From the prejudice and discrimination that fueled the Holocaust, to the well-known and inspiring stories of courage, bravery, and heroism born out of such a harrowing event in history, these resources will not only help your students better understand one of the toughest topics they’ll study during the course of their academic career, but will also encourage them to reflect upon the impact the Holocaust had on humanity and what can be done to ensure a tragedy of this scale never happens again.

Prisoner B-3087: Writing Prompts and Activities to Spark Student Reflection

Prisoner B-3087 is an inspiring story that will help students foster a deeper connection to what they already know about the Holocaust. These writing prompts and activities will encourage students to consider history and geography by tracing Yanek’s route and researching survivors of the Holocaust. These prompts are also a great tool for sparking thoughtful and passionate classroom discussion and individual writing.

The Holocaust Reader

Featuring interviews with survivors and accounts from perpetrators and bystanders, these texts give teachers everything they need to cover such a tough and complex topic. Your students can use its illustrated maps and engaging infographics, as well as learn important vocabulary and key terms, to study and reflect upon the atrocities committed in the name of hate. By learning about this tragic and historic event, your students may even be inspired to study other genocides that have occurred throughout the world and look for ways that young people, just like themselves, are battling hate and working to ensure such an atrocity never occurs again.

Number the Stars: 5 Writing and Discussion Prompts to Increase Reading Comprehension

Number the Stars is another famous book that engages young readers and helps them connect to and reflect upon the experiences of those who endured the Holocaust. To help students better comprehend the Holocaust and the sophisticated themes present in Number the Stars, these 5 writing and discussion prompts encourage students to draw conclusions from their reading, synthesize ideas, make predictions, and think critically to effectively communicate their thoughts in writing and through discussion.

Refugee: 12 Discussion and Writing Prompts

Refugee is another important book that details the struggle of one young Jewish boy in 1930s Germany, as well as two other stories surrounding immigration. The stories the book details introduce students to the harsh realities of war and economic crisis that motivate so many to leave the places they call home and seek safety and security elsewhere. These 12 discussion and writing prompts will not only help students better understand the text, but will also help them connect with contemporary stories of immigration in a different, more nuanced way.