Member Reviews

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Presenting and Participating at the Middle States Council for the Social Studies 114thAnnual Regional Conference

Monica Kwiatkowski

Thanks to the Catt- Allegany Teacher Center, I had the extraordinary opportunity to attend the Middle States Council for the Social Studies Conference, in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. The theme this year, “Social Studies: A Road Map for Social Justice” provided the backdrop for two days of incredible networking with educators, practitioner workshops, and presentations from experts in the field.Our first day field trip included a private tour of Bunker 519 at Fort Miles, Delaware State Park, a fully restored WWII era fort and museum housed in Lewes Delaware State Park. The bunker can be virtually undetected from above ground, but once to its doors, an entire cement world opens up. There we learned the importance of Philadelphia as a shipping hub during the war, and the US strategy to protect its waters. Fort Miles houses one of the largest collections of large diameter guns designed to take out German battle ships and houses an underground bunker turned into a museum. It was an historians dream to roam around underground studying the artifacts and recreations that allowed for the fort to be operational to the public. The visit gave me great insights that I can share with my students to better understand the military defense strategy of the US during WWII.