Briarcliff Manor Students Experience The Power Of Primary Sources On 25th Anniversary Of September 11

Press release from the Briarcliff Manor Union Free School District:

It was a beautiful afternoon on Friday, September 11, 2026, reminiscent of that same day 25 years earlier. Inside Zach Rose’s seventh-grade social studies classroom, a clear blue sky was visible beyond the windows and sunlight streamed into the room. He began class with a question.

“What do you remember about COVID?”

The responses were many, and the seventh graders shared vivid details of their experiences. Many remembered how, in one day, everything changed. They couldn’t leave their homes, they had to wear masks, and the way they learned changed.

One student captured her experience in a single statement: “I knew what was happening, but it didn’t make sense.”

Through the discussion, students began to recognize something they may not have previously considered: Their memories make them primary sources for understanding a significant historical event.

“You were in first grade when COVID-19 happened. When I was in first grade, September 11 happened,” Mr. Rose told the class. “I knew something had happened, but I didn’t know what it was. Even the adults didn’t understand what was happening.”

Mr. Rose invited students to share what they knew about September 11, despite not having been born when it occurred. Several recounted stories passed down by relatives, and he encouraged them to continue learning from the people in their lives who experienced the day firsthand.

The previous day, John Lloyd’s eighth-grade social studies students had explored the value of primary and secondary sources from another perspective. During a gallery walk, students examined and annotated 11 documents related to the events and effects of September 11. When they returned to the classroom, they used evidence from each document to classify it as a primary or secondary source and consider what each type contributes to our understanding of the past.

The documents ranged from firsthand accounts describing the sirens, smoke, falling debris, and collapse of the towers to secondary sources outlining the sequence of the four attacks and their broader historical aftermath.

The lesson combined two objectives: helping students understand what happened on September 11 and its lasting effects, and exploring the different ways primary and secondary sources help us understand the past.

“One response that stood out to me was a student sharing that primary sources help us understand how an event felt, almost as if we had traveled back in time. I found that observation especially meaningful,” Mr. Lloyd said. “The students recognized that eyewitness accounts can help them come as close as possible to experiencing an important event they did not live through themselves.”

Back in Mr. Rose’s classroom, the connection between historical understanding and human experience continued through the story of Welles Crowther, the “Man in the Red Bandanna.”

Connecting the lesson to empathy, a theme students had recently been exploring in social studies, the class watched a short documentary about Crowther, who repeatedly returned to help people escape from the South Tower before he was killed when the building collapsed.

His story held particular significance on the 25th anniversary. Just three days earlier, Crowther had been posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, in recognition of his heroism on September 11.

“Never Forget” is a phrase often associated with September 11. But how do we ensure that younger generations never forget something they never experienced?

Personal recollections helped students begin to answer that question. BMS Assistant Principal Michael Pompa and Teaching Assistant Rob Swansson shared their memories of September 11, while BMS teacher Julie Gallagher recalled experiencing the day during her second year as a teacher in Briarcliff. BMS Principal Amy Gladstone also joined the class as students considered why it is important to keep those memories alive.

Throughout the period, Mr. Rose asked students to pause and speak with one another about the documentary, the recollections shared in the room, and stories they had heard from their own relatives. He encouraged them not only to understand the facts, but also to make space for the emotions surrounding them.

At the end of class, Mr. Rose invited students to share what they had learned and whether the discussion had changed their understanding of September 11.

“Sometimes it passes over my head,” Daniella said. “But after today, it feels more real.”

This press release was produced by the Briarcliff Manor Union Free School District. The views expressed here are the author’s own.