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Year 9

Writing a letter as a soldier in the trenches of World War One

I can write a letter which recounts an imagined experience from the trenches of World War One, using Wilfred Owen’s 1917 letter to his mother as stimulus.

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Year 9

Writing a letter as a soldier in the trenches of World War One

I can write a letter which recounts an imagined experience from the trenches of World War One, using Wilfred Owen’s 1917 letter to his mother as stimulus.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. The date, address and greeting are important features of letters.
  2. A recount could balance precise facts with atmospheric details.
  3. A letter concludes with a sign off which could signal your relationship with the person the letter is to.

Keywords

  • Recount - to describe something that happened, to tell its story

  • Balance - an equal distribution of two or more things

  • Metaphor - a literary technique in which you compare one thing to another; Owen compares mud to an octopus in his letter

  • Atmospheric - creating a distinctive mood

  • Resentment - a complex emotion in which you feel anger, disappointment, bitterness

Common misconception

People don't use literary methods in nonfiction writing.

Whenever you write any thing - even a shopping list - you are employing methods. Every word is a choice, thus every choice can be evaluated. In nonfiction writing (even nonfiction writing by people who aren't writers) methods will be used for effect.

The longest learning cycle will be learning cycle 2 because this is where pupils write the account. Consider how long this learning cycle needs, and then work out precise timings for the rest of the lesson.
Teacher tip

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
  • Depiction or discussion of mental health issues

Supervision

Adult supervision required

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Personal letters were a vital form of communication during World War One. What are some common features of letters?
Correct answer: the inclusion of an address
Correct answer: paragraphing
Correct answer: the inclusion of a date
enjambment and caeusra
dialogue
Q2.
Starting with the first, order these events from one of Wilfred Owen's 1917 letters to his mother during WW1 in chronological order.
1 - greets his mother and says he has experienced "seventh hell"
2 - recounts a long, hard march to a trench
3 - details the agonies of spending fifty hours in a trench being shelled
4 - explains the number of casualties and their nature
5 - reassures his mother that he is ok
6 - expresses his anger about what happened to him and other soldiers
7 - signs off the letter
Q3.
Wilfred Owen's 1917 letter to his mother during WW1 includes a number of metaphors. Which of the below are metaphors?
"I am bitterly disappointed that I never got one of yours."
Correct answer: "I have suffered seventh hell."
"We marched three miles over shelled road."
Correct answer: "[the ground was] an octopus of sucking clay."
"My dug-out held 25 men tight packed."
Q4.
Wilfred Owen's 1917 letter to his mother during WW1 includes a number of methods which help convey the horror of his experience. Match each quotation to its method.
Correct Answer:repetition,It was of course dark, too dark [.]

It was of course dark, too dark [.]

Correct Answer:onomatopoiea,The seeng-seeng-seeng of the bullets reminded me of Mary's canary.

The seeng-seeng-seeng of the bullets reminded me of Mary's canary.

Correct Answer:statistics,Water filled it to a depth of 1 or 2 feet, leaving say 4 feet of air.

Water filled it to a depth of 1 or 2 feet, leaving say 4 feet of air.

Correct Answer:contrast,Every ten minutes on Sunday afternoon seemed an hour.

Every ten minutes on Sunday afternoon seemed an hour.

Correct Answer:verb choice,[I had to] crawl, wade, climb and flounder over No Man's Land [.]

[I had to] crawl, wade, climb and flounder over No Man's Land [.]

Q5.
In one of his 1917 letters to his mother during WW1, Owen writes of a particular episode in the trenches, "Those fifty hours were the of my happy life."
Correct Answer: agony
Q6.
In one of his 1917 letters to his mother during WW1, Owen describes the sludge of the trenches as "an of sucking mud".
Correct Answer: octopus

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
The majority of personal letters begin with a which indicates who the letter is for.
Correct Answer: greeting, salutation
Q2.
Sign offs like "Yours sincerely" and "Yours faithfully" are used for more letters. Sign offs like "Love from" are used for more informal or personal letters.
Correct Answer: formal
Q3.
We have looked at an example of a letter Wilfred Owen wrote to his mother during WW1. Why were letters such an important feature of life during WW1?
Correct answer: They helped those at home understand the realities of war.
They were another strand of the government's propaganda.
Correct answer: They provided comfort and joy in distressing circumstances.
It was the only way to get news about the war.
Only important officers could receive letters, so it was a sign of status.
Q4.
In Wilfred Owen's 1917 letters to his mother, how does Owen sign this letter off?
Love wilfred
Yours faithfully, Wilfred Owen
Yours sincerely Wilfred
Correct answer: Your very own Wilfred x
Kind regards, Wilfred
Q5.
In one of his 1917 letters to his mother during WW1, Owen uses a to describe the sludge of the trenches as "an octopus of sucking mud".
Correct Answer: metaphor
Q6.
In one of his 1917 letters to his mother during WW1, Owen describes how he moved 150 yards across No Man's Land, saying he had to "crawl, , climb and flounder."
Correct Answer: wade