Stories of Identity and Belonging
Students read and discuss personal narrative essays and consider what factors can make it challenging for young people to be who they really want to be in the world.
Cultivating Identity Literacy
Students learn about a project, created by two young adults, that engaged people across the country in conversations about race, identity, and culture. Then they start to envision what sharing their own stories can look, sound, and feel like.
18 Teacher Resources on Native American History and Culture
Below are 18 resources that middle and high school teachers can turn to when developing lesson plans related to the roles of Native American peoples in American history and contemporary life. These resources include online exhibitions at the Smithsonian; the Smithsonian’s Native Knowledge 360° Educational Initiative; the work of the Mitchell and Hood Museums; and the growing work of Facing History in these thematic areas.
![Three members of the Sioux tribe pose in Indian Village, 1898.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-05/Black%20Foot-Standing-Bear_Big_Eagle_Sioux_ca_1898.jpg?h=26ac82e5&itok=5rYHkhl2)
Rising Antisemitism and Fading Memories of the Holocaust
Help students analyze recent trends regarding receding Holocaust memory and the resurgence of antisemitism in Europe, and prompt them to consider how history can help us confront hate in the world.
![Protesters against Antisemitism in Paris, 2018](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Holocaust_Remembrance_Day_9482772.jpg?h=f2fcf546&itok=_amQsU-x)
Dismantling Democracy (UK)
Students examine the steps the Nazis took to replace democracy with dictatorship and draw conclusions about the values and institutions that make democracy possible.
![Germans look on as the Reichstag building burns on February 27, 1933.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Holocaust_1933_ReichstagFire_%20FH229429.jpg?h=40d6a7d7&itok=PBcAxqXk)
Jewish History and Memory: Why Study the Past?
Students prepare for their study of the Holocaust by reflecting on the ways in which memory is an integral part of Jewish identity.
![Students sit in a classroom.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2023-01/San_Francisco_Classroom_2017_FH152836_0.jpeg?h=56d0ca2e&itok=WDArBFmq)
Exploring Identity (UK)
Students identify the social and cultural factors that help shape our identities by analysing a story and creating personal identity charts.
![Hands raised in the air by group of people](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Holocaust_2016_GroupBelonging_FH229369.jpg?h=c9f93661&itok=O6H7UmzG)
The Holocaust - Bearing Witness (UK)
Students are introduced to the enormity of the crimes committed during the Holocaust and look closely at stories of a few individuals who were targeted by Nazi brutality.
![A crowd of women and children, some with Stars of David patches on their clothing.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Ch09_Image02.jpg?h=991b0af6&itok=WRPl5J8e)
The Holocaust - The Range of Responses (UK)
Students deepen their examination of human behaviour during the Holocaust by analysing and discussing the range of choices available to individuals, groups, and nations.
![Hans Scholl, Sophie Scholl, and Christoph Probst in June 1942.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Holocaust_2016_WhiteRoseResistanceGroup_FH229473.jpg?h=dfc3751c&itok=BjXT-amv)
How Should We Remember? (UK)
Students both respond to and design Holocaust memorials as they consider the impact that memorials and monuments have on the way we think about history.
![In Kassel, Germany, artist Horst Hoheisel created a “counter-memorial” marking the site where a majestic fountain built by a Jewish citizen once stood; it had been destroyed by Nazis in 1939.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-05/Ch11_image15_Medium_res.jpg?h=c6d0d1c4&itok=Gb3MH30L)
Introducing the Unit (UK)
Students will come together as a community of learners to develop a contract that establishes a safe, but challenging environment in their classroom.