NEW ORLEANS (October 19, 2015) — In partnership with PBS affiliate WYES-TV, The National WWII Museum is proud to announce a national interactive Electronic Field Trip (EFT) focused on the American Home Front. Debuting on November 4 with two live webcasts (10:00 am and 1:00 pm CST), “We’re All in This Together! How Students Like YOU Helped Win World War II,” will teach today’s young people what it was like to be a student during this critical time in American history, creating important links with the past. The Museum will also use the field trip as an opportunity to launch its signature service-learning project, “Get in the Scrap!”
Designed for national web streaming into classrooms, “We’re All in this Together!” is expected to reach more than 100,000 upper-elementary and middle-school students. “As we near Veterans Day, this Electronic Field Trip will offer teachers an informative and entertaining tool to help their students understand the sacrifices made during World War II, and even in present day, to keep our country safe and free,” notes WYES community projects producer Marcia Kavanaugh.
The EFT invites students to put themselves in the shoes of WWII-era students and consider how the challenges, values and triumphs of that time relate to today’s world. Museum volunteers who were students during the war years will become trusty guides for current students. Together, they will explore the Museum and examine how even the youngest Americans made a difference in the war effort.
Hosted by Emmy Award winner and WYES producer Tom Gregory, the EFT will feature pre-recorded segments of students interviewing Museum volunteers. Throughout the segments, students will marvel at materials needed to build tanks and planes, learn popular dance moves of the war era and discover why some pennies were made out of steel during the war—and these are just a few of the engaging subjects the Museum’s education team has captured so far.
The National WWII Museum and WYES embarked upon this initiative to help students see themselves in the American WWII experience. “We want students to make lasting connections between what they are learning in school and why it still matters today,” said Museum director of education Kenneth Hoffman. “Our goal is to empower them to make a difference in their community, just like students during World War II.”
Following the live webcast, the EFT will be archived online and available on demand to teachers and students across the country. The program will also broadcast on WYES-TV on November 11 at 5:00 pm (Veterans Day), November 12 at 9:00 pm, November 14 at 7:00 pm and November 15 at 12:02 pm.
Additionally, teachers will be invited to sign up their classrooms for “Get in the Scrap!”—the Museum’s recycling-focused service-learning project that helps students make a positive change in their communities and in the world, also reflecting the civic efforts of children during World War II. With a project toolkit and prize incentives along the way, “Get in the Scrap!” will encourage teachers and students to make a difference in today’s world, putting into action the lessons of World War II and the national engagement that characterized the war years.
Learn more about how your classroom can participate in “We’re All in This Together!” by visiting www.wyes.org/fieldtrips. Send questions in advance to fieldtrips@wyes.org.
To learn more about “Get in the Scrap!” and other Museum education initiatives, visit www.getinthescrap.org.
For more than 58 years, WYES has worked to inform, teach, illuminate, entertain and inspire our entire community. It is the oldest public television station serving southeast Louisiana and the Mississippi Gulf Coast, the 12th oldest in the nation, and the most utilized non-profit organization in our two states with as many as a half-million people using our broadcasts, outreach activities and website each week. We are proud to be part of the nation’s largest classroom, the largest stage for the arts and a trusted window to the world. For more information, call 504-486-5511 or visit www.wyes.org. Like us on Facebook (wyes.neworleans). Follow us on Twitter (@WYESTV) & Instagram (wyestv).
The National WWII Museum tells the story of the American experience in the war that changed the world—why it was fought, how it was won, and what it means today. Dedicated in 2000 as The National D-Day Museum and now designated by Congress as America's National WWII Museum, it celebrates the American Spirit, teamwork, optimism, courage, and sacrifice of the men and women who served on the battlefront and the Home Front. For more information, call 877-813-3329 or 504-528-1944 or visit nationalww2museum.org. Follow us on Twitter at WWIImuseum or on Facebook.