Programs descriptions

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• Life at the Lighthouse (grades K-6)
• Fit to Serve (grades 7-12)
• WWI Medical (grades 9 – 12) New

Life at the Lighthouse (grades K-6)

Teachers, bring your students to the oldest lighthouse on Canada’s west coast, and let them experience what life as a lightkeeper was like 150 years ago. 

This program will introduce your students to the importance of lighthouses on the coast. It will highlight how simple tasks today would have been significantly more challenging in the past, and explains how the hard work of the lighthouse keeper allowed ships to safely travel up and down the coastline.

Let the students explore what everyday life was like at Fisgard Lighthouse as a costumed interpreter teaches them through games and activities!

Learning objectives

• Identify how the lives of children in the lighthouse were different from and similar to the lives of children today
• Understand how the environment impacted the lives of lighthouse families
• Understand the function of a lighthouse
• Understand why the lighthouse was built in its current location (the pursuit of resources, environment, links with the community, Canada and the World)
• Understand how the pursuit of resources and colonization lead to the creation of Victoria

During this program students will

• Explore Fisgard Lighthouse National Historic Site
• Discover how life was different for families who lived in the lighthouse
• Discuss how the environment affected the location of the lighthouse
• Discover how weather and the environment affects how people travelled

Fit to Serve (grades 7-12)

Report for duty as a soldier of Fort Rodd Hill! 

Teacher, bring your students to one of Canada’s best preserved artillery forts. Assigned in teams, they will be tasked with mental and physical challenges to see if the have what it takes to serve. 

This program will be facilitated by a costumed interpreter who will teach students about the role of coastal defence and Canada’s involvement during World War I and World War II. The program will also help students discover the challenges and hardships faced by the men and women stationed at Fort Rodd Hill a century ago.

Let the students reflect on the life of those who came before them while our knowledgeable staff recounts the stories of the many sacrifices they must have endured.

Learning objectives

• Evaluate the impact of the physical environment and geography on the construction of Fort Rodd Hill
• Identify how evolving technology changed the roles of soldiers stationed at Fort Rodd Hill
• Work cooperatively to complete challenges as a team
• Learn how social, cultural, and technological innovations and developments in the 20th century impacted and changed Fort Rodd Hill
• Learn how war impacted Victorian’s and how different people worked together at places like Fort Rodd Hill

During this program students will

• Challenge themselves and their classmate through team based activities 
• Practice communicating using military hand signals, Morse code, and more
• Understand the role of technology and the environment in the Fort’s history
• Experience the physical and mental challenges soldiers had to pass in order to enlist

WWI Medical (grades 9 – 12) New

In this immersive program, students will travel back to May 1918, stepping into life at a casualty clearing station in Belgium during the First World War. Some students will take on the role of wounded soldiers, while others will become nurses, learning firsthand about the challenges faced by military personnel and medical professionals on the front lines.

Guided by two costumed interpreters, students will engage in a hands-on exploration of the medical procedures used to treat injured soldiers. Through this experience, they will gain a deeper understanding of the dangers of the front line and determination required to save lives during one of history’s most devastating conflicts.

Learning objectives

• Understand the role of Canadian women in the First World War as military and volunteer nurses
• Identify how evolving technology on the battlefield complicated front-line medical treatment and led to an evolution in medicine
• Understand the difficult decisions that medical professionals had to make under the constraints of combat
• Understand the long-term impact that war and medical treatments had on the soldiers

During this program students will

• Play the role of either a volunteer nurse or a wounded soldier.
• Be immersed in the experiences of soldiers and medical professionals in a casualty clearing station in the First World War.
• Systematically walk through the steps involved in front-line medical treatment in the First World War.
• Work in teams to determine the best course of treatment for their patients.