Designing a Memorial Have students divide into groups, then ask each group to decide on an American, male or female, historic or contemporary, that they believe should be honored with a memorial. Next, have them list the characteristics of that person that should be represented and then develop two or three ideas about how their idea could be executed in a purely symbolic design. Have students decide on symbols they will use in their monument in place of a portrait or likeness of the person they are memorializing. Working together with whatever supplies you and the groups can muster, have the students create a model of their memorial. A written description of the ideas behind the structure should be included with each group's final project.
Most communities memorialize their local heroes.
Have the students, individually or in groups, select a local memorial to research. They should identify the person being memorialized, investigate the memorial, and report back to the class. The student or the groups should visit the site of the memorial and either take a photograph or make a drawing to share with the class. The finished product can be presented as a report to the class and may be exhibited on bulletin boards or in display cases. A final activity might ask students to compare the design of memorials from different eras.