Our Secondary School talks and presentation/exhibition modules facilitate all secondary school pupils in both the Republic and Northern Ireland but particularly those studying History. They greatly enhance the learning process for Junior, Leaving Certificate and Transition Year in the Republic and GCSE and A-Levels students in Secondary and Grammar Schools in Northern Ireland. With their historical primary source artefacts, fascinating stories and remarkable facts, these presentations and exhibitions are proving to be very interesting to students of all ages and to teachers with even a passing interest in the Second World War. There are two talk/presentation options from which to choose.
1. WWII AND IRELAND NORTH AND SOUTH
This display and presentation/exhibition module deals initially with the affect of World War II on the island of Ireland. Whilst Northern Ireland was directly involved in WWII, Southern Ireland remained neutral – but not altogether so. This presentation focuses on the military aspects of WWII as well as everyday life for the civilian populations on both sides of the border for the duration of the Second World War. It deals also with personalities from both sides of the border who either fought in the conflict or were involved in it in other ways. Particular emphasis is placed on the D-Day Landings which was the largest invasion in history.
The WWII and Ireland North and South presentation is also interlaced with museum quality displays of period uniforms and equipment including original Allied and German weapons used in World War II (Fully deactivated and safe), WWII parachutes, battlefield artefacts, wartime publications and photos, as well as archive footage from the period. The presentation also focuses on everyday inventions which arose out of World War II, many of which might just surprise you. Detailed educational historical information is provided throughout the presentation and a question and answer session takes place at the end of the presentation.
2. DAN MCGOVERN USAAF - THE ULSTERMAN WHO FILMED HIROSHIMA AND NAGASAKI
Dan McGovern was the US Army Air Forces cameraman who led the filming of the harrowing aftermath film footage from the devastated cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Your host, Joe McCabe knew Dan McGovern and is his biographer. See HERE. 6'5" tall 'Big Mack' McGovern was one of the first 'Americans' and the first outside cameraman into Japan after that country’s surrender to the Allied forces in late 1945. However, McGovern was, in fact, an Ulsterman and the son of a sergeant in the Royal Irish Constabulary. Having emigrated to the United States in 1922, Dan went on to become Photographer/Cameraman to US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt before being chosen to establish the Combat Camera Training School for the United States Army Air Forces in 1942 in Hollywood, California. There, he trained the very first batch of USAAF combat cameramen who where deployed to document on film the United States Army Air Forces' involvement in WWII all around the world.
McGovern then deployed to England with the USAAF's 8th Air Force and filmed combat footage over Nazi occupied Europe for Hollywood Director William Wyler's acclaimed 1944 documentary "The Memphis Belle – A Story of a Flying Fortress." As a child back in Ireland, McGovern witnessed first-hand the Irish War of Independence/Anglo Irish War. He has left us remarkable first-hand accounts of both his boyhood years in an Ireland in turmoil and of his remarkable photographic career during which he filmed some of the most important events of the 20th Century. This fascinating historical talk is augmented throughout by an accompanying display of identical WWII motion picture and still picture cameras as used by Dan McGovern throughout WWII and also with original WWII flying apparel personal equipment.
Please note: Class sizes for each presentation must not exceed 50 students but we can facilitate additional presentations at your school or college at very attractive discounted rates on any given day in both the morning and afternoon. Contact us for further information. As an individual professional attending your school or college for the purpose of giving a history talk and presentation Section 9 of the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act 2012 and 2016 applies. Vetting is therefore at the discretion of the school/college.