SECOND WORLD WAR
It Wasn’t All Work

1: Wedding Bells (GRAPHIC DESIGN)

Design an invitation to the wedding of a member of the NOFU and their Scottish bride-to-be. What sort of embellishments could you include? Do some research so you can better reflect the invitation styles and wedding practices of the era. Consider the venue for the reception, which foods might be served and who would be invited.

2: Now and Then: A Memory Book (HISTORICAL THINKING/MAKING COMPARISONS)

Create a photo/text album featuring weddings from the time of the Second World War. Create a second album of recent weddings in Newfoundland and Labrador. What are the similarities and differences? What accounts for the continuities and for the changes? What inferences might you make about ways of life in Newfoundland and Labrador, past and present?

3: For Better or For Worse (COMPARATIVE WRITING/BLOG POST)

Sometimes marriages between people of different faiths (for example, the Church of Scotland and Roman Catholicism) or backgrounds (for example, Newfoundlander and Scot or Indigenous and settler) created tensions. Research and compare the experiences of couples of different religious faiths or backgrounds who decided to marry during the war years to those of couples today who might share the same (or similar) experiences. Document your findings in a blog post.

4: That Big Bang Sound (MUSIC APPRECIATION)

Conduct online or library research to discover tunes that were popular during the Second World War. Develop a concert program for an event in which members of the NOFU performed, such as at Ballater’s Albert Hall. If possible, engage your local school band to perform some of these songs, or host a radio show set in the war years and share it as a playlist or podcast.

5: “Would You Like a Drop of Tea, Luv?” (CULINARY ARTS)

What meals, desserts, snacks and drinks would members of the NOFU have enjoyed while living in Scotland? How might those have compared to the same foods enjoyed back in Newfoundland and Labrador? Find some recipes from the 1940s and prepare them. Share these foods with your family, friends or class members.

6: Sports: Then and Now (DIGITAL MEDIA/FILMMAKING)

Create a slideshow or mini-doc* about sports and recreational activities that members of the NOFU would have participated in while overseas during the Second World War. Consider exploring how these activities compare with activities that Canadian Armed Forces members might engage in today.

*A mini-doc is a short film documentary that tells a simple story in a short time frame, usually three to six minutes, although some can be shorter.

7: Measuring Up (HISTORICAL THINKING/MAKING COMPARISONS)

Compare the enrollment and expectations of the Newfoundland Home Guard to the enrollment and expectations of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment Army Reserve unit of today.