Tomb of the Unknown Soldier – Did he have freckles?

There are three lesson plans in this series; we recommend using them in this order:

1. The importance of remembrance symbols
2. Did he have freckles?
3. Dreams of unknown soldiers

Aim

Students will watch a presentation to spark reflection on the real life person who is laid to rest in Canada’s Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. They will then create a unique soldier portrait or thumbprint representing who that individual could have been.

Objectives

Through this activity, students will:

• create a personal connection with history and those who shaped it, and
• learn about Canadian military contributions over the years and the lives of those who have served.

Classroom materials

You will need:

Slide show

Did he have freckles? Canada’s Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (PowerPoint presentation with speaker’s notes)

Handouts

• Create an unknown soldier’s portrait (PDF)
• Activity: Make an unknown soldier’s thumbprint (PDF)
• Thumbprint activity sheet (PDF)
• Blank activity sheet (PDF)

Introduction

Remind students about the importance of Canada’s Tomb of the Unknown Soldier as a symbol. It contains the remains of one person but it represents all people from our country who lost their lives in service and have no known grave – past, present and future.

We do not know who the person in the Tomb is, but today we are going to imagine who he might have been.

Spark students’ imagination about the unknown soldier by watching this video:

Video: Did he have freckles?

For further learning

Many of the photos in this video feature Canadians who died in service with no known grave. You can look at the photos from the video in more detail by downloading this Powerpoint presentation:

Did he have freckles? (PowerPoint presentation with speaker’s notes)

Check the notes on each slide for interesting information, such as where those who are pictured were from, what they did for a living and which service members were brothers. These facts can help students make a local or personal connection and will also bring the images to life.

Discussion

Lead a discussion about what the life of the unknown soldier may have been like. Create space on the board or on chart paper to make a list of things we know about the person and things we don’t know.

Use the examples below as a guide.

What we know

• We know that he was a soldier who served with a Canadian battalion.
• Because he was an army soldier, we know he was a man. Women were not permitted to serve in combat roles during that time.
• We know that he died in the First World War and was originally buried at a Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery in northern France.

What we don’t know

• What he looked like
• How old he was
• Where he was from
• What he liked to do
• Whether he had a family
• What his personality was like
• What his favourite food was
• What his racial, cultural or religious background was
• Why he enlisted (money? adventure? patriotism?)

Add to the list with your class.

Art activity

Choose an art project for your class – portrait, thumbprint, or create your own.

Handouts

• Create an unknown soldier’s portrait (PDF)
• Activity: Make an unknown soldier’s thumbprint (PDF)
• Thumbprint activity sheet (PDF)
• Blank activity sheet (PDF)

Remind students that Canada’s Tomb of the Unknown Soldier represents Canadians from all branches of service who have no known grave. So when we imagine who the tomb represents, we can include those who served in the army, navy, air force and merchant navy. 

Historical information

Here are a few facts you could share with students about life in Canada during the First World War:

• When the war began, Canada had a total population of about eight million people (compared to more than 40 million people today). As a comparison, 8 million is approximately today’s population of the province of Quebec.
• More than 650,000 Canadians served in the First World War. This means that over 16% of all Canadian males served in the military.
• If you consider that most military recruits were between 19 and 35 years old, that means the proportion of younger Canadians in uniform was much higher than 16%. Think of people you know who are that age. Can you imagine at least one in five of them leaving to fight a war in Europe?
• About 3,000 Canadian women served as Nursing Sisters during the war. Military regulations of the day did not allow women to serve in military roles. In fact, women were not allowed to serve in combat roles in the Canadian Armed Forces until 1989!
• During the First World War, people lived in cities, towns, villages, farms and on First Nations. Canadians may have had an international reputation at the time for being tough people like hunters, trappers, miners, fishers, farmers and lumberjacks. However, many Canadian recruits also came from less rugged backgrounds like being store clerks, students, drivers, office workers and railway employees.
• Canada was already a multicultural country during this era. Canadian forces fighting in the First World War were some of the most diverse of any nation, including the thousands of First Nations, Métis and Inuit people who also served.
• People communicated with those far away mainly by letter or telegraph. Only a small number of homes had telephones. Television hadn’t been invented yet and radio was still in its infancy.
• Just like today, people loved playing sports, reading books and playing games. They played music and went to dances. Many people also enjoyed hunting or fishing.

Next lesson

Dreams of unknown soldiers