discuss and engage with images of the Wave and Weeping Window installations
• To express personal interpretations of the Wave and Weeping Window installations and
share it with my peers
• To write a poem in first person that draws upon a WW1 painting for inspiration
Learning Outcome
• I can express my personal interpretation of the Wave and Weeping Window installations
and share it with my peers
• I can draft an original poem about a soldier awaiting battle and use devices that build tension
Resources
• Images of Wave and Weeping Window
• Sourced images of Christopher Richard Wynne Nevinson’s paintings: Dog Tired
or Returning to the Trenches
• Emotions grid
Let’s Get Started
15 minutes
See the starter activity detail in Lesson 1 of this pack
The Big Task
65 minutes
The installations express a powerful view about the First World War. Tell pupils that they are
going to engage with another view of war expressed by the painter Christopher Richard
Wynne Nevinson.
Make sure you have a stopwatch or a clock available to time each pairs’ presentation to ensure
they do not go over two-minutes.
Encourage pupils to write down the facts from other pupils’ presentations that had an impact
on them.
You can start watching a few of the presentations in this lesson. Watch the remaining
presentations for the next lesson.
Bringing It All Together
10 minutes
At the end of the session, having seen several presentations, get pupils to:
Extension / Homework
Ask pupils to watch as many of the BBC Schools WW1 documentaries as possible.
• Vote on who the most successful fact finders were
• Identify which pairs presented effectively
• Explain what key ingredients made the presentations effective
Get pupils to keep a FACT FINDER log to record fascinating facts about WW1.
Give pupils the emotions grid to develop their talk further and images of the Nevinson paintings:
Dog Tired and Returning to the Trenches.
Ask pupils to complete the worksheet about Nevinson’s paintings and feed back.
Get pupils to think first about the mental and physical state of soldiers in the trenches of WW1.
‘We don’t know what is going on in the minds of the soldiers in the pictures by Nevinson.
In a short while you’re going to write a poem about one of the soldiers from the paintings.
It will be in first person and using rhyming couplets.’
• Many soldiers suffered with ‘shell shock’ from the fighting and continuous explosion of
shells. Shell shock is now known as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
• Muddy and cold trenches could bring on ‘trench foot’ where limbs became swollen
and inflamed. Lack of treatment often led to gangrene and limb amputation
• Diseases would often spread quickly in trenches because of overcrowding, unpleasant
conditions and rats
• The use of chemical weapons in WW1 had terrible consequences. For examples, mustard
gas could cause internal respiratory damage, blistering on the body, inflammation of the
eyes, blindness and death
• The unhygienic conditions of the trenches encouraged lice and other skin ailments
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Give pupils the poem Suicide in the Trenches by Siegfried Sassoon accompanied
by a glossary of words:
Lonesome
to feel alone
Lark
a small songbird
Cowed
to scare and take away someone’s power
Glumdepressed
Crumps
a loud sound which could be made by an explosion of a shell
Smug-faced
Someone who is over pleased with themselves
Kindling
Sticks used for lighting fires
LESSON 3: ART
9 – 13 YEAR OLDS
90-MINUTES
Tell pupils the poem is about the psychological impact of war on a soldier.
Ask the pupils to complete the following: ‘One, two and all’ activity below:
• Read the poem on their own
• Underline the words that make them feel the most strongly about the soldier
• Choose a partner and re-read the poem together, alternating each line
•As partners discuss which word is the most powerful in each line and why
Having ready the poem three times, ask pupils to answer these questions independently
on post-it notes.
• What is Sassoon’s message about the impact of trench life on young soldiers?
• Rhyming couplets are two lines that rhyme. Sassoon uses rhyming couplets throughout
the poem. Why?
Ask pupils to pass on their post-it notes around the class until you say STOP like ‘pass
the parcel’. Pupils read the post-it note and write down A for AGREE or D for DISAGREE with
the comment. Start the process up again. Do it at least four or five times so pupils get to read
lots of different points of view.
Imagine you are a soldier in the painting Dog Tired or Returning to the Trenches.
What thoughts are going through your mind as you march or sit waiting for combat?
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Draft a poem using the same form as Sassoon’s poem – three verses of four lines with
rhyming couplets
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Use emotive words from Suicide in the Trenches in your own poem like
empty, lonesome, whistled, cowed, glum, crumps, lice, pray, sneak, hell, youth
• Use the title of the painting as inspiration for your poem
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Think about what the title evokes and how you can express these emotions/ideas/messages
in your poem
• Complete the poem as homework
Bringing It All Together
10 minutes
Extension / Homework
Every Picture Tells a Story: Paul Nash’s Vision of the First World War
Learning Objective
• To explore, discuss and engage with images of the Wave and Weeping Window installations
• To express how paintings make you feel
• To paint a picture depicting life in the trenches during WW1
Learning Outcome
• I can express my personal interpretation of the Wave and Weeping Window installations
and share it with my peers
• I can talk about the distinctive features of Paul Nash’s paintings and explain what they say to me
• I can emulate Paul Nash’s style of painting
Resources
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Let’s Get Started
15 minutes
See the starter activity detail in Lesson 1 of this pack
The Big Task
65 minutes
The installations express a powerful view about the First World War. Tell pupils that they
are going to engage with another view of war expressed by the British painter Paul Nash.
Encourage pupils to work in pairs and to read to each other what they have written so far.
How far have their verses captured the essence of the paintings?
Encourage pupils to redraft/edit and polish their poem.
To develop pupils’ creative writing further you could repeat the next lesson with a similar
stimulus such as:
• Stanley Spencer’s Travoys Arriving with Wounded at a Dressing-Station or his visionary
paintings of WW1 at Sandham Memorial Chapel
• Wilfred Owen’s poem, Anthem for Doomed Youth
Images of Wave and Weeping Window.
Image of Paul Nash’s The Menin Road
Pupil worksheet from this pack
Emotions Grid
Video Clip: www.youtube.com/watch?v=_G4ZY66BG38
Charcoal, pencils, erasers and sugar paper
Show pupils Paul Nash’s oil painting, The Menin Road depicting a devastated landscape
on the electronic whiteboard.
Give pupils the Emotions Grid, an image of The Menin Road and the pupil worksheet from
this pack. Ask pupils to work with a partner and use the emotions grid to help them explain
their initial reactions to Paul Nash’s painting.
Make sure you have clarified any words on the Emotions Grid that pupils do not understand.
Get pupils to feed back their personal interpretations and responses.
Play extracts about trench life from documentaries made by the History Channel
(Life in a Trench) and the Discovery channel (Dan Snow’s ‘Battle of the Somme’):
www.youtube.com/watch?v=_G4ZY66BG38
www.youtube.com/watch?v=FvYIIuxh2kY
Source other photographs and texts about trench life to give to pupils in small groups.
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Tell pupils they are going to use these sources to inform a painting or drawing in the style
of Paul Nash. Ask pupils to depict a soldier/soldiers
• Waiting to go into battle
• Marching to battle
LESSON 4: HISTORY
9 – 13 YEAR OLDS
60-MINUTES
Get pupils to look closely at the style of Nash’s painting and his palette of colour. Ask pupils
to think carefully about:
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Colour and tone (light and dark)
Rhythm and interval (the space between elements in the painting)
Texture and mark making
Pattern and repetition
Shapes and forms (three-dimensional shapes)
Each pupil creates their own tone drawing using charcoal. This will be the draft / sketch / start
of a painting to come.
Method: rub charcoal into paper to cover the whole surface with a layer of tone (this is called
a ‘ground’). Then create a drawing by using charcoal to add line and darker tone, and using
a rubber to create lighter tones.
Bringing It All Together
10 minutes
Ask pupils to work in new pairs to critique each other’s work using the Emotions Grid to help
with vocabulary.
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Extension / Homework
What does the initial idea make you feel?
Is the work still or full of movement?
Is the work more about shapes or lines?
What is the narrative?
How does the work influence the way you move your eyes?
Is the work loud (feels like a shout) or quiet (feels like a whisper)?
How to be a History Guide
Learning Objective
• To explore, discuss and engage with images of the Wave and Weeping Window installations
• To identify the essential communication skills of a history tour guide
• To prepare and learn by heart a two-minute speech about a local monument
commemorating WW1
Learning Outcome
• I can express my personal interpretation of the Wave and Weeping Window installations
and share it with my peers
• I can use the public-speaking skills of a tour guide:
Pupils develop their work further into full paintings.
Encourage pupils to explore more of Paul Nash’s WW1 paintings and sketches particularly:
Wire
Spring in the Trenches, Ridge Wood
We Are Making a New World
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good voice projection
show a passion for history
memorise and remember facts and figures
engage an audience
Resources
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Images of Wave and Weeping Window
Pupil worksheet
Images of local or well-known WW1 memorials
Emotions Grid
Let’s Get Started
10 minutes
See the starter activity detail in Lesson 1 of this pack
The Big Task
40 minutes
Wave and Weeping Window are sculptural artworks commemorating the 888,246 British
and Colonial military fatalities in WW1. Tell pupils that memorials were built around the UK
after the war to remember those that died.
Suggest that pupils carry on using the Emotions Grid to help them to develop their own personal
views and interpretations about Nash’s work.
What do war memorials look like?
• Each one is unique
• They represent the way a community wants to remember the dead –
with a plaque, cenotaph, monument, building, etc
• There is an inscription dedicated to those that died
• Memorials often immortalise the names of people who died
• They could be in a private or public space
• They could be temporary or permanent
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A History Guide brings history to life and this may involve taking people to war memorials to:
• Introduce them to a museum or historical site
• Give fascinating or memorable facts
• Share stories from history that interest people
LESSON 5: LITERACY
9 – 13 YEAR OLDS
60-MINUTES
Give pupils the pupil worksheet, Emotions Grid and one of a collection of pictures (with facts)
you have sourced of a local war memorial.
Pupils will put together a two-minute speech as a History Guide. Emphasise to the pupils that
as their audience cannot see or experience the memorial their ability to describe it will be critical.
Bringing It All Together
10 minutes
A few pupils present in this lesson and others during the next lesson/s. Pupils start to evaluate
each other's speeches:
Use this scale:
4.
3.
2.
1.
I was fully tuned in and completely engaged with the delivery of the information
I listened and liked the presentation of the facts
I listened at points and quite liked the style of the presentation
I tuned in and out
Pupils discuss which communication skills really made a difference to the mini presentation.
Extension / Homework
Pupils develop their History Guide’s speech and choose a WW1 subject that really interests
them, using the Web Links at the back of this resource.
Poets from WW1
Women and War
Children and WW1
How WW1 started
The Battle of the Somme
No Man’s Land
International stories from WW1
Propaganda posters and anti-war art
Power of Poppies
Learning Objective
• To explore, discuss and engage with images of the Wave and Weeping Window installations
• To investigate the meaning of the Remembrance Poppy and its place in our culture
Learning Outcome
• I can express my personal interpretation of the Wave and Weeping Window installations
and share it with my peers
• I can talk about the history of the Remembrance Poppy and what it means to me personally
Resources
• Images of Wave and Weeping Window
• Pupil worksheet
• Images of poppies in a field and images of the Remembrance poppy which people pin
on their lapel
• Video clip: www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8Jv0T9eFUY
Let’s Get Started
10 minutes
See the starter activity detail in Lesson 1 of this pack
The Big Task
35 minutes
The Wave and Weeping Window sculptures use thousands of poppies for remembering the
First World War. Poppies were a common sight on the Western Front as they flourished in soil
that had been affected by shelling and combat. They are resilient flowers that grew in their
thousands on the battlefields and turned war-torn soil into a sea of red. The poppy became a
symbol for remembrance across the world after the First World War.
Give pupils two different images of the poppy: a field of poppies and poppies made
by the Royal British Legion. Ask pupils what they know about the poppy.
• An ‘emblem’ for remembrance
• Associated with the battle fields of the First World War
• The Flanders Poppy was adopted as the official remembrance flower because
of John McCrae’s poem In Flanders Fields
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Then dig a little deeper about what pupils know about Remembrance Day.
Discuss what happens on Remembrance Day:
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The Armistice was declared at 11am on 11th November in 1918
Remembrance Day is on the second Sunday of November
Two minutes of silence held in remembrance
The dead are honoured at the Cenotaph by soldiers who are serving or have served as soldiers
War memorials are visited and services are held in the UK and across the world
People pin poppies on their lapels and lay wreaths at local memorials
LESSON 6: LITERACY & HISTORY
9 – 13 YEAR OLDS
60-MINUTES
Get pupils to collaborate in pairs and jot down points in the first two columns of the pupil sheet
related to this lesson:
WHAT I KNOW
WHAT I WANT TO KNOW
WHAT I LEARNT
Next show pupils an appropriate excerpt from the animated short film The Poppy Story. It gives
a clear account of how and why the poppy became a symbol of peace. Ask pupils to take notes.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8Jv0T9eFUY
What facts really stood out for them
Get pupils to complete the last part of their chart: What I learnt about poppies.
Bringing It All Together
10 minutes
Extension / Homework
Ask pupils to look again at images of the Wave and Weeping Window installations.
Have their views or interpretations changed with more information about the significance
of the poppy?
Challenge pupils to find out how countries around the world remember WW1 and which symbol
they have adopted. For example, in France, the blue cornflower (Bleuet de France) is used
symbolically instead of the poppy.
One Hundred Years On – In Flanders Fields
Learning Objective
• To explore, discuss and engage with images of the Wave and Weeping Window installations
• To investigate the meaning of the Remembrance Poppy in relation to the poem
In Flanders Fields
Learning Outcome
• I can express my personal interpretation of the Wave and Weeping Window installations
and share it with my peers
• I can talk about the significance of John McCrae’s poem In Flanders Fields and how
it makes me feel knowing this was written 100 years ago
Resources
• Pupil worksheet
• Audio clips from YouTube:
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The Lark Ascending by Ralph Vaughan Williams
The Last Post
Adagio For Strings by Samuel Barber
2nd Movement, Serenade For Strings by Edward Elgar
Let’s Get Started
15 minutes
See the starter activity detail in Lesson 1 of this pack
The Big Task
35 minutes
Tell pupils that the Wave and Weeping Window sculptures connect with the reflections of
other artists, writers and poets of the WW1. One man’s reflection of the war led to the poppy
becoming a symbol of remembrance.
Introduce John McCrae’s In Flanders Fields.
‘In Flanders Fields’ by John McCrae is one of the most read and recited poems from WW1.
It describes how poppies, against the odds, can grow on land ravaged by a terrible war.
Tell pupils a little more about the poet:
• He set his poem in Flanders where some of the worst battles of WW1 occurred
• John McCrae was a field surgeon with the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF)
and British forces on the Western Front
• He managed a field hospital and helped wounded soldiers
• After his friend was buried, McCrae was struck by what he saw. He noticed poppies
growing around his friend’s and other graves
Image credit: Michael Bowles © Getty Images
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Pupils read the poem in pairs. After pupils have read the poem split the class into two groups:
Group 1
What would you say your emotions are at the end of each line: Troubled? Shocked? Helpless?
Hopeless? Angry? Cheerful? Curious? Look at the emotion chart for more ideas. Create a graph
tracking your emotions for each line of the poem.
Group 2
Pupils read the poem in partners. After pupils have read the poem, split the class into
two groups for the following activity. Pupils swap over if time allows.
Answer the following: What is the message of the poem? Create tableaux in groups
of three – four that express your opinion about John McCrae’s message.
Next, ask the class to look at the poem again. Play pupils the music:
Lark Ascending by Ralph Vaughan Williams
The Last Post (This is played every Remembrance Day and from 1928 it has been played each
evening at 8pm at the Menin Gate, Ypres)
Adagio For Strings by Samuel Barber
2nd Movement, Serenade For Strings by Edward Elgar
Pupils vote on what music should accompany the final reading of the poem together as a class
to complete the lesson.
Bringing It All Together
10 minutes
Read the poem one more time as a class with the music that pupils voted for.
Extension / Homework
Produce a collage that depicts McCrae’s message and vision about WW1.
POPPIES TOUR
ON-SITE CLASS ACTIVITY
WAVE OR WEEPING WINDOW SCULPTURES
BEFORE YOUR VISIT
Ask pupils if they have heard of, watched on TV or visited, Poppies: Wave or Weeping Window or the original
installation Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red by artist Paul Cummins and designer Tom Piper, at the
Tower of London in 2014 to mark the centenary of the start of the First World War.
Put up big pieces of paper around the room with the words:
HEARD OF THE SCULPTURE/S
SEEN THE SCULPTURE/S ON TV
SEEN SCULPTURE/S IN REAL LIFE
HAVE NOT HEARD ABOUT SCULPTURE/S
Ask pupils to move to the poster that applies to them.
The pupils who have not heard about it yet move to the where the other pupils are to ask their friends
and more about the installations.
Ask pupils to go back to their seats.
Now show some of the images from this resource pack.
In pairs, pupils to talk through these quick prompts together:
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If these sculptures could speak what would they say?
Close your eyes and give yourself a minute. What stays in your mind about the sculptures?
Why do you think the title has been used Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red?
What do the installations / sculptures remind you of?
Ask pupils to work in a group of four – six to create a tableau of these installations.
How could you represent the installations?
Share as a class the following information to help pupils understand more about the visit:
• Weeping Window and Wave were originally presented as two central sculptural elements of the installation
Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red by artist Paul Cummins and designer Tom Piper
• Each day, between 17th July and the 11th November 2014, to mark the centenary of the start of the
First World War, poppies were planted in the grass surrounding the sculptures at the Tower of London until the
total number matched the count of 888,246 British and Colonial military fatalities in the First World War
• Over 30,000 people volunteered to take part in planting the poppies, with the final one placed in the ground
on Armistice Day, 11th November 2014
• The artwork was gradually taken down and the ceramic flowers delivered to members of the public
• A proportion of the sales from the poppies was donated to six service charities, raising over £9 million
for charitable organisations
•The Wave and Weeping Window have been preserved for the future as large-scale sculptures
and are now touring the UK
• The poppy was a familiar sight on the battlegrounds of the Western Front during the WW1
• The poppy grew amidst the devastation of trench warfare
Image credit: Andy Tryner © Lincolnshire County Council
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PUPIL VISIT ACTIVITY
Welcome to the Wave or Weeping Window touring sculpture. You will be engaging with this iconic
installation and be part of a bigger conversation about the centenary of WW1.
Take your time to explore and here are some questions for recording your thoughts.
TAKE IT FURTHERPIN YOUR POPPY
• Over five million people have visited the artwork at the Tower of London and in venues across the UK.
Why do you think so many people have been inspired to visit?
ACTIVITIES FOR REMEMBRANCE AND COMMEMORATION
• Look closely at the Wave or Weeping Window artwork. Describe the way the sculpture makes you feel.
Look at the emotions grid to help you
Pin Your Poppy suggestions below enable pupils and teachers to come together to mark the centenary
of WW1 and to acknowledge the powerful stories and voices of this time. It is a chance for pupils to
showcase their poetry, paintings and historical interpretations of WW1 and become History Guides, poets
and storytellers. Why not collapse the school’s timetable to deliver a ‘deep learning day’ or run activities
over half a day, a few days or a whole week?
• How would you describe the installation to someone who has never seen it before?
• Each flower of the installation has been handmade. Each poppy is unique. What do you think about this?
• Organise a ‘Produce a Poppy’ set of workshops for pupils and teachers to make their own poppy.
Make templates and the materials available for making the poppy. Encourage pupils to complete
a small label with a personal response to the centenary
• How does the installation relate to the experiences of soldiers during WW1?
• How does the artwork make us respond to the past?
• How do you feel about the setting of the installation? Does it make it more interesting?
• Find a part of the installation that your eye keeps being drawn to today. Sketch this part of the sculpture on
the back of this sheet. Imagine you have a magnifying glass so that you can see all the details of each poppy
• What burning questions do you want to ask about the sculpture you are visiting today?
• Blow up poster-sized images of local or regional war memorials and display the images around the school.
Ask pupils to imagine what the soldiers would say about their experiences, being away from home, and
surviving in the conditions of the trenches
• Create a soundscape of WW1 in an unused space in the school. Use YouTube to find appropriate sound files
that evoke the noises experienced while being in the trenches. Ask pupils to sit in the enclosed space for a
minute and then complete a postcard which summarises how the sounds made them feel and what it would
be like as a soldier hearing these sounds in a war zone
See: www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5pfYpZf4Ac
Surprised
Interested
Happy
Confused
Uninterested
Depressed
Angry
Scared
Shocked
Impressed
Excited
Muddled
Detached
Fed up
Upset
Terrified
Astonished
Struck
Enthusiastic
Unclear
Unconcerned
Gloomy
Annoyed
Worried
• A soldier’s kit bag could weigh as much as 60lb. Load a bag with articles that make the bag as heavy as this.
Two pupils monitor the bag and invite pupils to carry it and experience the weight. Ask pupils to write down:
what would it be like to carry this bag for a day as a soldier?
• Display WW1 slang used in trenches around the school and ask pupils to guess what these words mean:
cushy, whizz-bang, iron rations, No Man’s Land, etc
See: www.theguardian.com/education/2014/jul/23/first-world-war-slang-glossary
Flabbergasted
Fascinated
Pleased
Distrustful
Indifferent
Regretful
Infuriated
Nervous
• Organise a poetry reading where pupils select and learn by heart a series of WW1 poems to perform during
assembly. The performance could be filmed and uploaded to the school’s website
Stunned
Gripped
Glad
Mixed-up
Unresponsive
Downhearted
Outraged
Threatened
Startled
Affected
Elated
Unsure
Unsympathetic
Disappointed
Antagonised
Horrified
• Recreate the recruitment experiences of a soldier by simulating the process. Pupils can lead the workshop and
dress up as army officers to take on key roles. Participants who want to experience the drama simulation will
queue up like real volunteers and then can be asked questions about joining the army or get a health check
or swear allegiance to the King. To help to recreate an authentic experience check the Imperial War Museum’s
website for ideas:
Overwhelmed
Moved
Passionate
Disconcerted
Distant
Miserable
Irritated
Disturbed
See: www.iwm.org.uk/learning/resources/how-did-britain-increase-and-maintain-the-fighting-force or
www.iwm.org.uk/history/from-civilian-to-first-world-war-soldier-in-8-steps
Appalled
Touched
Inspired
Baffled
Nonchalant
Grim
Incensed
Apprehensive
Offended
Inspired
Delighted
Puzzled
Unmoved
Saddened
Exasperated
Panicked
• Display Kitchener’s army posters and share facts about young men joining the army at the minimum age
of 18 (although we know that many boys as young as 13 managed to get past the restrictions). To start the
simulation, you could give pupils a slip of paper that gives them an age they can pretend to be: 15, 16, 17
and 18 years old. Think about how young men got around the army restrictions. Can the officers recruiting
new soldiers detect that some pupils are under age?
Disconcerted
Absorbed
Ecstatic
Unconvinced
Unemotional
Hopeless
Cross
Alarmed
• Choose the topic of popular music from WW1 for tutor time or PSHE or an assembly. Discuss the lyrics.
Choose songs like Pack Up Your Troubles and It's a Long Way to Tipperary or Keep the Home Fires Burning
Bewildered
Hooked
Contented
Uncertain
Uninvolved
Defeated
Irate
Suspicious
• Select pupils to be History Guides. These pupils will have a specialist subject about WW1 which is stated
on their name badge. Their job will be to tell visitors and pupils about key moments from WW1
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See: www.iwm.org.uk/history/letters-to-loved-ones
FIRST WORLD WAR WEB LINKS
• Simulate WW1 army training. Get pupils to lead the workshops and act as army officers. What would this
training be like?
WWW.1418NOW.ORG.UK
• Ask the History Guides to carry out internet research prior to Pin Your Poppy events. Their job is to source
authentic war-time letters to loved ones fighting in the war that can be read to visitors and pupils
– Standing to attention
– Quick march
– Stand easy
– Mark time (marching on the spot)
–Halt
– Slow march
• Experience Barnsley – experience-barnsley.com/archives-and-discovery-centre
• Showcase books related to WW1 in the library
• British Legion – britishlegion.org.uk
• Imperial War Museum – iwm.org.uk/history/the-pals-battalions-of-the-first-world-war
•www.iwm.org.uk/history/why-we-wear-poppies-on-remembrance-day#
•www.iwm.org.uk/history/5-things-you-need-to-know-about-the-first-world-war
• National Coal Mining Museum – ncm.org.uk
• Organise a WW1 quiz for teachers for assembly or as a ‘University Challenge’ style event to test their general
knowledge about WW1. The winning team will be interviewed and recorded on an Ipad and uploaded onto
the school website
• Get pupils to research, draft and publish a booklet presenting intriguing and fascinating facts about WW1
• Explore and research the range of roles that women had during WW1
• Play a range of documentaries on a loop in a designated classroom where pupils and teachers can visit
and watch programmes of interest to them
•BBC – bbc.co.uk/ww1
– Resources for Primary Schools:
–bbc.co.uk/newsround/28585905
– Resources for Secondary Schools:
–bbc.co.uk/schools/0/ww1/25826265
• Historic Royal Palaces – www.hrp.org.uk/tower-of-london/history-and-stories/tower-of-londonremembers/?_ga=1.10789748.150439138.1433862482
•www.theguardian.com/childrens-books-site/2014/jul/01/top-10-first-world-war-facts-marcia-williams
• Host a WW1 art exhibition. Pupils curate their own paintings related to WW1, having studied paintings by
Paul Nash, John Nash and Christopher Richard Wynne Nevinson
Commemorating WWI
• Organise a WW1 poetry hub in the school displaying a range of pupils’ poems. Play a looped audio recording
of pupils reading their work
Outbreak of WW1
• Display a pictorial timeline of WW1 documenting key moments
Life in the trenches
• What was a typical soldier’s food ration? Display pictures of what a soldier was entitled to in a busy area.
Get pupils’ feedback about the rations
www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/zym6yrd
• Display a ‘Tommy Tin’ in the school which was a gift to troops in 1914. Soldiers received a tin with playing
cards inside and two blocks of milk chocolate. Ask pupils to suggest a 21st century version
www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/znnw6sg
• What was it like to be a child in WW1? Have a room with pupils demonstrating how children used their free
time: leapfrog, marbles, spinning tops, sewing, knitting, comics, etc. Ask pupils to vote on their favourite WW1
games. Pupils add their favourite WW1 war game to their FACT FINDER log about WW1. Describe each WW1
game in registration and pupils have to guess what game is being described
www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/z6697ty
www.hrp.org.uk/tower-of-london/history-and-stories/tower-of-london-remembers/why-remember/#gs.707R2c8
www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/znj7pv4
The Battle of the Somme
The Empire troops
Air raids
www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/zddy4wx
Rationing and the Home Front
www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/zqr4q6f
The End of WW1
www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/ztdjtfr
The Christmas Truce
www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/zs7msbk
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14-18 NOW is a five-year programme of extraordinary arts experiences connecting people with the First World War.
Working with partners across the UK, we commission new artworks from artists across all artforms, inspired by the
period 1914-18.
These new artworks bring stories of the First World War to life, offer fresh perspectives and connect a global conflict
from 100 years ago with our world today. So far more than 30 million people have been part of our programme.
Find out more and sign up to email newsletters at 1418NOW.org.uk
Follow us on Instagram 1418NOW
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Learning and Engagement
LESSON 1:
FACT FINDERS
ACTIVITY SHEET
Work in partners and become a FACT FINDER about WW1
Watch one of the following BBC short films on a specific WW1 subject:
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Outbreak of WW1
Life in the trenches
The Battle of the Somme
The Empire troops
Air raids
Rationing and the Home Front
The end of WW1
The Christmas Truce
You only have 20 minutes to:
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Watch the film
Take notes
Talk with your partner about the information which resonated with you
Create a two-minute presentation to the class including facts that you want your class to know about
Explain why a story, event, statistic or fact from the film has struck a chord with you.
Express your point of view.
Encourage pupils to ask you questions.
As you watch each other’s presentations write down the facts that stood out to you.
Astonishing fact
What does it mean to you?
LESSON 2:
A SOLDIER'S LIFE
ACTIVITY SHEET
A Soldier's Life: Dog Tired and Returning to the Trenches
The artist Christopher Richard Wynne Nevinson is a well-known British artist from WW1. In 1914 he refused to fight
and decided to volunteer for the Red Cross as a driver, stretcher-bearer and hospital orderly. His personal and disturbing
experiences of the war are captured in his paintings.
Look at two of Nevinson’s paintings: Dog Tired and Returning to the Trenches
With a partner, put the points below in order of importance (from the least important point to the most important point).
With your partner decide on one more point that can be added to the list. What do you think might be missing?
Justify how you have ordered these points when you feed back to the teacher.
Returning to the Trenches:
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French soldiers’ individual identity is lost to the greater war machine of the army
The soldiers have a coordinated movement like an enormous machine
The pattern of moving legs emphasises the collective force of these men
The men look aggressive and determined. Their faces lack emotion
The forward movement of the soldiers is emphasised as they lean diagonally and in a forceful way
Dog Tired:
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French soldiers are lost in their thoughts or preoccupied
The men are choosing not to talk at this moment
The men have deliberately turned away from each other for some privacy
The soldiers are taking a break before they go back to the trenches or after combat
Sitting on war supplies suggests that there are few places to go and relax and be comfortable
The men’s bodies are drooping in exhaustion
Now look at the Emotions Grid. Pick out words that will help you to develop your own personal response
to the paintings.
• How do the paintings make you feel about war?
• How would you describe the experience of the soldiers in each painting?
Share your thoughts with a partner.
LESSON 3:
THE MENIN ROAD
ACTIVITY SHEET
Every Picture Tells a Story: The Menin Road
The nature of warfare changed dramatically during WW1. Devastation was brought about by:
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Chlorine and mustard gas which blinded, burnt or killed men
Machine guns that could fire up to 400 rounds per minute
Tanks that travelled across difficult terrain
Artillery guns that fired shells that weighed up to 900lb
The Menin Road is a painting by Paul Nash revealing a landscape destroyed by the machinery and
fighting of WW1.
Look carefully at The Menin Road for one minute.
Explain how Paul Nash’s painting makes you feel. Use the Emotions Grid to help you.
How do you read the painting? How is your eye taken around the painting? Think about:
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The palette of colours
The intervals of trees
The foreground
The background
The two soldiers
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The narrative
The mark making
Repetition of shapes
How is the painting divided up?
How has Nash intensified the feeling of war?
Share your interpretations with a partner for ten minutes.
Now in partners, take turns reading the facts below about Paul Nash:
• He produced some of the most distinctive and well-known paintings from WW1
• He used an angular style of painting very similar to Cubism to begin with but he ultimately evoked his own style but
referenced the likes of Samuel Palmer and William Blake
• He was interested in landscape as a subject for his paintings
• Angry at the loss of people’s lives, his paintings reveal the devastation of warfare on nature (He was upset by the
destruction of nature too)
• Nash enlisted in the Artists’ Rifles in 1914 and eventually served near Ypres on the Western Front. He made sketches
to record the life of a soldier in the trenches. By 1917, he was a lieutenant when he arrived, applied for and awarded a
commission with Hants Regt. Then served on the Western Front with the Hants Regt, he was seriously injured and was
forced to return home
• He became an official war artist of the war propaganda bureau, the Dept of Information
• The ironic titles of his paintings like ‘We are Making a New World’ emphasise his disgust at the futility of WW1.
What do YOU think Paul Nash wanted the viewer to feel about his painting The Menin Road?
Be ready to share YOUR thoughts with the class.
LESSON 4:
HISTORY GUIDE
ACTIVITY SHEET
How to be a History Guide
Your teacher has given you a picture of a war memorial and some key information about it.
Your job is to give a short speech (two-minutes) about this memorial. You have to:
• Put the facts your teacher has given you into your own words
• Point out interesting things about the monument
• Describe what the monument looks like and how it makes you feel (use the Emotions Grid to help you)
What skills do History Guides need?
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To adapt historical information for different audiences both young and old
To inspire and engage people with information through voice, body language and eye contact
To show passion about their subject
To change itinerary if people have a burning desire to find out other things about a museum or historical site
To listen to people’s questions and be able to answer effectively
To show awareness of the needs of the people who are taking a tour with you
To have a good memory for reciting facts and figures
To manage your time effectively
Here are some useful prompts for your speech:
Look more closely at this…
Have you noticed…
An interesting fact you may want to know…
Can you believe that…
I really want to tell you about…
You can practise your speech on your partner. Get them to feed back to you with this criteria:
4.
3.
2.
1.
I was fully tuned in and completely engaged with the delivery of the information
I listened mostly and liked some of the presentation
I listened at points and quite liked the style of the presentation
I tuned in and out
Ask your partner to tell you which communication skills really made a difference to YOUR mini presentation.
LESSON 5:
POWER OF POPPIES
ACTIVITY SHEET
Power of Poppies
What I KNOW About the
Remembrance Poppy
What I WANT to know
What I have LEARNED
LESSON 6:
ONE HUNDRED YEARS ON
ACTIVITY SHEET
In Flanders Fields
John McCrae (1872 – 1918)
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
Listen to these different pieces of music:
Lark Ascending by Ralph Vaughan Williams
The Last Post (This is played every Remembrance Day and from 1928 it has been played each evening at 8pm at the
Menin Gate, Ypres)
Adagio For Strings by Samuel Barber
2nd Movement, Serenade For Strings by Edward Elgar
You will decide which piece of music is the most appropriate to play to accompany the final reading of the poem In Flanders
Fields. You must justify your ideas. After a class discussion and a decision about the most appropriate piece of music for
the reading the class will read aloud the full poem all together.
EMOTIONS
GRID
ACTIVITY SHEET
Surprised
Interested
Happy
Confused
Uninterested
Depressed
Angry
Scared
Shocked
Impressed
Excited
Muddled
Detached
Fed up
Upset
Terrified
Astonished
Struck
Enthusiastic
Unclear
Unconcerned
Gloomy
Annoyed
Worried
Flabbergasted
Fascinated
Pleased
Distrustful
Indifferent
Regretful
Infuriated
Nervous
Stunned
Gripped
Glad
Mixed-up
Unresponsive
Downhearted
Outraged
Threatened
Startled
Affected
Elated
Unsure
Unsympathetic
Disappointed
Antagonised
Horrified
Overwhelmed
Moved
Passionate
Disconcerted
Distant
Miserable
Irritated
Disturbed
Appalled
Struck
Inspired
Baffled
Nonchalant
Grim
Incensed
Apprehensive
Offended
Inspired
Elated
Puzzled
Unmoved
Saddened
Exasperated
Panicked
Disconcerted
Absorbed
Ecstatic
Unconvinced
Unemotional
Hopeless
Cross
Alarmed
Bewildered
Hooked
Contented
Uncertain
Uninvolved
Defeated
Irate
Suspicious