Why did we choose the theme, “Studying the Holocaust through Primary Sources?”

Documents – diaries, letters, drawings, and memoirs – created by those who participated in or witnessed the events of the past tell us something that even the best-written article or book cannot convey. The use of primary sources exposes students to important historical concepts. Students become aware that all written history reflects an author’s interpretation of past events, and consequently, they learn to recognize a document’s subjective nature. It is through primary sources that the students directly touch the lives of people in the past (National Archives and Records Administration).

“Primary sources help students to develop knowledge, skills, and analytical abilities. By dealing directly with primary sources, students engage in asking questions, thinking critically, making intelligent inferences, and developing reasoned explanations and interpretations of events and issues in the past and present” (Library of Congress).

Primary sources expose students to multiple perspectives on any given issue or event. Interpretations of the past are continuously debated among historians, policy makers, politicians, and ordinary citizens. By working with primary sources, students learn to think critically about what they are reading and to become involved in these debates about history.

Contents of High School Trunk & Annotated Bibliography (pdf)

The trunk is set up to accomodate both reading groups and individual reading. 10 copies of each All But My Life, Dry Tears, and Night are included in the trunk. 

The trunk also contains 2 copies of each Rutka's Notebook, Sharing is Healing, Sunflower, and Survival in Auschwitz.    Many single copies of books are also included. Books and materials cover a variety of reading and skill levels.

Optional Additional Materials for High School Trunk

If you would like to request that any of these materials be added to your trunk, please indicate this on your trunk request form by writing, "please add..." in the comment field.  Please review the contents of the trunk before requesting that additional materials be added.

• "America and the Holocaust." 1994. 90 mins. (DVD/VHS)
  Paints a troubling picture of the United States during a period beset by anti-semitism and a government that, due to complex social and political factors, not only delayed action, but suppressed information and blocked efforts that could have resulted in the rescue of hundreds of thousands of people.
  
• "Escape from Sobibor." 1987. 120 mins. (DVD)
  Sobibor, a Nazi death camp in Poland, was the site of the largest prisoner escape of World War II. Based on years of research, this dramatization portrays the escape and the run through Polish forests to freedom. A good compliment to the book, From the Ashes of Sobibor.
  
• "Never Again, I Hope." 1993. 37 mins. (DVD/VHS)
  9 local (Washington) Holocaust survivors share their experiences. Created by the Washington State Holocaust Education Resource Center.
  
• "Oprah and Elie Wiesel Visit Auschwitz." 2006. 45 mins. (DVD)
  Originally shown on the Oprah TV show in 2006.  Includes Wiesel reciting excerpts of his memoir, Night.