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The Holocaust Education Program Resource Guide
The materials contained on
this page are reproduced with the permission of the Virginia War Museum.
This resource guide is presented
in its entirety. A free paper copy can be requested from the:
Virginia War Museum
9285 Warwick Bouldevard
Newport News, Virginia 23607
... The study
provides an educational experience through which students can develop
an
understanding of how the holocaust emerged from a progression of events.
It also provides a basis from which students can draw conclusions about
what society can learn from these events and how they relate to current
events.
This booklet is designed to provide teachers with information and suggested
activities that will help students participating in the Holocaust Education
Program obtain the most from their program. It is divided into background
information and pre- and post-visit activities. The information provided
has been developed to support the program lecture while providing a vehicle
to assist the teacher in student preparation. Post-visit activities have
been designed to provide additional information sources and suggestions
for teacher-led exercises. ...
Dear Educator:
Before you begin the task of either teaching your students the history of the Holocaust or preparing for this program, you may want to ask yourself one simple question: Why teach Holocaust history? Is it simply to expose students to this event, or should you go beyond the facts and connect the Holocaust to other world events as well as the world they live in today?
The history of the Holocaust represents a very
effective subject for the examination of basic moral issues. The Holocaust
is a study in human behavior and citizenship. Through a study of the Holocaust,
students can learn the value of democratic institutions and the need to
nurture and protect them. Students can come to realize that silence and
indifference to the suffering of others, or to the infringement of civil
rights in any society, can — however unintentionally — serve
to perpetuate the problems. Why should students learn this history? A
study of the Holocaust helps students gain insight to many historical,
social, religious, political, and economic factors which cumulatively
resulted in the Holocaust. They gain a perspective on how history happens
and how a convergence of factors can contribute to the disintegration
of civilized values. Part of one’s responsibility as a citizen in
a democracy is to learn to identify the danger signals, and know when
to react.
- The Holocaust was a watershed event, not only in the 20th century, but in the entire history of humanity.
- The study of the Holocaust assists students in developing understanding of the ramifications of prejudice, racism, and stereotyping in any society.
- The Holocaust demonstrates how a modern nation can utilize its technological expertise and bureaucratic infrastructure to implement destructive policies ranging from social engineering to genocide.
- A study of the Holocaust helps students think about the use and abuse of power, and the roles and responsibilities of individuals, organizations, and nations when confronted with civil rights violations.
Table of Contents
The Holocaust Education Center at the War Memorial Museum is sponsored by the Hampton Roads Section of the National Council of Jewish Women. The mission of this study is to generate an understanding of how destructive prejudice and intolerance can be in society by studying World War II and the events of the Holocaust.
The study provides an educational experience through which students can develop an understanding of how the holocaust emerged from a progression of events. It also provides a basis from which students can draw conclusions about what society can learn from these events and how they relate to current events.
This booklet is designed to provide teachers with information and suggested activities that will help students participating in the Holocaust Education Program obtain the most from their program. It is divided into background information and pre- and post-visit activities. The information provided has been developed to support the program lecture while providing a vehicle to assist the teacher in student preparation. Post-visit activities have been designed to provide additional information sources and suggestions for teacher-led exercises.
The museum-based program consists of a guided tour, lecture, and role play activity. The guided tour will visit the Falsehoods in War, America at War, and Axis galleries. The lecture will provide an introduction, followed by an examination of Nazi symbolism, Adolph Hitler, the rise of the Nazi party, and the persecution of the Jews. The role play activity will entail a student participation exercise that emphasizes the selection process, concentration camp processing, special treatment, and camp existence. A conclusion will relate the study of the Holocaust to today A video will be shown to support the lecture material. Talks by local residents about their experiences in the Holocaust are available by special arrangement.
The in-school presentation includes the same components as the Museum session without the gallery tours and personal testimony. The program can contain a combination of any or all of the offered components, depending on the time available.
1. To identify the economic, political, and social environment that allowed the Nazi party to assume control of Germany and create a repressive, militaristic society which led to World War II.
2. To examine the concepts of Hitler’s Final Solution and the methods by which the Nazi government carried out its goals of world conquest and genocide.
3. To teach the dangers of prejudice,
intolerance, militarism, and totalitarianism.