The 100th anniversary of Armistice Day is nearly here, and a lot of nations and communities are commemorating the end of World War I and honoring the fallen in different ways - ceremonies, moments of silence, new statues and/or memorial sites, etc. On our own smaller scale, it's important to take the time to remember our family members who served in World War I - those who gave their lives for their countries and also those who survived, but had to live with the memories and other adverse effects of the war for the rest of their lives.
War was, unfortunately, a very real part of many of our ancestors' lives, and influenced their lives in sometimes very profound ways. So, in order to help our kids understand our ancestors, we can't skip the discussion of war when we are talking about their lives, even though it IS a difficult topic to have with children.
My WWI veteran ancestor was Luigi Licciardi and he fought in the Italian Army during the War. We don't know much about his service, but by 1920 he was on a ship to America, with his wife and young daughters to follow in 1921. Had he always wanted to come to America, or did his experiences during the war push him to start a new life somewhere far from the destruction and chaos in Europe? Enough Italian WWI veterans came to Cleveland, at least, that they started a social group/fraternal group known as Ex-Combattenti Italiani (Italian War Veterans), so perhaps that experience of serving and living through WWI did affect more peoples' decisions to emigrate out of Europe. Does your family have any ancestors that immigrated to America immediately after WWI?
My husband had a great-uncle, Edward Tumbush, who served in the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) during the War. He was the grandchild of German immigrants who came from Northwest Germany. It's hard to think that he may have been fighting against some of his own cousins on the front lines. Unfortunately, a couple of my husband's ancestral towns in the Meuse department of Northeast France suffered damaged and enemy occupation during the war, as well.
I've made two simple worksheets kids can use if they want to write down some basic facts about their ancestors who served in World War I. Click on each image to download a PDF.
War was, unfortunately, a very real part of many of our ancestors' lives, and influenced their lives in sometimes very profound ways. So, in order to help our kids understand our ancestors, we can't skip the discussion of war when we are talking about their lives, even though it IS a difficult topic to have with children.
My WWI veteran ancestor was Luigi Licciardi and he fought in the Italian Army during the War. We don't know much about his service, but by 1920 he was on a ship to America, with his wife and young daughters to follow in 1921. Had he always wanted to come to America, or did his experiences during the war push him to start a new life somewhere far from the destruction and chaos in Europe? Enough Italian WWI veterans came to Cleveland, at least, that they started a social group/fraternal group known as Ex-Combattenti Italiani (Italian War Veterans), so perhaps that experience of serving and living through WWI did affect more peoples' decisions to emigrate out of Europe. Does your family have any ancestors that immigrated to America immediately after WWI?
My husband had a great-uncle, Edward Tumbush, who served in the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) during the War. He was the grandchild of German immigrants who came from Northwest Germany. It's hard to think that he may have been fighting against some of his own cousins on the front lines. Unfortunately, a couple of my husband's ancestral towns in the Meuse department of Northeast France suffered damaged and enemy occupation during the war, as well.
I've made two simple worksheets kids can use if they want to write down some basic facts about their ancestors who served in World War I. Click on each image to download a PDF.
My WWI Veteran Ancestor (2 pages)
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My WWI Nurse Ancestor (1 page)
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Several years ago, I made some poppy crafts with my daughter while we talked about the war and what the poppy symbolizes. You can find that post at this link.
Below, I've listed some children's book recommendations for teaching children about WWI. It's a mix of non-fiction and fiction, for various ages, and certainly not comprehensive in scope, but it will give you a good start. Despite all the destruction and killing, there are actually some very inspirational and endearing stories from WWI, including several stories about how animals helped soldiers and the story of the Christmas Truce of 1914. (If you order through these links, a small portion of the sale will be returned to Growing Little Leaves. The sale price will be no different for you.)
Below, I've listed some children's book recommendations for teaching children about WWI. It's a mix of non-fiction and fiction, for various ages, and certainly not comprehensive in scope, but it will give you a good start. Despite all the destruction and killing, there are actually some very inspirational and endearing stories from WWI, including several stories about how animals helped soldiers and the story of the Christmas Truce of 1914. (If you order through these links, a small portion of the sale will be returned to Growing Little Leaves. The sale price will be no different for you.)
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©2018 Emily Kowalski Schroeder
