September 11, 2001 was a defining moment in American history. It is so interesting that many of the children who were 8, 9, or 10 years old when the World Trade Center towers fell and the Pentagon burned are now in college. According to CNN news article, The 9/11 Generation’s Bogeyman is Gone, the 9/11 generation is made up of two subgroups, one who were in high school and college and the other who were in elementary school.
This generation has grown up in a world very different from our parents generation. We are familiar with increased security, terrorist threats, and an increased awareness of the world. We have grown up accustomed to long lines at the airport and terror alerts. Since 9/11 this younger generation has feared names like Sadam and Bin Laden.
I as well as my students were forever effected by 9/11/01. I remember exactly where I was when the WTC was attacked. I was sitting in my US government class in high school. I remember the silence of the halls. I remember my friends getting called out of class to go home because their family members were unaccounted.This new generation of students are used to filtered news; many watched live television reports of the attacks in their living rooms and classrooms. I remember the overwhelming sense of pride and love for our nation. I wore red, white, and blue and felt an urgency to plant a tree in honor of the victims of 9/11. These feelings will never leave me.
As a teacher, I think it is so important to educate our students about 9/11 and the residual effects. I used the capture and death of Bin Laden to talk about 9/11 and the War on Terror. I use letters, personal stories, interviews, and newspapers from the day to honor and pay tribute to the men and women who defend our freedom.
For more information on teaching resources visit:
http://www.learnabout9-11.org/
http://www.911memorial.org/teaching-guides-0
http://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/2011/05/01/the-best-resources-for-learning-about-osama-bin-laden/
http://historytech.wordpress.com/2011/05/02/10-best-sites-for-learning-about-osama-bin-laden/
Thank you for your dedication to this very important field of work. I am concerned about people out there who are intent on “rewriting history”, and am glad to hear that you are not one of them. Students (children) need to learn about 9/11 and the affect it has had on the U.S.A. and the world. Otherwise, they hear about the killing of Bin Laden, see people “celebrating” and don’t understand. My coworkers were talking about the horror of seeing people celebrating this, and I could not even discuss with them why children might not understand if they are not, in fact, being taught about what happened on that day, and how this all came about.