Anson, Staci. “Using Artifacts to Understand the Life of a Soldier in World War II.” (2009)

Teacher Staci Anson describes how she has successfully used artifacts for grade 11 and 12 history, anthropology and archaeology. She reports, “For years, when I taught about World War II, I used primary and secondary source readings, I presented Power Points, and had my students watch newsreels and other video clips.” However, after having been given a modest grant to buy WW2 artifacts (including one man’s entire military history, and another’s letters home), the author changed the way she approached this topic. Students are able to interact with these artifacts, and are able to draw conclusions and gain understanding about what soldier life was like. Detailed ideas for student activities are provided, along with some practical suggestions about sourcing inexpensive artifacts. The author also gives examples of student write-ups, with links to the US curriculum standards for social studies, along with suggestions for further reading.