Scottish Poetry Library & National Museums of Scotland
Ghosts of War Education Resource Pack
March 2013
This pack contains practical ideas and tips for pre-and post-workshop activity for the age-ranges P6-S2 and S3-S6
If you would like to book a Ghosts of War workshop for November 2013, please contactthe Learning and Programmes Administrator, National Museums Scotland, 0131 247 4206.
Contents
Section 1 – The Workshop
1.1History of the Project
1.1.12003
1.1.22004–2012
1.2The Workshop Schedule & Descriptor
Section 2 – Pre-workshop Activities
2.1 Reading & Talking Task
2.2 Research Task – Personal Histories
2.3 Writing Task – Mesostic Poems
2.4 History Task
Section 3 – Post-workshop Activities
3.1 Writing Review
3.2 Editing Tips
3.3 Extension Writing Tasks
3.3.1 For P6–S2War Memorial
3.3.2For S3–S6A Humument
3.3.3For S3–S6A Found Poem
3.4 More poems to Read Together
Section 1 - The Workshop
1.1History of the Project
1.1.12003
The first Ghosts of War poetry workshops were offered to P6-7 primary school pupils in November 2003, and were allied to a photographic exhibition, Terrain: Landscapes of the Great Warby Peter Cattrell, at the Scottish National Portrait Gallery. So affecting was the response of children to this exhibition, we felt we must continue to provide a focus for remembrance through art and poetry, for young people.
The photographs in Terrain showed battlefields of the First World War,in which several of the artist’s forebears had fought, and these grave and reticent images of trenches and craters, softened by mantles of thick grass, evoked in a remarkably powerful way for the children, the lives and deaths of the hundreds of thousands of British and German troops who perished there.
In revisiting the pastoral landscape tradition of painting, Cattrell’s photography, whilst it engaged with the calamities of the Great War, presented nature as a force of restoration and of healing. We were reminded of Carl Sandberg’s powerful poem, ‘Grass’, and of the restorative power of the art of poetry itself, and so the idea for an annual series of Armistice workshops took root.
The title of one of the poems, displayed as part of the exhibition, Ewart Mackintosh’s Ghosts of War, ignited children’s imaginations, and so we have them to thank for the title of our programme, which aims to remind children that we can remember those we never knew, and their sacrifice.
1.1.2 2004–2012
As Terrain was a temporary exhibition, we were pressed to find another venue for November 2004; one which also offered strong stimulus for affective learning. It was not long before we embarked on a visit to the National War Memorial and Museum, where we discovered unparalleled riches for teaching and learning about war and remembrance, past and present.
Our cross-curricular workshop programme is now in its tenth year and takes place annually in the weeks surrounding Armistice Day, supported and sponsored by our long-term partners, the National Museums of Scotland/Scottish National War Museum.
The whole-day sessions focus on the First and Second World Wars, and represent a unique opportunity to expand young people’s awareness of the human tragedy of all war, and to allow them to bear witness to the sacrifice of individuals, through poetry, in their own unique and personal way.
Pupils record personal responses to a range of primary source handling objects, and to some of the powerful and moving exhibits in the Scottish National War Museum, as well as participating in an Act of Remembrance at the Scottish National War Memorial.
Edinburgh poet Ken Cockburn then helps pupils to synthesise their experience and thoughts, shaping language to create their very own poems of war, peace and remembrance.
2012: In a world where wars continue to play out, it is even more important to remember; we continue to encourage young people to regard the experiences we offer, and approach the act of writing their own poetry, as personal, restorative acts of Remembrance.
A truly enriching learning experience – for me as well as the children! Primary teacher 2011
A superb workshop. Loved the way it foregrounded the human issues often back-grounded in text (and my teaching!). My seniors thought it was great. Secondary Higher History teacher 2010
It was a valuable chance to view a vast array of resources I’d no idea existed… Primary HT 2009
First class in every way; I really admired your expertise and knowledge. A very positive learning experience for the children. Primary teacher, 2008
1.2The Workshop Schedule & Descriptor
09.50 Arrival at Castle Esplanade
We welcome and introduce the workshop, our themes, aims and to the day’s activities. We make it clear that these activities are designed specifically to mimic the kind of research a writer might undertake to inform and inspire – that the act of writing will benefit from direct and authentic experience and observation, and that the act of writing will, in itself, constitute an act of remembrance.
10.10 Tour and Act ofRemembrance at Scottish National War Memorial
We talk a little about the history, design, contents and significance of the memorial and then enter to explore the building. We focus pupils on the ways in which war and remembrance are evoked, including stained glass, statuary, bas relief, frieze, inscription, insignia and books.We discuss these with them and then allow them time to explore on their own, observing and collecting thoughts, ideas and reactions. We end our visit with a poem, a minute’s silence, and poppies.
10.50 Education Room: Worksheets & Memorial Notes
We distribute our Ghosts of War worksheets and encourage students to recall and record their responses and sensory observations from the memorial
11.05 Break
11.20 Handling Session – presentation
We introduce pupils to some primary source artefacts, speak about the context in which they were owned and used, and invite the pupils themselves to handle, explore and imagine them, as yet another source of inspiration for their poems. Pupils select a single object and finish this session by writing detailed notes.
12.00 Museum visit
Our final stimulus takes us to the galleries of the National War Museum where, after a demonstration of ‘how to look’ at vitrines, pupils have the opportunity again to browse and take inspiration from a single item and exercise a range of skills in reading, interpreting and imagining in order to remember its owneror user.
12.30 Lunch
13.00 Poetry workshop
Ken Cockburn works with pupils to help them convert their notes, observations, thoughts and feelings into remembrance poems.
14.00 Read aloud session & questions
14.15 Finish
Section 2 – Pre-workshop Activities
2.1 Reading & Talking Task
Czesław Miłosz (1911–2004), ‘Encounter’
Link to the poem here:
We read this poem to mark the beginning of our silence in the National War Memorial. It is dated ‘Wilno*, 1936’, but was first published in book form in 1945, at the end of the Second World War; so what was written as a personal elegy, probably based on a childhood memory, becomes an elegy for the death of many people, known and unknown. The poem is an invitation to imagine the dead when they were living in all their ordinariness, and to think about what it means that we, the living, remember them at all.
* ‘Wilno’ is Vilnius, then as now the capital of Lithuania.
For P6–S2
Read the poem aloud. Read it in different ways:
quickly and slowly
individually and chorally
becoming louder as you read, or becoming quieter
featuring a male voice(s) and/or a female voice(s)
using techniques like repetition or echo or vocal sound effects
Which do you think is the best way to read the poem? Why?
The poem is in two parts: one happened “long ago”, and the other “today”.
Which lines of the poem took place “long ago”?
Which lines of the poem are taking place “today”?
Look at some of the words and phrases used in the poem.
What sort of journey might involve “riding through frozen fields in a wagon at dawn”?
In line 2, what do you think the “red wing” is?
What “encounter” does the title refer to?
For S3–S6
As above, but also consider these questions:
What do we learn about the “I” of the poem?
The poem is about death and loss, but the poet feels “wonder” rather than “sorrow”. Why do you think this might be?
Lines 7-8 begin like a question, but don’t end with a question mark. Why do you think the poet has decided not to use a question mark?
Line 7 begins, “O my love”. Why do you think the poet chooses to address “my love” at this point in the poem? How would the poem be different if these words were omitted?
Try to think of an ‘encounter’ moment of your own about which you could write a short poem. Try to remember a simple event that you experienced or witnessed, perhaps in childhood, that has stayed in your memory, and which now that you are older you understand differently – perhaps seeing in it a special significance, deeper meaning or poignancy.
2.2Research Task – Personal Histories
This task should be suitable for P6–S6, though the type of questions and amount of information gathered will vary as pupils become older.
Investigate the life of a family-member or forebear during wartime.
Perhaps you have a grandfather who was in the forces, or a grandmother who worked in the Land Army. Perhaps someone had to leave their home because of fighting, or perhaps they experienced war simply as a civilian.
Find out as much as possible about this person
facts – dates, places and journeys
stories – events and experiences, which might be funny or scary
responses – how they felt about what was happening
If you cannot find out about someone’s life during wartime, ask someone in your family what they remember about recent wars and conflicts, from the news, or from speaking to people who were more directly involved. These might include the
‘Troubles’ in Northern Ireland (1969–1998)
Falkland Islands (1982)
First Gulf War (1991)
Yugoslav wars (1992-95)
invasion and occupation of Afghanistan (2001–date)
invasion and occupation of Iraq (2003–2011)
Be aware that your questions may touch on sensitive matters, which people may not wish to talk about in detail.
2.3Writing Task – Mesostic poems
Again, this task should be suitable for P6–S6, though the poem’s vocabulary and syntax can become more complex as pupils become older.
Write a mesostic poem, using what you have found out as part of your Research Task (at 2.2 above).
In an acrostic poem, the first letters of each line combine to make a word or words, usually the subject of the poem. In a mesostic poem, the letters which form the name of the subject can be read vertically down the centre of the page, forming the stem-word, as for example in this poem by Alec Finlay about A.S. Neill:
climbi N g
tr E es
Is
a L ways
a L lowed
Use the name of the person you researched as your stem-word. Drawing on your research, make a list of words about this person, as many as you can. At this stage don’t think too much about the letters the words contain – even if you can’t use them in your mesostic, they will help you think about the person you’re writing about.
You can use
facts
information
descriptions
feelings
questions
See which of your words contain letters that match those of your ‘stem’ word. Do these words – or the ones which don’t match – suggest others you could use?
How can you fit these together? A mesostic poem can be a short phrase or sentence, or it can simply be a list. Try out some combinations until you find one you like.
2.4History Task
Ask your family about an object from the past – ideally something linked to wartime, but that’s not absolutely necessary – that has significance in terms of the life of the person who originally owned it. Bring it into school and talk about it to the class.
For P6–S2
Write down the name of your chosen object.
Write down some adjectives that describe it. Think about its size, shape, feel touch, smell, colour, patterning, and so on.
What is or was it used for?
Who do you associate with it - whose is or was it?
What places do you associate with it? Where did it come from?
Are there any stories you can tell about it?
If you could ask it one question, what would it be?
Read through your notes, and note down any other ideas you have.
For S3–S6
As above, but also think about your object as a piece of primary source material.
What does the object tell us about the time from which it comes?
What does the object tell us about the person who owned it?
How do we ‘read’ objects? Can they be misleading?
Section 3 – post-workshop activities
3.1Writing Review
For P6–S2
Read through the poem you wrote at the Scottish National War Museum. See if there is anything you would like to change or add to it.
Working in pairs (or threes), exchange poems with your partner(s).
Reading
Read through your partner’s poem, and make sure you can read each word.
Read your partner’s poem aloud, two or three times. Note any sections which you stumble over, and think about why this might be – to do with the rhythm, or sound, or meaning of the words?
Offer three positives (things you like about the poem), two negatives (things you dislike about the poem) and one piece of advice to your partner about their poem.
Listening
Listen to your own poem being read aloud.
Which sections do you think work well, and which don’t?
Do you agree with your partner’s positives, negatives and advice? Why?
For S3–S6
As well as doing the exercise above, answer these questions about your poem.
How does your finished poem relate to your experience of visiting the Memorial and Museum?
Did the structure you were given help you or hinder you? Why?
Describe the differences between your own and another person’s poem. Think about vocabulary, sentence structure, syntax, rhythm and metre, as well as content.
To what extent is the poem you’ve written personal to you? (You should get a better idea of this after comparing it with other poems.)
Can you think of another way of writing about your experiences at the Memorial and Museum?
3.2Editing Tips
This is a set of tips for teachers to assist pupils to edit the poems written during their Ghosts of War day.
Editing a poem is in many ways like editing prose. Your main aim is to eliminate any errors you have made, to improve on words and passages that aren’t quite as good as they could be, and to work to make the poem hold together as a single unit.
Be specific in your use of vocabulary.
Examine your word choices.
Sharpen action words and find unique descriptive words.
Strive to avoid words that are markedly ‘poetic’, grandiose or obscure but equally, don't resort to bland overstatement.
Avoid clichés, stock phrases, vague descriptions and words that are outdated or overly-formal.
So, for example
not ‘people’ but ‘soldiers’, ‘bridge-builders’, ‘airmen’, and so on
not ‘bird’ but ‘’crow’, ‘robin’, ‘buzzard’, and so on
not ‘interesting’ but ‘colourful’, ‘massive’, ‘difficult’, and so on
not ‘went’ but ‘walked’, ‘strolled’, ‘hurried’, etc.
not ‘red’ but ‘berry-red’, not ‘white’ but ‘surgical white’
and avoid
amazing
fantastic
awesome
incredible
brilliant
horrific
terrifying
Don’t overlook detail.Small, perhaps seemingly insignificant, details can bring a poem to life, so try to write about things you actually observed and experienced on the day, such as
sensory memories
things overheard
things that surprised or even shocked you
Rather than stating the feeling, try to demonstrate it through language and word-choice.
Instead of ‘I felt so sad’, find an image that expresses a mood of sadness, such as
a grey, overcast sky in the stained glass
the sound of a crow cawing
a named object in the museum, such as a jacket with a bullet hole through it
Instead of ‘I felt so happy’, find an image that expresses a mood of happiness, such as
the sun appearing from behind a cloud
the sound of music from a passing car, or an open window
a named object in the museum, such as a photo of someone smiling
Avoid big rhetorical questions, such as
why did so many have to die so young?
was their sacrifice in vain?
why have we never learned from the terrible wars of the past?
Instead, use what you’ve learned, so perhaps
How did Tommy Atkins die, on a bitter winter day on the Somme?
What would he tell us, Tam Young, grocer’s boy, far from home?
The nurse’s uniform has too tiny a waist; how could she bear the work’s weight?
– and think of some answers!
Think carefully about adjectives and adverbs. Sometimes they help to describe something, and sometimes they just get in the way.
Try taking out all the adjectives and adverbs in your poem.
Does the poem work better now, or is it confusing?
If it is, add back some adjectives and adverbs, but only if they’re necessary!