By: Cathy Blake
Yeokum Middle School
Belton, Missouri
Gay Ramsey
Trailridge Middle School
Shawnee Mission, Kansas
Barbara Waldron
Trailridge Middle School
Shawnee Mission, Kansas
Introduction
The purpose of this guide is to help teachers create meaningful learning experiences for students reading Surviving Hitler: A Boy in the Nazi Death Camps. Andrea Warren's award-winning book is most appropriate for grades five through eight. This biography can be used as an introduction to Holocaust studies or as enrichment to a Holocaust unit.
Surviving Hitler teaches students why, how, what, when, and where the Holocaust took place. Through the experiences of a young Polish boy named Jack Mandelbaum, Surviving Hitler explores concepts such as prejudice, discrimination, stereotyping, racism, antisemitism, obedience to authority, the bystander syndrome, loyalty, conflict, conflict resolution, decision-making, humor in the face of adversity, peer pressure, individual responsibility, and justice. (Many of these themes appear in Teaching and Studying the Holocaust by Samuel Totten and Stephen Feinberg.)
Andrea Warren, author of Surviving Hitler, notes that this unit is "wonderful - well thought out and amazingly comprehensive. I'm delighted teachers will have this resource."
Introductory Materials to the Unit
Table of Contents
Rationale
Education Standards
Pretest
Overview: Surviving Hitler: A Boy in the Nazi Death Camps
Awards
Jack Mandelbaum - Brief Biography
Glossary
Lesson Plans
Vocabulary Activity
Comprehension Questions
Jack's Timeline
Map Activity
Possible Journal Topics
Timeline Activity for Classroom
Identity Maps
Book in a Box Activity
Teachers may request answer keys to these lessons by emailing schools@mchekc.org with your name and full school contact information. Please indicate that you are interested in the answer keys for the Surviving Hitler curriculum.
Researching the Children of the Holocaust: a Webquest based on
Surviving Hitler: A Boy in the Nazi Death Camps
Download the Entire Lesson
Researching the Children
Evaluation
Conclusion
Teacher's Page
Additional Information
Enrichment Ideas
Alternative Assessment Ideas
Post Test
Letter to future generations from Jack Mandelbaum
Holocaust and World War II Timeline
About the Author
Additional Resources
Acknowledgments
This teaching unit was designed by members of the Isak Federman Holocaust Teaching Cadre through MCHE's Masters and Mentors Program.
The Masters and Mentors Program is funded by the H&R Block Foundation, Bertha S. and Ida E. Adelson Memorial Fund, the Legacy Fund, and the Flo Harris Supporting Foundation of the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Kansas City, the Jewish Heritage Foundation of Greater Kansas City, and the Oppenstein Brothers Foundation.
