Teaching Kits

Factsheets on Roma History.
Council of Europe. Project Education of Roma Children in Europe.
http://www.coe.int/t/dg4/education/roma/histoCulture_en.asp

These factsheets deal with the Roma, a European nation with Indian roots. The Indian origin and affiliation of the Roma is most obvious linguistically, by the language still spoken by many members of this heterogeneous ethnicity. The Roma consist of various groups, which are labelled with different ethnonymes – self designations as well as external designations: Arlije, Calé, Gurbet, Kaale, Kalderaš, Lovara, Manuš, Sepečides, Sinti, Ursari, etc.; many groups also use the self-designation Roma. Usually all these groups are summarised – sometimes even together with population groups of non Indian origin – by the pejorative denomination “Gypsies”, which – out of descriptive reasons and without negative connotations – is sometimes also used in the factsheets.

The Footprints for Hope Project
http://www.un.org/holocaustremembrance/educational_footprints.shtml

The Footprints for Hope Project is a new initiative designed to bring the United Nations information centres and local schools together to involve students aged 13 years and older in the study of the Holocaust. The educational materials include a lesson plan, a power point presentation and a film that centre around one of the most painful graphic images from the Holocaust, the shoes of the victims who perished in Nazi death camps. Following this lesson, the students will draw inspiration for a more hopeful future by creating colourful art out of used footwear.  The aim of this activity is to further the students’ understanding of the Holocaust and encourage respect for human rights and the dignity and worth of every person.

Hana’s Suitcase
http://www.mhmc.ca/en/pages/in-the-classroom
French version - La valise d'Hana : http://www.mhmc.ca/fr/pages/en-classe

This educational kit – available in English and French - published by the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre include the book, Hana's Suitcase, written by Karen Levine, a teachers' guide produced by the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre, and a CBC television documentary about the story.
Hana's Suitcase is an award-winning book that tells the story of one woman's search through history to find out what happened to Hana, a Jewish girl who was killed in the concentration camp Auschwitz Birkenau at age 13.
The search began in March 2000 with the arrival of a child's suitcase from Auschwitz at the Tokyo Holocaust Education Resource Centre with a painted inscription on the side: a name, Hana Brady, a birthdate and the word "Waisenkind" (orphan). Spurred on by the children at the Centre, the curator embarked on a relentless search from Tokyo to Prague to Toronto to uncover the story of Hana and her fate at the hands of the Nazis.

One Survivor Remembers:  A Teaching Kit for Grades 8-12
http://www.tolerance.org/kit/one-survivor-remembers

"One Survivor Remembers" tells the unforgettable story of Gerda Weissmann Klein's six-year ordeal as a victim of Nazi cruelty. Klein describes her years in Nazi labor camps and months on a forced death march. Though her experience was horrifying, Klein also remembers wonderful acts of decency and normalcy — testaments to the greatness of humanity. This teaching kit sheds light on the 20th century's terrible history of devastation and prejudice, yet offers hope that hatred can be overcome. It includes:

• A 40-minute Oscar-winning documentary film by Kary Antholis (DVD);
• A collection of primary documents, drawn from Klein's personal collection;
• A resource booklet including a Holocaust timeline; and
• A teacher's guide with standards-based lesson plans.

Stand Up, Speak Out, Lend a Hand! inTime Magazine.
Gerda and Kurt Klein Foundation. 2007. 8 p.
http://www.kleinfoundation.org/programs/inTime/
InTime2007.pdf

Further information: http://www.kleinfoundation.org/programs/inTime/default.asp

Teaching Materials on the History of Jews and Anti-Semitism in Europe
Published by OSCE/ODHIR, Anne Frank House & Vilnius Yiddish Institute. April 2007.
Part 1: Anti-Semitism in Europe up to 1945
Part 2: Anti-Semitism: a never-ending struggle?
Part 3: Prejudices. You too?
http://www.osce.org/odihr/
item_11_23875.html

These teaching materials were developed by the ODIHR and the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam, in co-operation with experts from seven pilot countries. While each of the pilot countries has developed its own three-part package of materials in its respective national language, the ODIHR is providing here a translation of each of the parts - Part 1 of the Lithuanian version, Part 2 of the Polish version, and Part 3 of the Dutch version - as a sample for other countries that may be interested in adapting the materials for their own national context.
The materials were designed to provide schools and teachers with flexibility in terms of where to place such subject matter in their curriculum: they could fit easily into such subjects as History, Religious Studies, Literature, Social Studies, or be used on an interdisciplinary basis.

Further information

Why teach about the Holocaust?
UNESCO brochure. 2013. 20 p.
http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0021/002186/218631E.pdf

UNRIC Library Backgrounder: Information on Genocide
(PDF - English or French)

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