Ask students to define propaganda as they understand it. Explore the similarities and differences between what each individual understands and then compare the class definition to the one provided by Echoes & Reflections: “False or partly false information intended to shape people’s opinion and action that fulfills the propagandist’s intent.”

Direct students to the resource “Heil Hitler!”: Lessons of Daily Life by Facing History and Ourselves. Have students read the excerpt from Erika Mann and prep their reading with the following prompts; encourage them to highlight or underline sections of the story that help answer these questions:

1. Reflect on how the definition of propaganda is demonstrated in this story.
2. What means were used to distribute the message in Nazi Germany?
3. Why was it so effective?

Divide the class into groups of three to five. Ask the students to think about messages that they hear today.

First, as a group, they should write down as many messages as they can think of that they hear echoing in their world. These may come from advertisements, from their life in their town, from school, etc.

Then, ask them to consider whether the messages they hear or see are propaganda by answering the following questions:

1. What is the intention behind these messages that you hear regularly?
2. Do the messages you hear today fit the definition of propaganda?
3. Do the messages you hear today seem to have a similar impact on you that the messages Erika Mann heard seemed to have on her and her peers?
4. Do you think there is an opportunity for people to spread propaganda in today’s society?
5. If so, how can we prevent being influenced by these messages?

Ask students to define propaganda. Discuss ways that propaganda is used today.

Go to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s online exhibit about propaganda.

Explore the different timeline sections and look through the themes. Choose one or more to explore with your students. Read through some of the subsections under these themes and click through the attached propaganda associated with it.

For example, if you click on the ‘1918-1933: Democracy‘ section and read the introduction and the subsection, ‘Hitler and Nazi Propaganda.’ Then scroll down to the subsection titled, ‘Creating a Public Image‘ and read and look through the images connected to it.

Divide the students into groups of 3 – 4 students Provide each with a current print advertisement or political ad. They can focus on these questions to present and discuss:

1. Who is the target audience?
2. What is their message?
3. How is it conveyed through images and words?
4. How effective is this message?

Come back together as a class and ask students: How do these messages shape a person’s perspective? How does this help to explain the effectiveness of Nazi propaganda?

Ask students what they already know about propaganda. What is it? What purpose does it serve? How is it similar and different from other efforts to persuade people?

Watch the 6 minute video – The Power of Nazi Propaganda with students. Replay the video if necessary
While they watch the movie, have students answer the following questions:

1. What was the logic behind using red in so much of Nazi propaganda?
2. How were the Jews portrayed in Nazi propaganda?
3. Hitler believed that the spoken word, rather than the written word, was responsible for all the great events in history. How did his public speaking feed into this?

Divide the class into groups of three to five to discuss the questions below. Have one person in the group be responsible for taking notes and writing down their answers. Pull up the images of Nazi propaganda below for the groups to look over while in their groups. These images come from the US Holocaust Memorial Museum.

• “He Bears the Guilt for the War!”
• “The Poisonous Mushroom”
• “The German Student”

1. Why did the Nazis use propaganda to advance their political aims?
2. Where do you find propaganda in your life today? Consider advertising, political messaging, and other examples.
3. When does propaganda become dangerous?
4. What is the best weapon against being manipulated?
5. How do you think learning about Nazi propaganda can help us today?

If time permits, reconvene as a class to go over the answers the groups came up with. Have students add to their notes with responses from their classmates.