1. How does the dehumanization of a group of people in a society occur?
2. What are the differences between responsibility and complicity?
3. How did different motivations impact the persecution and outcome for different victim groups? Why and how did people participate or become complicit in these crimes?
4. How did the Nazis isolate and dehumanize people in the ghettos and camps?
5. How do the Jews become the primary victims of the ghettoization process?
6. How do individuals and groups find ways to resist and maintain their humanity in the face of violence and inhumanity?
7. Why is it important to study the stories of individuals within the context of mass atrocity?

1. The Holocaust was a continent-wide genocide that targeted not only individuals but entire communities and cultures
2. The Holocaust was an evolutionary process; extermination plans evolved in stages 
3. There were numerous victim groups that were targeted for Nazi persecution and mass murder
4. Nazi policy toward Jews changed throughout the Holocaust, from pressure to leave, to forced isolation, and lastly to extermination
5. Targeted groups sought ways to maintain their dignity and previous ways of life
6. Individuals imprisoned in the ghettos and camps resisted spiritually and physically as they attempted to maintain their sense of humanity
7. It is not possible for us to fully understand the experiences of those who were victimized by the Nazis

Non-fiction:

1. Four Perfect Pebbles by Marion Blumenthal Lazan (2016) Four Perfect Pebbles Teacher’s Guide 
2. It Rained Warm Bread by Gloria Moskowitz-Sweet and Hope Anita Smith (2021)
3. The Boy on the Wooden Box: How the Impossible Became Possible on Schindler’s List by Leon Lyeson (2015)
4. A Light in the Darkness: Janusz Korczak, His Orphans, and the Holocaust by Albert Marrin (2021)
5. Hana’s Suitcase by Karen Levine (2007) Hana’s Suitcase Teaching Materials from the Montreal Holocaust Museum 
6. Irena’s Children: Young Readers Edition by Tilar J. Mazzeo (2017)
7. I Never Saw Another Butterfly: Children's Drawings and Poems from the Terezin Concentration Camp, 1942-1944 edited by Hana Volavkova (1994)
8. Salvaged Pages: Young Writers’ Diaries of the Holocaust edited by Alexandra Zapruder (2015) Salvaged Pages Lesson Finding Aid

Fiction:

1. 28 Days: A Novel of Resistance in the Warsaw Ghetto by David Safier (2020) 28 Days: A Novel of Resistance in the Warsaw Ghetto Discussion Guide
2. Resistance  by Jennifer A. Nielsen (2021)
3. What the Night Sings by Vesper Stamper (2018) What the Night Sings Discussion Guide
4. Mapping the Bones by Jane Yolen (2019)
5. Prisoner B-3087 by Alan Gratz (2013)
6. The Harmonica by Tony Johnston (2008)
7. Irena’s Jars of Secrets by Marcia Vaughn (2015)

1. “Life in the Ghettos”  An adaptable lesson from the Museum of Jewish Heritage examining life in the ghetto through primary sources, including photographs and diary entries of Jewish children and teenagers who lived in the ghettos.  
2. “The Ghettos” An adaptable lesson from Echoes and Reflections using primary source material to learn about the ghettos, investigate the conditions in ghettos, and that despite the immense suffering, Jews still did their utmost to conduct their lives and retain their dignity. 
3. “Children in the Ghetto Interactive Learning Environment” A lesson from Yad Vashem for grades 4-6 that deals with children's lives in the ghettos during the Holocaust period and describes life during the Holocaust from the perspective of children living in the ghettos. 
4. “Creative Expression in the Ghetto in Petr Ginz’s Diary” An adaptable lesson from Facing History and Ourselves exploring artwork and writings created in the ghetto to analyze the value of creative expression as a means to cope with oppression.
5. Cultural Acts as Resilience During the Holocaust -An iWitness lesson for grades 6-8 allowing students to gain an understanding of the role of culture during the Holocaust through survivor testimony.
6. “Art in the Face of Death” A adaptable lesson from iWitness evaluating visual art, poetry, and music created from Auschwitz to develop understanding of the day-to-day life in the camp system.

1. Word Wall - to define key terms related to understanding prejudice and discrimination
2. Create a found poem - a strategy best used with diaries or memoirs
3. Create an identity chart - a strategy to analyze the characteristics of individuals by creating an identity chart
4. Analyze Images - Use images in the text to provide deeper understanding and encourage meaningful conversation
5. KWL Charts - helps students identify previous knowledge and create inquiry based questions
6. “Holocaust Timeline Activity” A USHMM lesson adaptable for grades 7-8 analyzes a multi-layered timeline that encourages critical thinking about the relationship between Nazi policy, World War II, historical events, and individual experiences during the Holocaust.
7. The Butterfly Project Lesson Plan on I Never Saw Another Butterfly from the Holocaust Museum Houston
8. Watch the 2019 film Who Will Write Our History? which tells the extraordinary story of the Oyneg Shabes, a clandestine organization composed of sixty Jewish leaders, artists, and intellectuals living in the Warsaw ghetto during the Nazi German occupation of Poland.
9. Investigate artifacts through use of the United States Holocaust Museum Curators Corner video series
   1. Letters to Lodz: The Zineski Collection 
   2. Pages from a Work in Progress: The Primo Levi Collection 
   3. The Fake Diamond Ring that Helped Save Three Lives 
   4. "I Have to Write Everything Down": The Diaries of Selma and Chaim Engel 
   5. Testimonies of Survival: Diaries from a Slave Labor Camp 
   6. Surviving Theresienstadt: The Michael Gruenbaum Collection
   7. Art in Exile: The Leo Yeni Collection
10. Mutual Assistance Within the Ghetto Wall -A Yad Vashem lesson for grades 7-8 highlighting some of the organizations that were established to coordinate social welfare activities in the ghettos
11. “The ‘Final Solution’” An adaptable lesson from Echoes and Reflections looking at the “Final Solution of the Jewish Question” and how Jews attempted to maintain their humanity in the camps. (Echoes and Reflections)

1. Universal Declaration of Human Rights - Student Friendly Version
2. Teaching Salvaged Pages: Young Writers' Diaries of the Holocaust teaching guide from Facing History and Ourselves
3. Interactive Timeline of the Holocaust - Timeline from Yad Vashem featuring the progression of the Holocaust, accompanied by videos, which can be presented in the classroom or assigned to students along with guiding questions
4. iWitness - provides access to more than 1,500 full life histories, testimonies of survivors and witnesses to the Holocaust and other genocides for guided exploration 
5. Zachor Holocaust Commission -a free resource and interactive teaching tool that focuses on the Eastern European section of World War II. The unique curriculum includes stimulating lesson plans, videos, and historical interactive timeline that will provide a lasting impact on participants.
6. History Unfolded - USHMM project that looks at what was possible for Americans to have known about the Holocaust as it was happening and how Americans responded. 
7. The Holocaust: History and Memory Take A Virtual Field Trip through the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
8. USHMM Holocaust Encyclopedia
9. “The Ghettos” Yad Vashem Educator Resource Video Toolbox 
10. The Lodz Ghetto Photographs of Henryk Ross: A Collection of Holocaust Photographs- Facing History and Ourselves
11. “Let the world read and know - The Oneg Shabbat Archive” Online Exhibition - Yad Vashem
12. The Nazi Concentration Camps -University of London 

“The Auschwitz Album” Online Exhibition - Yad Vashem

Correlating New Jersey Student Learning Standards:

• English Language Arts
• Social Studies
• Comprehensive Health & Physical Education
• Career Readiness, Life Literacies and Key Skills

Supporting Legislative Mandates:

•  Diversity and Inclusion Law (N.J.S.A. 18A:35-4.36a)
•  LGBT & Individual with Disabilities Law (N.J.S.A. 18A:35-4.35-6)
•  Holocaust & Genocide Instruction (N.J.S.A. 18A:35-28)

English Language Arts

RH.6-8.1. Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources. 

RH.6-8.2. Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.

RH.6-8.4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including vocabulary specific to domains related to history/social studies. 

RH.6-8.5. Describe how a text presents information (e.g., sequentially, comparatively, causally). 

RH.6-8.6. Identify aspects of a text that reveal an author's point of view or purpose (e.g., loaded language, inclusion or avoidance of particular facts).

RH.6-8.7. Integrate visual information (e.g., in charts, graphs, photographs, videos, or maps) with other information in print and digital texts. 

RH.6-8.8. Distinguish among fact, opinion, and reasoned judgment in a text. 

RH.6-8.9. Analyze the relationship between a primary and secondary source on the same topic.

RH.6-8.10. By the end of grade 8, read and comprehend history/social studies texts in the grades 6-8 text complexity band independently and proficiently.

Social Studies

6.1.5.CivicsDP.2: Compare and contrast responses of individuals and groups, past and present, to violations of fundamental rights (e.g., fairness, civil rights, human rights).

6.1.5.CivicsPD.3: Explain how and why it is important that people from diverse cultures collaborate to find solutions to community, state, national, and global challenges.

6.1.5.HistoryUP.6: Evaluate the impact of different interpretations of experiences and events by people with different cultural or individual perspectives.

6.1.5.HistoryUP.7: Describe why it is important to understand the perspectives of other cultures in an interconnected world.

6.1.5.CivicsHR.4: Identify actions that are unfair or discriminatory, such as bullying, and propose solutions to address such actions.

6.1.12.HistoryUP.11.b*: Compare the varying perspectives of victims, survivors, bystanders, rescuers, and perpetrators during the Holocaust.

6.2.12.CivicsPI.4.b*: Assess government responses to incidents of ethnic cleansing and genocide.

6.2.12.CivicsHR.4.a*: Analyze the motivations, causes, and consequences of the genocides of Armenians, Ukrainians, Jews in the Holocaust and assess the responses by individuals, groups, and governments and analyze large-scale atrocities including 20th century massacres in China.

6.2.12.HistoryCC.4.g*: Use a variety of resources from different perspectives to analyze the role of racial bias, nationalism, and propaganda in mobilizing civilian populations in support of “total war.”

6.2.12.HistoryUP.4.c*: Compare and contrast the actions of individuals as perpetrators, bystanders, and rescuers during events of persecution or genocide, and describe the long-term consequences of genocide for all involved.

*By end of grade 12 performance expectations may be taught in the middle grades.

Comprehensive Health & Physical Education

2.1.5.SSH.3: Demonstrate ways to promote dignity and respect for all people (e.g. sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, race, ethnicity, socio-economic status, differing ability, immigration status, family configuration).

2.1.5.SSH.7: Define teasing, harassment and bullying and provide examples of inappropriate behaviors that are harmful to others.

2.3.5.PS.5: Communicate personal boundaries and demonstrate ways to respect other people’s personal boundaries.

2.3.5.PS.6: Identify strategies a person could use to call attention to or leave an uncomfortable or dangerous situation, including bullying, teasing, teen dating violence, sexual harassment, sexual assault, and sexual abuse.

2.1.8.EH.1: Compare and contrast stress management strategies that are used to address various types of stress-induced situations (e.g., academics, family, personal relationships, finances, celebrations, violence).

2.1.8.EH.2: Analyze how personal attributes, resiliency, and protective factors support mental and emotional health.   

2.1.8.SSH.3:  Demonstrate communication skills that will support healthy relationships  

2.1.8.SSH.4: Compare and contrast the characteristics of healthy and unhealthy relationships. 

2.1.8.SSH.6: Examine how culture influences the way families cope with traumatic situations, crisis, and change. 

2.1.8.CHSS.8: Analyze difficult situations that might lead to feelings of sadness, anxiety and or depression and identify individuals, agencies or places in the community where assistance may be available.  

Career Readiness, Life Literacies and Key Skills

9.4.5.GCA.1: Analyze how culture shapes individual and community perspectives and points of view.