Resources for Key Stage 4 & Scottish Nationals

The following resources are designed to support teaching of the Holocaust in a range of subjects. Whilst the Holocaust is most frequently taught for History GCSEs or Nationals, it also features on a number of Religious Education papers and may additionally be studied, particularly as a non-examined topic, in subjects such as Philosophy, Citizenship, PSHE, Geography and English.

Guidance and information documents for teachers

General Principles for Teaching the Holocaust

This document is designed to help teachers deliver purposeful and effective Holocaust education by highlighting internationally-agreed principles of best practice.

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Common Myths and Misconceptions

It is essential that study of the Holocaust is based on accurate knowledge. This document highlights some of the more common misunderstandings which students should avoid in order to properly understand the Holocaust.

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Glossary

This glossary provides a comprehensive list of essential terms associated with the Holocaust, based on the latest historical research. Whilst it is intended for teachers, it may also be useful for students, especially at A Level History.

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Timeline of the Holocaust

This document provides a detailed timeline of the Holocaust. It is primarily intended as a source of reference for teachers but may also be appropriate for use with students, especially in History.

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Teaching the Holocaust in English

This guide provides English teachers with advice on core principles for effective teaching of Holocaust-related literature, recommendations for texts, and essential historical background information.

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Teaching the Holocaust in Drama

This guide provides Drama teachers with advice on core principles for effective teaching of Holocaust-related theatre, recommendations for texts and other resources for use with students, and essential historical background information.

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Art and the Holocaust: A Teachers' Guide

This richly-illustrated guide provides teachers of Art and other subjects with sample lesson plans, reproductions of Holocaust-related artworks for use in the classroom, profiles of artists, and essential historical background information. A lower resolution version, for quicker download, is available here.

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Lesson plans and resources

Defining the Holocaust

This lesson is designed to help students to think about how the Holocaust is defined and why the issue of definition is important. It can thus form a useful introduction to any programme of study on the Holocaust.

Pre-war Jewish Life

This resource encourages students to reflect on the richness and diversity of Jewish life in Europe prior to 1939 and reminds them of the common humanity of those who would later be victims of persecution and murder.

Antisemitism

This lesson enables students to explore the historic roots of antisemitism and to explore the extent to which Nazi antisemitism differed from its precursors. The lesson also allows consideration of the means by which Nazi propaganda sought to influence the German people.

Anti-Jewish Laws

This resource provides a flexible means by which students can develop their understanding of the chronological evolution of Nazi anti-Jewish policy in Germany and reflect upon the human impact that these measures had.

Britain, Refugees and the Kindertransport

This lesson addresses the Kindertransport programme to encourage students to consider the challenges which faced Jewish refugees from Nazi Germany and the different reactions which their arrival produced in British society, facilitating understanding of what it meant to be a refugee.

Mosaic – Victims of Nazi Persecution

Published in conjunction with the National Education Union, this resource series helps students to explore the diverse experiences of different groups of people persecuted by the Nazis and their collaborators and to deepen their understanding of Nazi ideology.

Ghettos

This resource addresses one of the most important, but also misunderstood, aspects of the Holocaust, enabling students to engage with the complexity of Nazi anti-Jewish policy, whilst also understanding the human impact of ghettoisation.

The ‘Final Solution’

This lesson enables students to begin to trace the complex evolution of Nazi policy from persecution to mass murder during the Second World War, to consider who the perpetrators of the Holocaust were, and to reflect on the experiences of victims.

Dilemmas, Choices and Responses to the Holocaust

This resource explores the actions of a wide range of people who were confronted with moral choices during the Nazi era. In so doing, it also seeks to avoid simplistic judgements about human behaviour and to consider the complexities of terms such as 'perpetrator' and 'bystander'.

British Responses to Nazism and the Holocaust

This resource examines how both British institutions and individuals reacted to Nazism. In so doing, it encourages students to engage with the complexity of human behaviour during the Holocaust and cautions against facile judgements of particular nations as ‘good’ or ‘bad’.

Jewish Resistance during the Holocaust

This resource explores the under-studied theme of Jewish resistance during the Holocaust, encouraging students to consider the obstacles to resistance and to reflect on the diverse ways in which Europe's Jews nonetheless sought to resist the Nazis.

Rescue during the Holocaust

This resource provides profiles of non-Jewish individuals who were involved in providing relief and rescue during the Holocaust. Accompanying lesson plans allow students to investigate some of the complex issues surrounding rescue and to consider the motivations of rescuers.

British Heroes of the Holocaust

This resource profiles British citizens who have been honoured as 'Heroes of the Holocaust' for their assistance to Jews during the Nazi era. It thereby facilitates greater understanding of Britain’s relationship with the Holocaust and consideration of what it means to be a good citizen.

German Opposition to Nazism

This resource provides cases studies of Germans who resisted the Nazis, in the process challenging the common assumption that all Germans either supported the Nazis or were willing 'bystanders' to their crimes.

Liberation

This lesson addresses an often overlooked part of the story of the Holocaust by looking at the ambiguous and often unexpected impact of liberation on both survivors and those soldiers who liberated them.

Justice after the Holocaust

This lesson explores the question of whether justice was done after the Holocaust by looking at the fate of a range of perpetrators whilst also focussing on attempts to deal with those alleged perpetrators who settled in Britain after the war.

What did Zigi do after the Holocaust?

This resource enables students to discover what happened to Holocaust survivor Zigi Shipper after his liberation, allowing them to begin to understand some of the challenges that confronted survivors at the end of the war and the means by which they were able to rebuild their lives.

How Should We Remember the Holocaust?

Using case studies of various forms of Holocaust remembrance from around the world, this lesson encourages students to reflect on the nature of historical memory and how the Holocaust can be best commemorated in the future.

Exploring the Holocaust: KS3 & S2

Resources for post-16

Resources for primary & early KS3