Introduction

Picture This: The year is 1939 and you are living in a city in Germany. An evil, violent man named Adolph Hitler has taken over the country and is trying to take over the world. If you are Jewish, you may be hiding in a cold forest, a closet, or a dark basement, starving and terrified of being caught. Or you may be imprisoned in a concentration camp, beaten, tortured, watching your friends and family die all around you. If you are non-Jewish you may be risking your life to oppose Hitler and hide Jews. Or you may have swallowed the Nazi propaganda and have become a part of Hitler's killing machine.

This week you are going to research and learn about the Holocaust. First your group will answer some basic questions to show you understand the main events that took place during this time.

Then your group will take on the role of an individual living through the war. You will become the man imprisoned in the concentration camp, the young girl hiding in a basement, the woman struggling to hide Jews in her home, or the young boy who has become a hate-filled Nazi soldier. Your group will create a scene depicting a typical day in the life of your individual. The scene will be performed in class.

The Quest

What effects did the Holocaust have on the Jewish and non-Jewish citizens of Germany?

The Process and Resources

In this WebQuest you will be working together with a group of students in class. All groups will read the same background information about the Holocaust in Part I. Then each group will be assigned the identity of a different Holocaust survivor. Your group's identity will determine which web sites you will be using as part of your research.

Phase 1 - Background: Something for Everyone

Part I: Background Information

Read the following information about life in Germany under the Nazi Party.

• Nazi Rule

Phase 2 - Looking Deeper from Different Perspectives

Part II: Instructions

1. You will be assigned an identity of a Holocaust survivor. You will either be a Nazi soldier, a woman hiding Jews in her home, a young Jewish girl in hiding, or a man imprisoned in a concentration camp.

2. Spend about 20 minutes viewing the information on the web site assigned to your survivor. Your group is reading this information to gain background knowledge about what life was like for your survivor.

3. Now it's time to get to work! Your group is going to use all its newfound knowledge about the Holocaust to write a dramatic scene depicting a typical day in the life of your survivor. Your scene will:

• Be at least 2 pages long.
  
• Include correct, historical information about the Holocaust in relation to your survivor.
  
• Include a narrator and at least 3 other characters.
  
• Be performed for the class.
  
  4. Creating a dramatic scene requires many different talents. Choose the role which best suits your talents.
  
  
  Writers #1 and #2: Write the 2 page dramatic scene.
  
  Writers #3 and #4: Write the one paragraph introduction that will be read to the class before the performance. This should provide background information about who the survivor is and the setting of the scene. Also, write the assessment to the scene your group creates. This assessment will be a 5 question quiz that will be given to the class after your performance to ensure attention/understanding.
  
  Costume Designer: Creates at least 1 piece of costume for each character in the scene. The designer also must write a 1 page paper describing each piece of costume they created and explaining the historical/symbolic significance of this costume.
  
  Your group will receive a shared grade on both parts of the project!
  
  
  Jewish man imprisoned in concentration camp
  Use the Internet information linked below to gain background information about your survivor.
  • Just A Normal Day

   

  Jewish girl in hiding

  Use the Internet information linked below to gain background information about your survivor.
  • Excerpts From Testimonies - Rachel G.

   

  Non-Jewish woman hiding Jews in her home

  Use the Internet information linked below to gain background information about your survivor.
  • Barbara Makuch Rescuer Story

   

  Nazi soldier

  Use the Internet information linked below to gain background information about your survivor.
  • Nazi Rule - Select the following links at the top of the page: Hitler 1933, Nazi Terror, SS Police State, and Nazi Propaganda

Phase 3 - Debating, Discussing, and Reaching Consensus

You have all learned about many different aspects of the Holocaust. Now group members should came back together to answer the Task / Question (What effects did the Holocaust have on the Jewish and non-Jewish citizens of Germany?) as a group. Use the information from the Web pages you explored and the dramatic scenes you witnessed to help you with your answer. Your WebQuest team should write out a one paragraph response that everyone on the team can live with.

Conclusion

Share your one paragraph response to the Task / Question with the class. Discuss if the identity of your survivor influenced your group's response.