Destination: Vimy
Catholic school board sending students to site of key battle for 100th anniversary
You can teach the importance of Vimy Ridge in the classroom.
You may use diagrams to articulate the creeping artillery barrage that advanced steadily toward the Germans. Or you can rely on diary excerpts to paint a picture of what it was like behind that barrage for the 20,000 Canadian soldiers in the first attacking wave as they pushed uphill carrying 70-plus pounds of equipment.
You can tell students that it was a defining moment in the First World War, or point to historians who say it was more than a battle, it was the moment Canada became a nation.
But bringing students to the hallowed ground in person, where they can experience the elements firsthand, that cannot be recreated in the classroom.
On April 4, more than 50 Peterborough Catholic high school students will depart for Netherlands, Belgium and France as part of a 10-day educational excursion culminating in the commemoration of the 100-year anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge at the Canadian National Vimy Memorial in France on April 9.
There, the students from St. Peter and Holy Cross Catholic secondary schools will join thousands of students from across Canada in marking Canada’s most celebrated military victory – a victory that came at the cost of the 10,500 Canadian soldiers who were killed or wounded at the site.
“The students will get to see the layout of the land, imagine the creeping barrage that unfolded a century before and bask in the glory of a battle won, which became the turning point of the Great War,” said Linda Gendron, who teaches Canadian history at St. Peter and will be leading students on the trip.
“The students who chose to go on this trip already have an interest in history, and experiencing the echoes of it through their senses may well deepen that interest into a passion. At the very least it will heighten their pride in being Canadians.”
Throughout the trip, students will learn how the battlefields in the First and Second World War shaped Canada as a nation. They will learn about the horrors of war and the sacrifices of the generations that came before them.
“We live in an age where people often feel entitled. Hopefully this trip will help students understand the generations before them who did because they could and should and earned our eternal gratitude,” said Holy Cross Canadian history teacher Stephen Meinhardt who is also accompanying the students.
The trip will begin in The Netherlands where students will visit the Dutch Resistance Museum and Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. They will move onto Belgium to the In Flanders Field Museum and the sites of Ypres. In France, the students will take in the Vimy Ridge activities before moving onto Normandy to visit the Arromanches D -Day Museum and the Canadian Juno Beach Centre.
The Examiner has agreed to help us spotlight this important trip. As Canada prepares to mark the 100-anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge, we hope you enjoy reading about the highlights of this educational trip through the voice and experiences of our students.