Ruoxi Chen: Exploring War and Peace at Fort York

 

To help families, student groups, and all participants interested in the history of Fort York learn more about the history of the site and to stimulate their thinking about war and peace, the program will be centered on the theme of “War and Peace.” The activity is designed to engage participants in thinking about war and peace while learning about Fort York. To make the event more participatory and interesting I plan to create a treasure hunt with Fort York as the backdrop. By adding stations and interactive links to the Fort York scavenger hunt that is closely related to the theme of “War and Peace”, participants will not only gain a deeper understanding of the history of Fort York but also experience the impact of war and the importance of peace in an interactive way, thus achieving a deeper educational purpose.

Everyone will meet at the Fort York National Historic Site, and we will hand out Fort York maps and the first clue. I designed cue cards and came up with clues for each site to help participants get to the next site. I divided the scavenger hunt site into a total of six stations and they are:

Station 1 - Museum Exhibit:

Activity: Identify a War of 1812 artifact on display.

Clue example: “Look for the cannon that once boomed and smoked as it guarded the fort.”

 

Station2 - South Fort:

Activity: Learn about the Fort's fortifications and their role.

Sample Clue: “Find where the officers dined, their meals and meetings intertwined.”

 

Station3 - Officers' Quarters:

ACTIVITY: Explore the living conditions and daily life of the officers stationed here.

Sample Clue: “They were lifeless but good comrades to the soldiers. This was once the starting point for soldiers preparing for battle.”

 

Station 4 - Armory

Activities: Participants can see the weapons and equipment used by soldiers during the War of 1812. Participants can touch the replicas to feel the texture and weight of the weapons and understand the challenges faced by soldiers during the war.

Clue example: "The wounded were treated here, where life and death met."

 

Station5 - Medical Station 

Activity: Visit the medical conditions and equipment used during the war. Participants can learn to mimic the bandages used during the war and learn some basic medical knowledge.

Sample Clue: "The smoke of war has cleared, and peace will come."

 

Station 6 - Peace monument 

Activity: This is the final stop on the scavenger hunt where participants can share their understanding of peace from their visit, write or draw their hopes for peace on the Fort York postcard they received at the beginning of their visit, and attach it to the activity board for this activity.

Sample Clue: “Your journey ends where it began, return to the place where it began and collect your reward.”

 

Volunteers will stamp their clue cards at each station, and when participants have collected enough stamps and submitted them to the reviewer, they will receive a small gift or a certificate of recognition for a successful scavenger hunt as a souvenir. After the scavenger hunt, participants can discuss their experiences at each site and share their feelings and thoughts on the theme of “War and Peace”. Through this experience, participants can deepen the importance of Fort York in history, understand the cruelty of war and the preciousness of peace, and cultivate their historical awareness and peace values. The program can be carried out in families and small groups, where participants can develop their observation skills and spirit of historical research. By adding these stations and activities that are closely related to the theme of “War and Peace”, visitors will not only gain an in-depth understanding of the history of Ford York but also interactively experience the impact of war and the importance of peace, thus achieving a deeper educational purpose.