Genocide education is more urgent and timely than ever. We recommend the following films and teaching guides to support you in mindfully teaching Holocaust education through film. These materials are variously appropriate for elementary school, middle school and high school; they can also work well for higher education, adult education, public screenings and community group settings.
Instructional Foundations
Our webinar about Anti-Bias Education: Using Media to Foster Critical Thinking and Combat Antisemitism and Islamophobia sets you up for success with Holocaust Education and Genocide education. The session provides an overview of anti-bias teaching tools and as well as strategies for dealing with difficult classroom situations around these topics. This webinar is available free and on-demand through Share My Lesson. Participants can quality for one hour of PD-credit. Learn more about our Anti-Bias Education Webinar.
We also offer Facilitation Guidelines to create safe discussion spaces and lead productive explorations of difficult topics. These guidelines pair well with our film guides for classroom use. The guidelines apply to a wide range of settings and are free for everyone.
First-Person Stories
To help your students understand the impact of the Holocaust, consider using a film that focuses on an individual caught in the maelstrom of Nazism.
Big Sonia is about Holocaust survivor Sonia Warshawski, who was a Jewish teenager living in Poland when the German army invaded in the 1930s. She’s a woman who speaks to students and prison inmates about her story of unimaginable suffering — and she’s also a beacon of hope and resilience. For grades 7 and up.
Defiant Requiem: The Film is about a unique chapter in Holocaust history when prisoners used music and the arts to sustain their spirits and resist oppression at Terezín concentration camp. This film can be difficult to find but it makes a powerful teaching tool when it is available. For grades 6 and up.
Schindler’s List is a powerful Genocide Education tool in its own right. Our Schindler’s List curriculum guide also includes our newly updated lesson about Antisemitism in the contemporary world. The Antisemitism Today lesson works as a standalone teaching resource and can also pair with other Holocaust and Genocide Education resources. You can download Antisemitism Today its own from our Schindler’s List page and also from Share My Lesson. For grades 9 and up.
Expand the Scope
Our guide for The Music of Strangers: Yo-Yo Ma & The Silk Road Project features an engaging lesson on cultural preservation that is relevant to Holocaust and Genocide discussions. For grades 7 and up.
Our Navalny learning guide includes a powerful lesson on online propaganda that pairs well with our Antisemitism Today lesson (above) for bringing Genocide- and Holocaust Education into the present moment. For grades 9 and up.
We hope these resources can support you in honoring those whose lives were lost to genocides, honoring survivors and their families, and committing to education, remembrance and prevention.
