SOCIAL STUDIES / LANGUAGE ARTS
LESSON 1: SHIP’S CREW EXPERIENCE
GRADE: 6-12
Introduction
Men who served aboard the Intrepid were assigned to various roles that helped make the ship run efficiently and effectively. This activity will help students envision what men’s lives were like aboard the Intrepid and will help them fine tune their creative writing skills.
Objectives
Students will:
• conduct research on a specific job that a crew member would do aboard the Intrepid.
• develop a character based on the crew member’s job that they researched and write two journal entries from the point of view of that character:
• As a new crewmember fresh out of training
• As a seasoned crew member after their character’s first encounter with a sea battle
• demonstrate an understanding of the experiences of Intrepid crew members with the information they have researched as well as the information they have learned from the video.
Procedure
• Ask each student to research a specific responsibility that a crew member may have had aboard the Intrepid. They can use a movie or documentary that shows shipboard life for inspiration.
• Ask students to create a character from the crew member’s responsibility they picked. Students should use the following outline for guidance:
• Name: Joe Patron
• Crew member responsibility: Gunner
• Ethnic background: Hispanic
• Hometown: Brooklyn, NY
• Family: Parents, 4 sisters, 2 brothers all younger than him
• Age: 18
• Personality/Experiences/Interests: Shy, reserved, has rarely traveled outside of Brooklyn, loves the Brooklyn Dodgers, enlisted as soon as he turned 18 because his friends did
• Have students create journal entries based on their Intrepid experiences. The first journal entry should be based on the character’s thoughts when first assigned to the Intrepid. The second journal entry should convey how the character has grown as an Intrepid crew member and how they have reacted to their first experience in battle.
