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Year 9 History Excursion - Army Museum Highlights
Posted on July 02, 2025
On Thursday 26 June, Year 9 History students visited the Army Museum in Keswick. The excursion was a wonderful opportunity to do some hands-on learning about World War 1 and hear from expert guides. Students got to view and touch actual objects from the war, hear personal stories, and feel the weight of equipment used in battle. One particular highlight was learning about the basic but effective communication systems used during the war. Students learned about the telegraph system, the Morse Code alphabet, and were challenged to write, tap out and decipher their own messages in code. The contrast to today鈥檚 mobile communication was made starkly clear!
To extend their learning about the Gallipoli campaign, students viewed a giant model of Anzac Cove, which helped them to understand just how steep the terrain was for the ANZAC soldiers. Students got to walk through and sit in a reconstructed trench, as well as wear soldiers' heavy backpacks and explore what they would have eaten in battle from WW1 to today. Another highlight was discovering how wartime inspired new technologies and inventions such as the periscope rifle and the drip rifle, which saved thousands of soldiers鈥� lives as they retreated from Gallipoli. Finally, students learned about not only the human contributions to war, but the important roles that animals such as horses, dogs and pigeons played in World War 1 and other conflicts.
All in all, the excursion was a wonderful way for students to connect with each other, extend their understanding, build empathy for the experiences of others, and to spark even more curiosity about 鈥渢he war to end all wars.鈥� We鈥檇 like to thank the generous volunteers at the museum for sharing their knowledge with us and for making it an unforgettable experience.
Some student quotes about the highlight of the day:
鈥淚 liked using Morse Code and learning about war and how they did things.鈥� 鈥� Angus C
鈥淸The best thing was] learning about the horses and the type of breed鈥� 鈥� Layla F
鈥淸The best thing was] learning about Morse Code and getting to try out the machine and write and decode our own messages.鈥� 鈥� Marlowe K
