Remembering ‘The Little Bugler’ And All Heroes Of The Civil War

By Tanjua Damon

William Styple’s book The Little Bugler brought fifth graders and eighth graders together in a collaborative project to learn about the history of the Civil War.

Hawley School fifth grade teacher Gary Wilkinson and Newtown Middle School eighth grade teacher Gino LoRiccio worked together this year on a Civil War project that joined older students with younger students in learning about a piece of our nation’s history.

The Little Bugler is about a true American hero, Gustav A. Schurmann, who fought during the Civil War. The book provided fifth grade students with a biography and eighth grade students with a glimpse of the Civil War. During the collaborative project, the students learned about army life, being away from home, and about the battlefield.

The instruction brought the Civil War to life for the students who conducted a ceremony in honor of the Civil War veterans on May 30 at the Newtown Monument.

“It was such a compelling book, and I have just a love for history,” said Mr Wilkinson, who has been constructing the program for the last three years. “We designed it to enrich the students with learning about the Civil War and also to bring the book alive for them.”

The students played an active role in the educational project. Eighth graders and fifth graders were pen pals to each other, took on roles of particular characters, rewrote the obituary, and organized the Memorial Day ceremony. Parents even got involved, writing back to their children who were off to war.

“It’s really a collaboration with teachers and parents involved with the students,” Mr Wilkinson said. “It is an enrichment of what the Civil War was like.”

The fifth grade students from Mr Wilkinson’s class and volunteer eighth grade students from Mr LoRiccio’s class held a Memorial Day ceremony. Fifth grade students Matthew Yakush and Megan Brophy dressed in uniforms, holding the American flag in front of the monument, while their classmates and eighth graders sat in front of them.

“We stand here today, May 30, in memorial to the memory of Newtown’s Civil War dead. We have gathered here to honor those who defended the preservation of our Union. Let us affectionately present a tribute to these forgotten heroes,” fifth grader Danny Smith said. “It has been 138 years since the battles of Chancellorsville and Gettysburg. We owe ourselves to honor those who sacrificed and gave themselves for our American dream.”

Eighth grade students Amelia Shwartz, Sara Davis, and Wendy Borst read works of Walt Whitman.

The students also sang “The Battle Hymn of the Republic,” with Mr LoRiccio playing banjo. Fifth grader Anne Berlioux wrote another verse to add to the song, entitled “The Way of War.” The verse is the following:

Now I’m goin’ be a soldier don’t worry mother dear, now I’m goin’ be a Yank, don’t worry mother dear, now I’m goin’ be a bugler don’t worry mother. (chorus) So the Union is persevered.

Nicki Haylon wrote and essay entitled “A Tribute to All of the Forgotten Heroes Everywhere,” that is about how she learned about the Civil War this year in fifth grade. She wrote that all the men and women who fought were heroes who should be remembered and thanked.

“Here at the War Memorial, we can remember and thank these brave people for fighting for us, and for our Union,” she wrote. “But we don’t want to just thank all the heroes from Newtown. We want to thank the heroes from everywhere. We do not want to forget their brave deeds and hearts. We want to remember them. Remember them forever.”

The students placed miniature American flags along the monument. Robert Nolte played “Taps” on the trumpet.

The collaborative project can be found on a Web site set up by Mr Wilkinson at www.newtown.k12.ct.us/~ltbugler or on the Hawley School Web page that can be found at www.newtown.k12.ct.us.