With time comes perspective. Since I started teaching, my classroom has transitioned from chalkboards and mimeographs to computers and interactive whiteboards to AI tools and virtual reality headsets (though, for those of us who can remember it, nothing is quite like the smell of that purple mimeograph ink). As I reflect, there certainly is reason to pause to consider what classrooms might be like thirty years from now. Yet with all of the changes that have taken place and that may come, one of my favorite lessons has not occurred in a school classroom at all. Rather, the lesson takes place in the quiet, fact-filled surroundings one can find in communities all across the country: the local cemetery.
After thirty years in Christian school secondary education, I am now privileged to work with future educators at Cedarville University, where I teach methods of teaching for the middle school educator. In the course, my students are exposed to a variety of ideas, practices, and techniques to fill their teaching toolbox to benefit their future students. One of our lessons occurs after we take a short trip to either of our two local cemeteries. Though my students will likely be teaching someplace other than Cedarville, Ohio, the lessons they experience are applicable to communities everywhere.
Why the Cemetery?
I am compelled to give credit where it is due. My initial cemetery trip started because of two individuals. Dr. Tim Heaton was a long-time friend and a professor at Cedarville University who is now enjoying life in the presence of his Savior. Dr. Heaton was not one to be confined by typical methodologies. I was privileged to be one of his students when he first came to the university, and I recall one early morning class when this interesting character by the name of Horace Mann came to share with us education students. Impersonating historical figures was one way Dr. Heaton engaged his students in learning, and trips to the local cemetery was another. Years later, when I returned to the university to teach, my colleague Professor Comers encouraged me to continue what Dr. Heaton had started many years ago, and I am glad that I took her encouragement.
A trip to the cemetery is filled with possibilities that all teachers should consider.
A trip to the cemetery is filled with possibilities that all teachers should consider. I take my preservice teachers to the cemetery for three reasons. First, there are opportunities for learning no matter the subject area. The future middle school teachers in my class represent various teaching disciplines: social studies, mathematics, English language arts, and science. No matter their discipline, the cemetery is what Barbara Kissling describes as “a great laboratory for learning” that presents all teachers with an opportunity to enrich their teaching (1). Later in this article, we will examine more closely how teachers in specific disciplines can tap into the resources of the cemetery.
Second, a cemetery trip can engage students in active learning, which is an integral strategy that teachers can use for successful teaching (Edwards 28). Collins and O’Brien describe active learning as that which keeps students mentally, and often physically, active in their learning through activities that involve them in gathering information, thinking, and problem solving (5). With all of the varied and engaging activities that are possible at a cemetery, teachers can, as part of a well-structured lesson, unleash students to construct their own learning.
I enjoy the cemetery trip because it provides teachers with a beautiful opportunity to talk with their students about our God, this life, mortality, and eternity.
Most of all, I enjoy the cemetery trip because it provides teachers with a beautiful opportunity to talk with their students about our God, this life, mortality, and eternity. When students spend time in a cemetery, significant questions and conversations that would not typically surface in a traditional classroom are bound to follow. I share with my students that as future Christian teachers, they need to be prepared to have conversations about eternal truth with their students. The activities that can be part of a cemetery trip and the student questions that follow will naturally create those conversations.
Preparing for the Trip
As with any school trip, teachers need to plan ahead, and planning should begin with a call to the cemetery office. At many cemeteries, there is a caretaker or supervisor who will be your point of contact. When they hear that a school group is interested in learning more about their cemetery, caretakers are generally quite amiable. That was my experience when I spoke with the caretaker for the Cedarville cemeteries. He was happy to share many details about the cemeteries’ history and those who are interred there. The details I received from the caretaker provided a helpful baseline of information that made our trip to the cemetery that much more meaningful and successful.
Scheduling is certainly part of the trip preparations. Unless a class is to visit a cemetery that is no longer in use, teachers need to be mindful of events that might happen the day they visit the cemetery. It is helpful to call the caretaker at least twenty-four hours before the trip to see if any services are planned. If so, it is still likely that the trip can go on; however, teachers need to be aware so that the class does not disturb any ceremony that might be taking place. In addition, teachers need to speak to their class about cemetery etiquette prior to their expedition. My students are preparing to work with middle school students who, as we all know, can be quite unpredictable. Therefore, it is important that teachers emphasize showing respect for both the cemetery grounds and anyone who may be present during their class visit. To prepare them for how they might conduct their own class visit, I ask my students to practice respectful behavior by moving in small groups, speaking quietly, refraining from walking on grave markers or monuments, leaving objects and artifacts alone, and moving along quietly if someone is visiting a gravesite nearby. Once plans have been confirmed, we head off to the cemetery.
Lessons to Be Learned
A study on experiential learning outside the classroom found that “the cemetery can provide students with a powerful and unforgettable learning experience” (Hegediš and Hus 2662). That is the type of lesson—powerful and unforgettable—that should appeal to all students and teachers. While the list of lessons that can be learned at a cemetery is not endless, there are many opportunities to enhance the curriculum of nearly any classroom and to engage learners of all ages. To help middle school teachers of mathematics, science, social studies, and language arts, I will summarize below ideas that were presented by Kissling in her book for middle school teachers. However, I believe elementary and high school teachers will find these ideas helpful to stimulate their own ideas for lessons for their students. As they plan cemetery activities, all teachers should be mindful to map lessons to specific standards. Further, all teachers will be challenged to integrate biblical truth in their lessons as they use the opportunities the cemetery provides. This is an abridged version of this article. To read more, subscribe to Christian Educators Journal.
A study on experiential learning outside the classroom found that “the cemetery can provide students with a powerful and unforgettable learning experience” (Hegediš and Hus 2662).
Works Cited
Collins, John William, and Nancy P. O’Brien, eds. The Greenwood Dictionary of Education. Greenwood, 2003.
Edwards, Susan. “Active Learning in the Middle Grades.” Middle School Journal, vol. 46, no. 5, 2015, pp. 26–32, doi.org/10.1080/00940771.2015.11461922.
Hegediš, Polona Jančič, and Vlasta Hus. “Cemetery as an Opportunity for Learning Outside the Classroom.” Creative Education, vol. 11, no. 12, 2020, pp. 2660–71, doi.org/10.4236/ce.2020.1112197.
Kissling, Barbara. Cemeteries: Alive with Learning. National Middle School Association, 2010.
Nerny, Nancy, and Sue Williams. A Visit to Woodland Cemetery and Arboretum: Educator’s Guidebook. Woodland Arboretum Foundation, 2000.
Dr. Cary Shaw is an assistant professor in the School of Education at Cedarville University and a former Christian school administrator. He remains committed to strengthening Christian education through consulting and professional development for school leaders and teachers.
