Using Maus to reach the reluctant reader

Art Spiegelman’s graphic novel Maus is so much more than a comic book. This piece of literature by a prize winning artist is another incredible entry into Holocaust memoirs. The author recreates his relationship with his father in a graphic format to share the story of a survivor in a truly unique fashion. Elie Wiesel’s Night is a powerful and deeply moving book, and yet students shy away from the imagery at times, simply too lazy to read. Primo Levi’s works haven’t been on a “To Read List” for a while. To reach those students that we lose with words, Spiegelman offers an incredibly powerful tool, from a very personal perspective. One can only imagine that this piece was created as much as an elegy to his parents.

Spiegelman grew up in the United States, as the child of Holocaust survivors. There are two books in the series. The first is subtitled “My Father Bleeds History,” beginning with a contemporary scene of a grown Art visiting his father and stepmother (his mother has committed suicide, and so his father remarries another survivor). The author asks his father why he remarried if all he does is argues with the new wife. This opens the door to a conversation about the shared experiences and the time father spent with mother. Book one ends with the protagonists entering Auschwitz.

Book two, “And Here My Troubles Began” picks up where book one left off. The different groups involved in Auschwitz camp life are shown not by the color of theiruniforms, but in the artist’s interpretation: the Germans are portrayed as cats, the Poles at are dogs, and the Jews are portrayed as mice, which gives meaning to the title. Book two is the exploration of the experience of Spiegelman’s parents in the camps and through the early post war period as told through his father’s eyes.

What makes this book so powerful is that the author does not pull punches. The story begins with a discussion of the relationship between father and son, and the son’s attempt to understand his father’s behavior. By the end of the second book, the reader is left with a sense of catharsis, the story has been brought full circle. The soul bearing by both the author and the father are incredible. The piece works on many levels. For reluctant readers, the pictures fill in what one might miss in the words of another story. But the power is not lost in the drawings. The drawings carry the story along, carrying such power in an innocuous drawing.

Given the time constraints, the growing curricular demands, and the topical current events, Spiegelman’s work proves even more important. A quick read, the story carries the psychological weight of typical novels. I have used the story to look at Post Traumatic Stress Disorder exhibited in different pieces of literature (see Tim O’Brien and Kurt Vonnegut’s work for beginners). The story can be used as a launching pad in sociology as an opening for cultural norms, genocide studies, familial relations, or interpersonal relations. American/World History teachers can use the piece to teach the Holocaust, or to get a discussion going on the lesser discussed sides of war and its effects on survivors and their children. Literature teachers could easily find many uses. The book is available from Scholastic, and is recommended for middle school and above.

Resources:
Maus Teaching Resources
Art and Vladek Speigelman on NPR
Introduction to the Graphic Novel Maus Lesson Plan by USHMM Teacher Fellow
Reading Questions and Resources for Maus
Using The Complete Maus Lesson Plan by USHMM Teacher Fellow
Art Spiegelman's Maus: A Different Kind of Holocaust Literature

No "buts" about it...

I heard a wonderful talk at church last month given by a colleague from my school district. I have always admired her gentle spirit and concern for others. Her message centered around the skepticism that she had encountered about a missions trip to Costa Rica. She heard various “But” comments about her trip and she had formulated a great message in response. Comments such as “BUT why don’t you just send that money to Costa Rica” or “BUT why don’t you use that money for local food pantries?”. She went on to eloquently explain that she likes to look at the benefit she gained from experiencing the hands on work of actually helping AND she made incredible relationships. AND she has helped at local food pantries AND will continue to help verses focusing on the “buts”. This really hit home with me in regards to several situations that I have encountered throughout my life, namely with my passion for Holocaust education. I have often encountered questions such as “BUT why do you study that depressing subject?” or “BUT what about learning more about our own domestic atrocities?” or, as far as expanding the Holocaust to its own semester course, “BUT is that relevant for today’s students? Is it practical? You should include other genocides as well.” These are just a few of the “BUTS” that I have responded to in various manners. After hearing my friend’s message, I feel I have an even better response to share. I hope that this will help those of you who have encountered “BUTS” or who have fought hard to justify time for Holocaust education in your classroom, school or simply your passion to learn more about the Holocaust.

Teaching the lessons of the Holocaust benefits young (actually all ages but since this is to support Holocaust education at the secondary level, I’ll leave it as is) adults in a multitude of ways. The Holocaust is an important history with lessons that extend far beyond the actual events that occurred. The actual events themselves are frightening. The Holocaust occurred in a cultured, modern society. Educated businessmen, bureaucrats, politicians and physicians knowingly placed themselves in positions to contribute to state sanctioned murder and as a result millions perished. This is not worthy of our time? Are you kidding me? The real danger is if we do not find or make the time to share this with our young adults. Share with them the truth. Honor those who perished by paying tribute to their memory. Personalize it with the amazing stories of Holocaust survivors….what a great way to add to their lessons of forgiveness.

Regardless if it is examining the impact of post World War I recovery (great for an economics lesson), Hitler’s rise to power (great for World history, Psychology, and Sociology), or debating how legislation such as the Nuremberg Laws were enacted (great for Government classes), the Holocaust effortlessly fits most current day Social Studies curriculums. Beyond easily tying the Holocaust to local, state and even NCSS standards, it more importantly provides a vast venue to explore moral and ethical issues. Universal lessons of valuing human life, tolerance and justice (or in this case the lack there of) are the best cases to teach the need for character education than any curriculum I have been presented with thus far. Teaching our young adults to treasure and act on the freedoms guaranteed by our democratic society are only strengthened when reading about the dangers of the Nazi totalitarian regime with its lack of personal liberties.

Teaching the history of the Holocaust illustrates to students the danger of apathy, the need to stay abreast of current events as well as making your voice heard - that one person can make a difference. The Holocaust exemplifies the gamut of human character, from the most heroic and selfless acts of resistance and rescue to the inhumanity of how leaders, educated politicians and bureaucrats, doctors, etc, were able to create a system of mass murder. No other subject can broaden a student’s perspective and horizons like the study of the Holocaust.

 

There are ‘no buts about it’. The Holocaust is an excellent history to teach the importance of tolerance AND combating prejudice as well as discrimination which applies to modern day domestic and foreign issues. AND it is an excellent study to establish a framework to examine modern day genocides such as Rwanda and Darfur. AND there exist numerous Holocaust related memoirs, novels, poems, artwork and other documents that trump any coverage a textbook could provide. AND it provides a great framework for examining other genocides. AND the list goes on…..

Echoes and Reflections

I am currently teaching the Holocaust in my 8^th grade Literature class. I am using the Echoes and Reflections curriculum with my students. This program is divided into ten lessons. Each lesson provides a historical context for the topic as well as survivor testimony and primary source material.

My students have finished the lessons on studying the Holocaust and antisemitism. They are now learning about Nazi Germany. This program offers them an opportunity to analyze photographs and propaganda material. I conclude each unit with a test over the material and an ending project.

In addition to Echoes and Reflections, my students also read a variety of Holocaust literature. Within their literature circle groups, they are reading The Diary of Anne Frank, A Coming Evil, the Boy Who Dared, Behind the Bedroom Wall, Torn Thread, Play to the Angels, Someone Named Eva, Yellow Star, I Have Lived a Thousand Years and All But My Life.

As a class they will be reading Surviving Hitler by Andrea Warren. This memoir chronicles the experiences of local Holocaust survivor Jack Mandelbaum during his adolescent years in World War II Europe. There is an excellent teaching guide for this book on the MCHE website.

Since my class has not yet finished the unit on the Holocaust, I will be updating you as they work through the remaining lessons and the concluding activities and projects.

Note: The Echoes and Reflections curriculum was jointly produced by Yad Vashem, the USC Shoah Foundation Institute and the Anti-Defamation League. It is a comprehensive curriculum based on primary source material and survivor testimony. Copies of the curriculum are available for free loan from the MCHE Resource Center. Online components of the curriculum can be accessed by clicking the link below.

Resources:
Echoes and Reflections online
Jack Mandelbaum's recorded testimony is available at the MCHE Resource Center

How to teach a quality Holocaust unit in a high school AP course

Six years ago I began teaching AP European History in my high school instead of the regular World History class. I was excited about the challenge but also concerned about how much material I was expected to teach in such a short period of time. As a World History teacher I had the luxury of spending two to three weeks each year on my Holocaust unit. Shortly after the school year started it became clear to me that I would be lucky to have five class periods for my Holocaust unit in AP European History. Having studied the Holocaust for many years it was impossible to imagine cutting out certain lessons or topics because they all seemed very important to me. So how did I tackle this challenge? Below is the process I followed in creating my new Holocaust unit.

1. Create an overview lesson. (1-2 days) - I wanted to be sure that my students had a general overview of the Holocaust before beginning my unit. I put together a power point presentation that included lots of visuals to use as we talked about different topics on the Holocaust.
   
   Topics I included in my overview:
   

   A. Antisemitism

   B. Problems in Germany Post WWI

   C. Rise of Nazism/Hitler

   D. Nuremberg Laws

   E. Kristallnacht

   F. Isolation of the Jews

   G. The Ghettos

   H. The Camps

   I. The Final Solution

   J. Jewish Resistance

   K. US/World Response

   L. Liberation

   
   
2. Have your students submit questions/topics that they would like to spend additional time on. Once my students had submitted their lists, I pulled lessons from my previous Holocaust units that matched these lists. It gave me an opportunity to still use some of my best lessons, but also a chance to work with students on topics they felt they should learn more about.
   
   
3. Using the MCHE resources http://www.mchekc.org and USHMM website http://www.ushmm.org, create 1 day lessons that fit with some of these topics the students have an interest in studying in more depth. (3 days)

Post AP Exam:

After my students take the AP Exam in early May we typically have several weeks left of school that are much more flexible for me when it comes to content/lessons. This is the perfect opportunity to discuss current issues facing the world today. During this time I incorporate lessons on recent genocides (Bosnia, Rwanda, Darfur) which allows me to bring in some additional information about the Holocaust. We have discussed the events of these genocides, analyzed documents related to each, and done photo analysis.

One of the things I have come to realize over the past six years is that I can still provide my students with a valuable learning experience even though I only have a short period of time to work with. Ultimately, it is my hope that my students will be curious enough from our discussions to seek out additional information about the Holocaust.

Connections for Black History Month

Teaching the Holocaust to inner city students is a crucial part of their education. In my first year at a school where the students are predominantly African American and living in generational poverty, I discovered that my students weren’t aware that others had suffered discrimination at a great cost, too. During my first Black History Month at that school, most student-initiated conversation regarding the civil rights movement began with, “all of the white people didn’t like black people, and so...” Not only were they unaware of the history of other groups, but they did not know that people of other ethnicities, among them Jews and Holocaust survivors, had a large role in starting and financially backing many important civil rights organizations, such as the NAACP.

I first investigated why the students weren’t aware of the role of many who weren’t African American, including Jews, had in the civil rights movement. I polled students, and found that the length of a generation in the families of my school were shorter than average. Couple that with a lower average lifespan, and I began to see that the knowledge wasn’t there because, in their community, possible participants might not be around to give a first-hand account of the civil rights movement.

We began with comparing Jim Crow laws to the Nuremburg Laws. Students responded very positively to the information, and began to understand that many have been oppressed. Even the more disconnected students wanted to participate and learn.

The next year, Black History Month was much different. Students’ explanations began with, “many blacks were being oppressed, and so many people of ALL walks of life worked together to…”

Websites to investigate:

http://rac.org/advocacy/issues/issuecr/

http://www.pbs.org/itvs/fromswastikatojimcrow/relations.html

Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race - Educator Information

THE MIDWEST CENTER FOR HOLOCAUST EDUCATION PRESENTS

March 16 - June 10, 2010

National Archives at Kansas City
400 West Pershing Road
Kansas City, Missouri

Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race, features original artifacts, photographs, documents and historic film footage illustrating how Hitler’s Nazi regime attempted to implement its vision of an ethnically homogeneous community through a program of racial eugenics that culminated in the Holocaust.

SCHOOL TOUR INFORMATION :
Free tours are available for groups in grades 9 and up. Groups of up to 60 students are recommended, but larger groups can be arranged. One adult per 15 students is required. Please allow 1 hour to tour the exhibit. Contact Lori Cox-Paul, Education Specialist at NARA, at 816-268-8017 or lori.cox-paul@nara.gov to schedule at tour. Resources and lesson plans appropriate for use in high school classrooms are available by clicking here.

BUS SUBSIDIES :
Bus subsidies of up to $200 per school are available for high school field trips to Deadly Medicine. Applications received by February 16, 2010 will receive priority consideration. Please complete the following application and submit to MCHE by faxing to 913-327-8193 or mailing to 5801 West 115th Street, Suite 106 ~ Overland Park, KS 66211. Contact Jessica Rockhold at schools@mchekc.org or 913-327-8195 with questions or to discuss your level of need. CLICK HERE FOR BUS SUBSIDY APPLICATION.

SPECIAL EVENTS FOR EDUCATORS:
Educator Training and Preview of the Exhibition
March 10, 2010 ~ 4:30-8:00 ~ National Archives at Kansas City
NEW EXPANDED TRAINING!!!
The evening will include brief remarks by Jessica Rockhold of MCHE and Lori Cox-Paul of National Archives, a presentation by USHMM Regional Educator Renee Kaplan on Eugenics and the Nazi Racial State, lesson plans for classroom use, and a tour of the exhibit before it opens to the public. Light meal will be provided. Please RSVP to Jessica Rockhold at schools@mchekc.org or 913-327-8195 with your name and school contact information by March 5, 2010.

The Complicity of Educators in Nazi Germany
May 12, 2010 ~ 4:30-5:30 ~ National Archives at Kansas City
This presentation by Dr. William Meinecke, historian at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, will explore the complicity of professional educators in Nazi Germany, specifically the indoctrination of children. Participants are welcome to stay for Dr. Meinecke's 7:00 presentation on Medical Ethics and Nazi Ideology. Please RSVP to Jessica Rockhold at schools@mchekc.org or 913-327-8195 with your name and school contact information by May 7, 2010.
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Presented by the Midwest Center for Holocaust Education in partnership with the National Archives at Kansas City and in cooperation with the Center for Practical Bioethics.

Analyzing Holocaust Images: Photographs

Even though this generation has had more images pass by their eyes than any previous one in history, it is still amazing how few of us take the time to stop and really LOOK at what we are seeing.

When discussing the Holocaust, it is particularly important to be able to critically analyze an image. Museum educators at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum are careful to use the adjective “actual” in front of the word photograph when referring to specific objects in their collection. That seemed odd to me, at first, having taught photography for years. A photo is a photo, right?

But then, I heard a docent on a USHMM tour make an interesting comment in answer to a question about the large photograph of bales of human hair on exhibit near the collection of shoes from Auschwitz. She said “we own the actual bales of hair, and some day, we may have to put them on exhibit as well.” Why? There is a potential “downside” to the wonders of modern technology. If we have so many readily available devices which can simply scan and “recreate” or “doctor” an image, what is to be believed? If a photograph can now be tampered with by any of a number of software tools, how can we know when it represents absolute reality? What truths can then, by inference, be denied if they cannot be proven beyond a shadow of a doubt? Particularly as we draw near to the time when the generation of Holocaust survivors is disappearing, and our second generation (children of survivors) is presenting testimony that is passed down to them, there is more “wiggle room” which could be used as fuel for the fires of Holocaust deniers. “How do I know that photo is real, and has not been Photo shopped or touched up?”

A simple way to analyze photos with your students is to generate a class list to refer to when looking at a photograph. Start with a photographic image (projected, from a print source, or reproduced if it is in the public domain) and 4 columns headed: 1)what I see
2)what this gives me
3)what this is made with
4) possible reasons for making this.

What I see can include “one thing to look at” or “several things to look at” as well as a list of the obvious recognizable items – house, people, fences.

What this gives me might include “memories of,” “questions about,” “answers to . . .,” “a glimpse into . . ."

Expand on a camera for what this is made with. Encourage students to add things like “risks, bravery, hands, eyes, a tripod, a concealed camera” and fold in the formal qualities or elements and principles of design such as types of lines, shapes, colors, shadows, strong implied diagonals, illusions of form.

Finally, under possible reasons for making this be sure and go beyond “because it was someone’s job.” Each time, include a final item in the column that lends itself to the “not clear” category. Open-ended choices such as “I am not sure,” and “something that is very hard to say” will show that artists and photographers are choosing to communicate with colors, shapes, and lines instead of words, reinforcing the power of the image. Weaving in and out of the columns, and guiding with simple questions, can lead to in-depth dialogue that can last several minutes per picture. Reuse and expand your columns over time as you discuss more and more photos.

Resources:
USHMM Photo Archives Online