Life in the Trenches

This is great lesson get your students talking for weeks and doing extra homework projects. This beautifully illustrated resource is designed to help students assess what life in the trenches was like for soldiers in the First World War as well as what the greatest daily dangers or challenges. As you can see from the preview slides, the tasks and activities have been written to appeal to the full spectrum of ability.

This resource is designed to be a standalone lesson, but it can be also used alongside any mainstream text book on this topic. I usually project the slides, tasks and activities on the board, but some of activities can also be printed off and placed around the tables in the classroom. The resource is full editable so you can easily sequence the lesson to suit your students and the context of your school. I usually supplement this resource with relevant clips from Your Tube from films like ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’, ‘War Horse’ and ‘Gallipoli.’

When you purchase this resource you will receive a twenty three slide PowerPoint which includes an optional ‘snowballing’ or a ‘buzz and go starter’. The next section of the PP then includes information slides and activities on life in the trenches including sleeping accommodation, food, mud, trench foot, health and hygiene, body lice, enemy action, shell shock. These are then followed up by a series of consolidation exercises culminating in a thinking skills review triangle. I have also included relevant questions and addition slides with useful templates to use alongside this resource. For more information, please see the preview sample.

The aims and objectives for these resources are as follows:

Theme: The First World War
Know: What was everyday life like for the soldiers in the trenches?
Understand: How did they overcome their daily problems?
Evaluate: How reliable are the official images of life in the trenches?
Skills: Source Analysis, Cause, Consequence & Collaboration

WILF – What Am I Looking For?
Identify & describe: How did soldiers cope with everyday life in the trenches?
Explain: How did the overcome their daily problems?
Analyse: How reliable are the official images of like in the trenches?

If you like this resource then why not check out my other resources on the First World War in my TES shop, where many have been bundled together to provide you with further savings. You can also follow ‘The History Academy’ on Twitter, Google Plus, YouTube and Facebook for the latest updates or even to get in touch and chat about how you have used this resource or to ask questions. We aim to produce cheap and affordable resources for either the price of a good cup of coffee or a happy meal so that you can spend more time doing the things that you want.

Anyway, have fun and stay in touch via social media for the latest updates.

Kind Regards

Roy