The 2018 group of teachers who took part in the Summer Institute and Battlefield Tour for Teachers outside the Juno Beach Centre in France.

By Sheldon Spackman

Battlefield Tours

Red Deer teacher to experience historical training on Battle of Normandy 75th Anniversary

Jul 22, 2019 | 4:37 PM

A Red Deer teacher will be one of roughly 20 educators from across the country heading overseas this week to experience Canadian history first-hand on the 75^th Anniversary of the Battle of Normandy.

Lisa Ryckman, a teacher from North Cottage High School who’s moving to Westpark Middle School this fall, will take part in the 14^th annual Summer Institute and Battlefield Tour for Teachers from July 25 – August 6.

The excursion is hosted by the Juno Beach Centre, Canada’s only museum on the D-Day Landing Beaches in Normandy, founded by Second World War Veterans in 2003.

The 2018 group at a memorial garden in Dieppe.

Officials say the Tour travels through Belgium and France, offering teachers professional development training on the battlefields of the First and Second World Wars.

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The Tour includes visits to the Ypres Salient, Vimy Ridge, Beaumont-Hamel, Dieppe and the D-Day landing beaches in Normandy, among many others.

In addition, the selected teachers will have the unique experience of being a guest at a remembrance ceremony at Bretteville-sur-Laize Canadian War Cemetery, described as a local tradition marking the sacrifices of Canadians 75 years ago.

Ryckman says she applied for the opportunity to further enhance her knowledge as a social studies teacher.

“I was having to learn the curriculum for Social 10, 20 and 30 and it sort of lit a fire under me in terms of just wanting to know more about history,” explains Ryckman. “Both my father and my grandfather and actually my uncle all served in World War ll, so all of it together really made me want to understand it more.”

Ryckman admits one aspect of the Tour she’s appreciative of, is the Canadian focus and perspective it will bring.

“We have Remembrance Day here once a year but they basically celebrate and remember every single day,” says Ryckman. “They have some kind of ceremony pretty much every night where they thank Canadians specifically for bringing World War ll to an end and I think just being part of it and having that history come alive because up until now, it’s always just been stories in a book. That’s what I’m most excited about, is having it become more real.”

Ryckman anticipates the self-funded experience to be able to give her a much greater knowledge and understanding of the Second World War.

“That’s what I’ve been told actually by other teachers who have done this kind of tour, is that it’s an incredibly emotional journey,” she exclaims. “So I’m expecting a lot of tears and a lot of sleepless nights but I think my understanding and just my depth as an educator and as a human being will be quite a bit more expanded when I come back and try to pass this on to these future students.”

Ryckman says the Summer Institute and Battlefield Tour for Teachers begins in Brussels, Belgium on July 25.