This activity allows students to read and analyze an original letter written by a soldier and sent home. After reading it together in class, students will answer a series of questions that will help them discover these individuals’ experiences of war. Afterward, the class is invited to discuss what they have read.

This activity was first designed to accompany our travelling exhibition Regiments on the Ridge. The exhibition is available for free to your school by completing our reservation form. It should be noted that in 2025, we released a new version of our virtual exhibition, now entitled Mobilizing a Country: Canada and the First World War. The latter is also suitable for this activity.

Activity content

The student guide allows teachers and students to follow the activity in class. The teacher must first choose a letter written by a soldier during World War I. We suggest projecting or sharing an example of a letter home from The Canadian Letters and Images Project: WWI. There are many examples on this database, but we notably suggest the one written by Alexander Rowat to his mother in Montreal. The teacher or students may also select another letter of their choice to complete the activity. Afterwards, students will analyze the letter together or in small groups by answering a series of questions using their guide. Before introducing the activity, the teacher can also show the short NFB documentary: Front Lines – The Trenches (9m45s). It consists of readings from letters sent home describing life as a soldier in the trenches.

We suggest that the teacher emphasize that all letters were read and sometimes censored by superior officers so that important military information, such as location details or other sensitive, sometimes classified information, was never leaked or intercepted by the enemy. In fact, authors had to be careful about what they wrote! These points can be discussed in class at the end of the activity.

Please note that there is no need to print the provided student guide, as it can now be completed directly from your computer! To use the fillable function, be sure to download the PDF and use the appropriate software.

Activity objectives

The goal of these activities is to allow secondary cycle two students to have a greater understanding of World War I and Canada and Quebec’s role in the conflict. More specifically, this activity serves to better understand the importance and impact of the Treaty of Versailles in the 20th century history.

Through this activity, students will practice the intellectual skills required by the Quebec Ministry of Education’s Secondary 4 curriculum by analyzing primary and secondary historical documents. More specifically, this activity is part of the “First World War” section of the Quebec school curriculum. Finally, students will also develop their knowledge of Quebec and Canadian history through the competencies promoted by the Quebec Education Program:

• Characterizes a period in the history of Québec and Canada
• Interprets a social phenomenon

This activity is also suitable for secondary 5 students and the 20th century history course through the following competencies:

• Characterizes a historical turning point
• Interprets a social phenomenon using the historical method

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Travelling Exhibit “Regiments on the Ridge: 100 years after the Battle of Vimy Ridge”

Regiments on the Ridge traces the history of the First World War, from its beginnings to its aftermath, with a particular focus on the Battle of Vimy Ridge and its significance in the course of the conflict. It follows the journey of several soldiers from the Royal Montreal Regiment and the Royal 22nd Regiment, from their enlistment to their demobilization. Discover also our quiz activity that accompanies our exhibition!

Document Analysis

In this activity, students will critically analyze primary source documents and establish facts, identifying differences and similarities regarding the Dieppe Raid and Canada’s tragic losses in the form of Intellectual Operations, as per the QEP Provincial History course.

Letters and censorship

Due to the nature of the operation, the Allies often censored letters written by deployed soldiers to their loved ones. In this activity, students will participate in a letter writing exercise that explores censorship. First, they will write an original letter putting themselves in the shoes of someone deployed in Europe. Then, a classmate will read the letter and censor any elements they deem compromising. A general discussion will then be led by the teacher. This activity can accompany our exhibition or be used independently for another project.