Green Recruits Dream of Joining the Club

My current 3rd grade class knows all about the Memoir '44 History Club and many of them are looking forward to joining next year.

Many lunch recesses in 3rd grade are spent battling at our Memoir station in my classroom. We play one battle at a time and are currently in our second class tournament. This picture shows the teams of two playing Pegasus Bridge. Other students are welcome to stay in and watch, but they aren't allowed to help with strategy or moves.

My goal in 3rd grade is for the students to learn the rules of Memoir '44, develop a love for the game, and create an interest in World War II history. The Memoir '44 History Club is a place where all of those lessons are continued and developed further. 3rd grade is a good training ground for the History Club and it looks like I could have more than twice as many members in the club next year.

Utah Beach Successfully Concluded

After two sessions away for the game, the students were eager to start playing Memoir '44 again and did a great job setting up Utah Beach. Energy was high and everyone was working hard to emerge on top; with only Sword Beach and Omaha Beach left, they're realizing that the tournament is coming to an end.

Excitement was also high because we were being visited by the local media! Sheila Miller, a local reporter for the education section of the Bend Bulletin, contacted me about visiting our club and doing a story on kids learning history through a board game. She slipped into my classroom as we were reviewing the historical background for Utah Beach and then followed us out to the library to watch the club in action. Her colleague took pictures of the club while Sheila interviewed me and talked to the students.

After the media had left, one of my students asked what newspaper they were from. When she heard they were from the Bulletin, her face lit up. "Everyone reads that! We're going to be famous," she said. While that may not be entirely true, it was a very exciting experience for all of us. The story should appear in the paper this weekend.

Proof of Learning

As I handed out the ten-question quiz, I was impressed that I didn't hear someone say, "What!? We have to take a quiz in the History Club?" I did see some surprised faces and maybe a little indignation, but the students got right to work and proved what I've been hoping. They are learning history from the Memoir '44 History Club!

Last Thursday was spent learning about D-Day, and after a quick review of what we had talked about, the students answered 10 questions about D-Day and Memoir '44. Five days after learning about the Normandy invasion, every student remembered what day the landings began, some of the code names given to the beaches, and why the Germans thought they would be safe on June 6, 1944.

After the quiz, students chose new World War II books to read. We spent the rest of the time reading about a minor battle and learning how to design historical scenarios on the Memoir '44 scenario editor.

When we packed up to go, the students were excited to hear that we start the D-Day Tournament back up on Thursday with the Utah Beach scenario. They will charge the beaches with a better understanding of how the Allies prepared for the battle and how Utah Beach fit into Operation Overlord.