HANDS-ON HISTORY
The Great War: WWI School Day
Grades: 3rd through 12th
Friday, April 10, 2026
9:30 am - 2 pm
(lunch break from 11:15 - 12 Noon)
Rain or Shine
This hands-on history event lets your students interact with 200+ reenactors stationed at encampments throughout the village and woods. Students are encouraged to talk with the reenactors about life as a soldier during The Great War, tour a WW1 replica trench and learn about the various military strategies. The reenactors will all be interpreting different units and countries involved in the Great War. Most stations are open from 9:30 am – 2 pm; however, tours of the museum’s 150-yard trench system will have an assigned time. In addition, your students are also welcome to visit our main museum building, including our NEW exhibit – You’re in the Army Now: Camp Grant, Rockford’s Legacy – about our area’s training camp during WWI and WWII.
You can download a short PDF covering the causes of the war here:
Cost is $10 per student; 1 complimentary chaperone for 10 paid students (ex. 100 students = 10 complimentary chaperones); additional adults $8.
Educational Standards
To view how Midway's programs meet state educational standards, download our 15-page Illinois State Standards overview in PDF format. To see how they meet National Social Studies Curriculum Standards 2, 3 & 4, download our 3-page Program Education Standards guide in PDF format.
Questions or need assistance? Please contact our Museum Educator, Teresa Streed, at 815-397-9112, ext. 106 or email her at teresa.streed@midwayvillage.com.
