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Capturing Emotion from SurvivorsLoading...
A Collection of Middle School Students' Artwork and Poetry Inspired by Interviews of Holocaust Camp Survivors
Six Million
The traditional historical estimate of Jewish lives taken during the Holocaust is around six million. This figure does not account for the millions more killed in the Holocaust and the Second World War. It is difficult, seemingly impossible, to truly wrap one’s head around numbers such as these. Historians record statistics like death tolls and other facts, but they also do their best to give a human side to these numbers. Primary sources such as interviews, journals, images, and film can help students of the Holocaust better understand and connect to those who experienced these events.
Horrific events in history can be difficult to study in detail without engaging strong emotions. In the following project, students worked to capture the feelings of the individuals they studied, as well as their own, to better understand the Holocaust. It is through historical research and analysis of accounts like these which allow students to build empathy and make stronger connections to the lessons of history.
The Project
Students at Countryside School in Champaign, Illinois were tasked with watching three interview excerpts from Holocaust camp survivors. Students also had the opportunity to explore additional interviews and other primary sources. Students wrote down words and phrases which resonated with them from the interviews. Students then used the words and phrases they noted to write a poem about the Holocaust. Directions for style and format was open-ended. Students then went one step further to visualize their poetry with artwork. Many chose to use a combination of typographic and traditional drawing to illustrate their poetry. The result of the following students’ efforts was an incredibly powerful combination of poetry and imagery which helped capture some of the strong emotions these stories engender.
The traditional historical estimate of Jewish lives taken during the Holocaust is around six million. This figure does not account for the millions more killed in the Holocaust and the Second World War. It is difficult, seemingly impossible, to truly wrap one’s head around numbers such as these. Historians record statistics like death tolls and other facts, but they also do their best to give a human side to these numbers. Primary sources such as interviews, journals, images, and film can help students of the Holocaust better understand and connect to those who experienced these events.
Horrific events in history can be difficult to study in detail without engaging strong emotions. In the following project, students worked to capture the feelings of the individuals they studied, as well as their own, to better understand the Holocaust. It is through historical research and analysis of accounts like these which allow students to build empathy and make stronger connections to the lessons of history.
The Project
Students at Countryside School in Champaign, Illinois were tasked with watching three interview excerpts from Holocaust camp survivors. Students also had the opportunity to explore additional interviews and other primary sources. Students wrote down words and phrases which resonated with them from the interviews. Students then used the words and phrases they noted to write a poem about the Holocaust. Directions for style and format was open-ended. Students then went one step further to visualize their poetry with artwork. Many chose to use a combination of typographic and traditional drawing to illustrate their poetry. The result of the following students’ efforts was an incredibly powerful combination of poetry and imagery which helped capture some of the strong emotions these stories engender.
Before exploring this book, please take just a few minutes to watch these brief interview excerpts. The following poetry and artwork are based upon the artists' experiences with these stories.
Links to Interviews Used in Project:
Alice Lok Cahana, Helen Lebowitz Goldkind, and Leo Shneiderman share their experiences in concentration camps:
https://www.ushmm.org/exhibition/personal-history/theme.php?th=camps#content
Additional Oral History Excerpts from the Holocaust Memorial Museum Encyclopedia Collection:
https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/gallery/auschwitz-oral-history-excerpts
Alice Lok Cahana, Helen Lebowitz Goldkind, and Leo Shneiderman share their experiences in concentration camps:
https://www.ushmm.org/exhibition/personal-history/theme.php?th=camps#content
Additional Oral History Excerpts from the Holocaust Memorial Museum Encyclopedia Collection:
https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/gallery/auschwitz-oral-history-excerpts
Upstanders
Hitler can lead.
Nazis can follow.
Followers can kill.
Jews can hide.
Parents can try.
Children can cry.
The strong can work.
The weak can die.
The lucky can survive.
The unlucky can try.
And we can stay out of sight
or fight for what's right.
Hitler can lead.
Nazis can follow.
Followers can kill.
Jews can hide.
Parents can try.
Children can cry.
The strong can work.
The weak can die.
The lucky can survive.
The unlucky can try.
And we can stay out of sight
or fight for what's right.
William
The Death Camps
We arrived late at night
It was a terrible sight
Families separated
Left, right, left, right
There was a truck
Little children were struck
I was taken away
My mother whispered “good luck”
In a long line I walked
Right beside us, guards stalked
I tripped over something
A body- I gawked
They prodded me along
I had done no wrong
But there I was
I must be strong
I was shown my room
It was filled with gloom
Two others were there
We were close to our doom
We arrived late at night
It was a terrible sight
Families separated
Left, right, left, right
There was a truck
Little children were struck
I was taken away
My mother whispered “good luck”
In a long line I walked
Right beside us, guards stalked
I tripped over something
A body- I gawked
They prodded me along
I had done no wrong
But there I was
I must be strong
I was shown my room
It was filled with gloom
Two others were there
We were close to our doom
Emily
