Students will analyze the different types of Holocaust memorials that can be found around the world. Open up into a discussion about what purpose memorials serve, and what they signify. Allow students to create their own memorial.
Memorials and monuments commemorating the Holocaust have taken on different forms, all begging to answer the questions: “How should we remember?” and “What impact of memorials have on the way we think about history?”
Ask students, what is commemoration? Then ask, what purpose do monuments and memorials serve?
As a class, read through the Visual Essay: Holocaust Memorials and Monuments by Facing History and Ourselves and look through the pictures of the memorials featured.
After you go through the reading, go over the Connection Questions found at the bottom of the page. You may choose to do these as a class or have the students discuss them in small groups of three to five people.
Distribute the Creating a Memorial worksheet to each of your students. As this last activity asks students to reflect in depth, you may consider giving students the opportunity to work on their memorial at home. You may also want to give students the option to create their memorials in pairs, allowing them an opportunity to share ideas and concepts. Some teachers will ask students to create a physical model of the memorial they have conceptualized. If able, provide materials such as construction paper, clay, or paint to work on their memorials.
Collect memorials created by your class as a class project. These memorials can then be used as examples when carrying out this lesson for future classes. If doing physical models, you may consider taking a photo of the model to collect instead of holding onto the physical ones.
This lesson meets the following Academic Standards required by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.
Before you teach, use our teacher primer to freshen up on your content knowledge.
Students will learn about the Warsaw ghetto uprising, the largest Jewish uprising in German-occupied Europe. This lesson will lead students into a discussion about resistance during the Holocaust and the many ways people resist today.
Despite the amount of energy it took to live day-to-day in the ghetto, some inhabitants formed organized resistance.
Begin by telling students that between 1941 and 1943 underground resistance movements began popping up in over 100 ghettos in Nazi-occupied countries. Triggered by the deportations and liquidation of the ghettos, many of these resistance groups staged uprisings in order to fight the Nazis or escape.
Ask students if they can list any ghetto uprisings that they have heard of before. Then explain that you will be taking a closer look at the uprising from the Warsaw ghetto.
Direct students to the resource, Warsaw Ghetto Uprising by the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. Play the animated map video for the class before diving into the reading. Divide the class into groups of three or four and provide them with the instructions below.
In order to familiarize yourself, and your class with this model, please look over this guide: 3Ps: A Critical Reading Guide.
Come back together as a class and ask the groups to share what they had written down. Begin by asking groups to share what they found puzzling about the reading, is there anything that still needs to be cleared up?
Ask students to think of forms of resistance they have participated in or have seen or heard others do. Can they come up with any examples or instances where people took part in resisting, either violently or non-violently?
This lesson meets the following Academic Standards required by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.
Before you teach, use our teacher primer to freshen up on your content knowledge.
Students will learn the basics of World War I; the participants, the outcome, and the lasting impact.
World War I (the Great War) was the first major international conflict of the twentieth century. It was known as the most destructive and devastating war of its time, costing millions in dollars and lives.
Ask the students what they already know about World War I. Try to get students thinking about this: Why is learning about World War I important when introducing the Holocaust?
Walk students through the resource World War I by the US Holocaust Memorial Museum. Start off by going over the Key Facts at the top of the page to provide students with a feel for the topic. Read through the resource as a class.
You do not need to watch the video, Path to Nazi Genocide during this lesson as it is featured in the multimedia source for World War I. If time permits, you may choose to include it in this lesson.
Divide the class into groups of three or five to discuss the Critical Thinking Questions found at the bottom of the resource page. Ask groups to designate one person to write down their answers.
Reconvene as a class to go over the student’s answers. Have groups add to their answers with notes from the classroom discussion.
This lesson meets the following Academic Standards required by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.
Before you teach, use our teacher primer to freshen up on your content knowledge.
Students will go through resources on antisemitism in the early modern era as well as a resource on the Nazi book burning of 1933.
Antisemitism and oppression has plagued the Jewish people for centuries. In the early modern era, and continuing on into Nazi rule, the Jews were kept from working certain jobs and often looked at in a negative light.
Ask students what it means to be an oppressed group. Can you think of some groups throughout history that faced oppression?
Walk students through the resource, Antisemitism in History: The Early Modern Era, 1300-1800 by the United Stated Holocaust Memorial Museum.
Then ask your students, why do people generalize characteristics for an entire group? How can this be dangerous? Take a few minutes to discuss this as a class before moving on.
Next, pull up the resource, Book Burning by the USHMM Holocaust Encyclopedia and go over the Critical Thinking Questions at the bottom of the page.
In groups of five, ask students to consider the following question:
This lesson meets the following Academic Standards required by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.
Before you teach, use our teacher primer to freshen up on your content knowledge.
Explore the rise of Nazism in the early stages and see the road that allowed Adolf Hitler to climb the political ladder in Germany.
The rise of Nazism was aided by a depression that plagued Germany after the stock market crash of 1929, which left German citizens vulnerable to the rhetoric of a leader who promised to improve their lives.
Explain to students that Nazism became increasingly popular during the Great Depression and during a time of political crisis in Germany’s Weimar Republic. Ask your students to think critically about why they think this could be the case. What was it about the struggles of German life during this time that made the extremist views of the Nazis more appealing?
Print out the article by Facing History and Ourselves titled, Hitler in Power. Break people into small groups and have them read the page, underlining and making notes for each paragraph before moving on. After reading through, have students discuss the Connection Questions found at the bottom of the page.
After they go through the first resource, give them the resource, “Restoring” Germany’s Civil Service by Facing History and Ourselves. Let them do the same thing with this reading in their small groups. Have students go through the Connection Questions at the bottom of this page as well.
Devote approximately 15 minutes to each reading.
In an open discussion, ask students what they learned from going through the readings. What surprised them about the relationship between Adolf Hitler and President Paul von Hindenburg?
This lesson meets the following Academic Standards required by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.
Before you teach, use our teacher primer to freshen up on your content knowledge.
Students will read a short Anti-Defamation League article about antisemitism in the medieval period. They will then read, analyze, and present a short primary source detailing an act or written piece of antisemitism from the medieval period.
Anti-Jewish action and antisemitism was common in the Western world since the Classical era. As time passed, superstitions and suspicions about Jewish populations reinforced hatred and persecution that continues to affect Jewish populations today. The medieval period in particular saw violence toward, and persecution of, Jewish people – especially in Christian empires.
Ask students if they know what antisemitism is, and why it’s relevant today.
Read the sections of the article by the ADL on antisemitism throughout history titled “Islamic World” and “Medieval Christendom” as a class (a unit on antisemitism more broadly could use more of the article).
Lead a class discussion on the material. Ask students:
This lesson meets the following Academic Standards required by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.
Before you teach, use our teacher primer to freshen up on your content knowledge.
Explore the creation of the Nuremberg Race Laws and what the significance of their implementation into society meant for the future of Jews in Germany.
The Nuremberg Race Laws aimed to define race and provide the framework for the systematic persecution of Jews in Germany.
Explain to students that the Nuremberg Laws were the first official step in systematic persecution of Jews in Germany. Creating this definition was not an easy task, it took years for German officials to agree on what being Jewish meant. This initial step in identifying and separating Jews from society was essential to carry out the persecution that followed.
Take the students through the resource, Nuremberg Race Laws by the US Holocaust Memorial Museum. With a partner, ask the students to go through the resource and take notes using the 3Ps method, jotting down what they find a) Profound b) Puzzling and c) Propelling.
In order to familiarize yourself, and your class with this model, please look over this guide: 3Ps: A Critical Reading Guide.
Have the pairs partner up with another group to form groups of four. As they gather in these groups, provide them with the following instructions:
Give students 20 minutes to complete these tasks and use the last 10 minutes to hear what the groups came up with for their questions.
This lesson meets the following Academic Standards required by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.
Before you teach, use our teacher primer to freshen up on your content knowledge.
This lesson summarizes the events leading up to, the event of, and the aftermath of Kristallnacht.
The Jewish people were abandoned by most of their fellow citizens and by those meant to protect them. Because of this Kristallnacht was a watershed moment which further ignited Hitler and the Nazi party’s intent to destroy the Jews.
Ask students what they might already know about Kristallnacht.
For the younger grades, or if the students are newly being introduced to Holocaust education, include some additional information. For example, tell students the name “Kristallnacht” is translated as “Night of Crystal” but is often referred to as the “Night of Broken Glass.” Some may know this name more than the official one. If they are not sure, have them guess what it could be based on the name.
Direct students to the resource, Kristallnacht by the US Holocaust Memorial Museum. Read through the document as a class. Start with the three key facts at the top of the page so students understand the main points as they go through the reading.
In a class discussion, go over the following questions:
Divide the class into groups of three to five and ask them to answer these questions about the reading. Ask students to take notes on their answers.
If time permits, come together as a class to go over the answers the groups came up with.
This lesson meets the following Academic Standards required by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.
Before you teach, use our teacher primer to freshen up on your content knowledge.
Read a short text about the reality of life after the war in Displaced Person (DP) camps. Students will engage with the content by exploring a variety of questions about the post-war situation for Holocaust victims.
The process of rebuilding lives after the Holocaust was often long, painful, and arduous.
Lead a class discussion, asking students what they think of when they think of the word “home.” What does home mean to them?
Read the resource, Displaced Persons by Echoes & Reflections with the class, taking time to answer questions and clarify if necessary.
Take time to look at the statistics of Jewish DP’s in camps by 1946, pointing out that these were the majority of the survivors remaining in continental Europe from the population of about 10 million in 1933. Point out that many were forced to live in Displaced Person (DP) camps, often built within Nazi camp structures scattered across Europe.
Have students take 10-15 minutes to fill in their answers at the bottom of the resource they read by Echoes & Reflections. Once they finish, return as a class to go over their answers.
Lastly, return to the question of home. Has their idea of what home means changed from the start of the lesson?
This lesson meets the following Academic Standards required by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.
Before you teach, use our teacher primer to freshen up on your content knowledge.
Experience the vitality and power of a song written and sung by prisoners in the Dachau Concentration Camp in southern Germany by inviting your students to critically evaluate its lyrics.
Self-expression is a powerful mode of resistance.
Ask students how they define resistance. What does resistance look like and what form does it take? Ask them also if they would expect there to be much resistance in concentration camps. Why or why not?
Printable background and lyrics here.
Listen to the Dachau Song via the US Holocaust Memorial Museum website. Ask them to pay attention to the tone and tenor of the song while they read along with the lyrics that pop up on the screen (full screen is best for this).
When the song is finished, prompt students to provide their initial thoughts about the song. What did they notice? Does it remind them of anything? What is the overall feeling that the song generated for them?
Then, distribute the PDF of the lyrics and the background information.
Read through the background information about the song and clarify any of the details or language that the students might have trouble with.
Then, split the class into 5 groups and assign each one to a verse or the chorus.
In groups, ask each team to analyze the lyrics that they have been given, offering that they can reference a dictionary to look up words that are more difficult.
Prompt their analysis with some questions that will help better understand what life was like in Dachau:
Ask each group to offer their analysis of the song and, while they do, add unique answers to your ‘chalk’ board. Once each group has presented their section, ask the whole group for other observations about the song in its entirety. What else can they glean from their collective observations about life in Dachau?
Time permitting, return to the recorded version of the song once again. Ask students to pay close attention to the lyrics that they have on their page in addition to the overall feel of the tune. What else comes up in their minds as they take in the whole piece once more?
This lesson meets the following Academic Standards required by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.
Before you teach, use our teacher primer to freshen up on your content knowledge.