Transcript Trench Life - History Network

Trench Life
Plymstock History Department
Trench Life – Aims for the
lesson
1) Identify 3-6 questions/key areas on
Trench Life that you want to research
further
2) Decide how the research on your chosen
areas of trench life will be presented (a
Project, booklet, a ppt, an audio project or
model with guide book).
STARTER ACTIVITY – 10
minutes

When the Germans attacked in
Belgium, they quickly beat
the armies defending the
borders and managed to get
into France very quickly.
The British and French
Generals, uncertain about how
to stop the German advance,
decided to ‘dig in’ and
ordered the construction of
the Trenches to act as a
barrier against the attack.
STARTER ACTIVITY – 10
minutes

In pairs, read the description of the
trench system.

Draw a ‘birds eye’ view of the trench
system.
You must show both German and British
trenches an the land between them.

Next label some of the key features of the
trenches. You might like to draw a
separate cross section of a trench to show
how it looked inside.
(highlight key words in the text to make sure you
provide as many labels as possible.)
Description of the Trench
System

The Trenches that the British dug were usually made of three
lines. The front line trenches were usually a metre wide at
the bottom and two metres deep. Duck boards were placed on the
ground to act as drainage; men would walk on them to avoid the
mud. On the side of the trench facing the enemy a ‘fire step’
was cut into the wall. This was for soldiers to shoot from.
Sandbags were placed at the top of the trench. This would stop
the trench caving in of a bomb went off nearby. It also
provided more protection from bullets. Ammunition shelves were
also cut into the side of the trench walls which faced no mans
land (the land in between the two army’s trench systems). At
various points in the wall, dug outs were cut into the trenches
to provide shelter for sleeping/resting soldiers.
In front of
the trench barbed wire was rolled out. This was to stop the
enemy able to charge at the trench.

Behind the front line were support trenches and then further
back, reserve trenches. Linking the three lines was a series
of communication trenches. There were also ‘blind allies’ dug
to confuse the enemy in case of a successful attack. The whole
of the trench system was made to zigzag so as to prevent the
enemy firing down the line of the trenches if they were
captured.
STARTER ACTIVITY – 10
minutes

In pairs, read the description of the
trench system.

Draw a ‘birds eye’ view of the trench
system.
You must show both German and British
trenches an the land between them.

Next label some of the key features of the
trenches. You might like to draw a
separate cross section of a trench to show
how it looked inside.
(highlight key words in the text to make sure you
provide as many labels as possible.)
Description of the Trench
System


The Trenches that the British dug were usually made of three
lines. The front line trenches were usually a metre wide at
the bottom and two metres deep. Duck boards were placed on the
ground to act as drainage; men would walk on them to avoid the
mud. On the side of the trench facing the enemy a ‘fire step’
was cut into the wall. This was for soldiers to shoot from.
Sandbags were placed at the top of the trench. This would stop
the trench caving in of a bomb went off nearby. It also
provided more protection from bullets. Ammunition shelves were
also cut into the side of the trench walls which faced no mans
land (the land in between the two army’s trench systems). At
various points in the wall, dug outs were cut into the trenches
to provide shelter for sleeping/resting soldiers.
In front of
the trench barbed wire was rolled out. This was to stop the
enemy able to charge at the trench.
Behind the front line were support trenches and then further
back, reserve trenches. Linking the three lines was a series
of communication trenches. There were also ‘blind allies’ dug
to confuse the enemy in case of a successful attack. The whole
of the trench system was made to zigzag so as to prevent the
enemy firing down the line of the trenches if they were
captured.
Birds eye view of the Trench
System
Front Line
Communication
Trench
Support Trench
Reserve Trench
No Man’s Land
Cross Section of a trench with
key features labelled.
Sand Bags
Sand Bags
Barbed Wire
Fire Step
Dug Out
Duck board
Ammunition shelf
MAIN ACTIVITY - Carousel

We remember:

10%
20%
30%
50%
70%
90%
and






of
of
of
of
of
of
do
SO………….
what
what
what
what
what
what
we
we
we
we
we
we
read
hear
see
see and hear
say
simultaneously say
MAIN ACTIVITY - Carousel

In pairs, you will complete the
following 4 activities:

WORK
WORK
WORK
WORK



STATION
STATION
STATION
STATION
1:
2:
2:
4:
Back to Back
Key Concepts
Broken pieces
Making Sense of
it
MAIN ACTIVITY - Carousel
WORK STATION 1:‘Back to Back’







Sit in pairs ‘back-to-back”.
Decide who is A and who is B.
A is given a visual material; which they
hold close to their chest.
B is given a plain piece of paper and a
pencil.
A describes the visual to B, while B draws
it, aiming to make a perfect replica which
is exact in size, shape and detail.
B can ask as many questions as they like.
When the time is up, students compare the
drawn image to the original.
MAIN ACTIVITY - Carousel
WORK STATION 2:‘Key Concepts’


Read the WWI poem below, written by
Wilfred Owen, a WWI soldier. Don’t
worry of you find some words
difficult.
Try to identify 15 of the most
important words in this poem that
sums up this piece of writing. Write
them inside the key.
MAIN ACTIVITY - Carousel
WORK STATION 3:’Broken Pieces’



Take the envelope which contains
several images that have been cut up.
Try and put back together as many of
the pictures as you can.
(What do the images tell you about
trench life?)
MAIN ACTIVITY - Carousel
WORK STATION 4: ‘Making Sense of It’
Listen to a passage from the audio
book ‘Birdsong’, written by
Sebastian Faulkes.
This is a challenging text
describing the British
attack of a German trench.
Record in the table, what
the main character ‘Stephen’
would have seen, heard and
felt.
Complete the
carousel
activities
Plenary – ‘Diamond 9’s

You should now have a good understanding of trench
life during WWI. In this final part of the lesson,
you need to reflect on the 2 lesson aims:
1) Identify 3-6 questions/key areas on
Trench Life that you want to research
further
2) Decide how the research on your chosen
areas of trench life will be presented
(a Project, booklet, a ppt, an audio project or
3D model with guide book).
Plenary – ‘Diamond 9’

most important
Look at the 9
statements which might
be important to the
planning process.
1
2

In pairs, rank the
statements in order of
significance through
the formation of a
diamond.
EXTENSION:
Look at the ‘Research Log’
on the back page of your
A3 sheet. Write in the top
box the key topics that
interest you.
3
4
6
5
8
7
9
least important
Next lesson

You will have 3 lessons and 2
home works to complete your
research project on trench
Life.

Deadline for handing in work =
MONDAY 26th November
(4 weeks today)