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Holocaust Education

Social Studies Lesson Plans

High School

The following lesson plans are intended for high school students, grades 9-12. They cover topics that may be found in classes like U.S. History, World Civilization, Civics, Human Geography, etc. 

The Holocaust and US Immigration: an Oral History Analysis

Summary and Rationale: 

While the study of a historical theme, event, or question requires multiple sources to develop breadth of understanding, oral histories help students consider the impact of these events on individuals. The pain, oppression, antisemitism, and violence of the Holocaust resulted in the forced mobility of millions of people during the 1930 and 1940s. Oral histories from Holocaust survivors can illuminate some of the individual stories of human movement and how that influenced their lives and identities.

This 1-2 class period lesson invites students to consider the concepts like refugee, immigration (and immigration policies), assimilation, community, and exclusion through the critical reading of an oral history from a Holocaust survivor now residing in Kentucky.

Subject: U.S. History

Suggested Grade Levels: 11th-12th

Time Required: 50 Minutes (75 for extended version)

Addressed Kentucky Standard: HS.UH.CH.1 - Examine the ways diverse groups viewed themselves and contributed to the identity of the United States in the world from 1877-present.

Materials: This lesson utilizes a 14-minute excerpt of an oral history interview provided by Dr. Alice Dreifuss Goldstein in 2019. Dreifuss Goldstein discusses her family’s experience arriving in the United States as German Jewish refugees after escaping Nazi persecution in Kenzingen, Germany.

 Materials:

Remembering the Holocaust

Summary and Rationale: 

This lesson challenges students to think about the various ways historical events, particularly the Holocaust, should be remembered. To do this, students will use student-generated questions as a way to explore various ways of historical remembrance. Teachers will be presented with one source they can use to help students think about questions, but are encouraged to use other sources that are thought-provoking. This lesson would work best at the end of a unit on the Holocaust or as a starting “hook” activity to provide students an entry point into studying the Holocaust.

Subject: Social Studies/World History

Suggested Grade Levels: 9th-12th grade

Time Required: 2, 70 minute class periods. 

Addressed Kentucky Standard: 

  • HS.WH.I.Q.1 Generate compelling questions to frame thinking, inquiry and/or understanding of key concepts in world history.
  • HS.WH.I.Q.2 Generate supporting questions to develop knowledge, understanding and/or thinking relative to key concepts in world history framed by compelling questions.
  • HS.WH.CE.9 Determine the causes of the World Wars and their global effects between 1900-1945

Materials: 

Exploring Survivors’ Testimonies via Found Poems

Summary and Rationale: 

This lesson asks students to examine how Holocaust survivors remember their wartime experiences. In this lesson, students will closely read oral history excerpts and then work with their peers to create a “found poem” using words and phrases from the excerpts they identify as particularly meaningful. This lesson offers a means through which students can closely, collaboratively, and critically engage with survivor testimony in the form of oral histories. 

Subject: US History or English Language Arts

Suggested Grade Levels: 10th-12th

Time Required: 45-90 minutes or 1-2 class periods

Addressed Kentucky Standard: 

  • HS.UH.CH.1: Examine the ways diverse groups viewed themselves and contributed to the identity of the United States in the world from 1877-present
  • HS.UH.I.Q.1: Generate compelling questions to frame thinking, inquiry and/or understanding of key concepts in U.S. history.
  • HS.UH.I.Q.2:  Generate supporting questions to develop knowledge, understanding and/or thinking relative to key concepts in U.S. history framed by compelling questions.
  • RI.9-10.7: Analyze various accounts of a subject presented in different print and non-print formats, determining which details are emphasized in each account. 

Materials

Mapping a Survivor's Journey

Summary and Rationale: 

While the study of a historical theme, event, or question requires multiple sources to develop breadth of understanding, oral histories help students consider the impact of these events on individuals. The pain, oppression, antisemitism, and violence of the Holocaust resulted in the forced mobility of millions of people during the 1930 and 1940s. Oral histories from Holocaust survivors can illuminate some of the individual stories of human movement and how that influenced their lives and identities.

This 2-3 class period lesson will teach students to define antisemitism, contextualizes the concept within an oral history from a Holocaust survivor who eventually relocated to Kentucky named Sylvia Farber Green. The lesson will also invite students to more deeply engage with the way forced wartime displacement impacted the lives of families, likely challenge students to expand their idea of where the Holocaust took place as they trace Sylvia's movements across Europe and the U.S. through an activity using Google Maps. 

Subject: U.S. History

Suggested Grade Levels: 6th-12th

Time Required: 2-3 days, or 100-150 minutes of instruction

Addressed Kentucky Standard(s): 

HS.G.GR.1 - Interpret the relationships among human and physical patterns and processes at local, national and global scales.

HS.UH.CO.2 - Evaluate domestic response to migration and immigration in the United States from 1877-present.

RI.11-12.3 - Analyze a complex set of ideas or sequence of events, and explain how specific individuals, ideas or events interact and develop over the course of the text.

Note: this lesson can be adapted to the middle school standards which build towards the standards listed above.

Materials: This lesson uses excerpts of two oral history interviews of Sylvia Farber Green recorded in 1996. Farber Green narrates her family’s experiences living in Germany before and after Hitler came to power, their deportation in Poland, and eventual arrival in Lexington, Kentucky. 

 Materials:

Using Character Strengths to Become Upstanders With HHC

Summary and Rationale:

While studying history often requires multiple sources to understand broad themes, connecting historical events to social-emotional learning (SEL) concepts helps students see the personal and moral dimensions of the past. This four-day lesson uses the Holocaust and Human-Centered Education (HHC) framework to explore the qualities and actions of “upstanders”—individuals who stand up for themselves and others in the face of injustice. By examining character strengths, barriers to action, and the Awareness–Influence–Action (A-I-A) framework, students critically consider how people during the Holocaust resisted oppression, both through rescue and other acts of courage, and how these lessons can inform their own lives.

Students engage in activities that promote self-reflection, empathy, and moral courage, including taking the VIA Character Strengths Survey, analyzing historical rescuers’ stories from Stories of Rescue, and applying the A-I-A framework to contemporary situations. Through this process, they build a deeper understanding of how awareness of injustice can lead to meaningful action and develop strategies to become upstanders in their own communities.

Subject: U.S. History or English Language Arts

Suggested Grade Levels: 6th–12th

Time Required: 4 days / 195 instructional minutes

Addressed Kentucky Standards:

  • HS.UH.I.Q.1: Generate compelling questions to frame thinking, inquiry, and/or understanding of key concepts in U.S. history.
  • HS.UH.I.Q.2: Generate supporting questions to develop knowledge, understanding, and/or thinking relative to key concepts in U.S. history framed by compelling questions.
  • HS.UH.CH.1: Examine the ways diverse groups viewed themselves and contributed to the identity of the United States in the world from 1877–present.
  • HS.UH.I.CC.1–3: Engage in meaningful discourse, apply evidence, and propose solutions relevant to compelling questions in U.S. history.
  • ELA.RI.10: Use comprehension strategies to analyze grade-level informational texts independently and proficiently.

Materials:

Snapshots in the Life and Power of Martin Himler

Summary and Rationale:

While historical study often emphasizes large-scale events, personal narratives and local histories can reveal the complexities of power, migration, and identity in more tangible ways. This 1–2 day lesson examines the life of Martin Himler, a Hungarian Jewish immigrant, Appalachian coal entrepreneur, and U.S. Office of Strategic Services (OSS) officer during World War II. Drawing on excerpts from his autobiography, The Making of an American, and additional primary sources—including historic photographs from the George Gunnoe Papers and period newspaper articles—students explore the intersections of Kentucky history, immigrant experiences, and Holocaust-era global contexts.

Through the inquiry-based thinking routine Power, Possibilities, Me, students investigate how power operated in Himler’s life and consider broader questions about migration, discrimination, and justice. The lesson connects local Appalachian history to larger historical narratives, encouraging critical thinking about the role of individuals in shaping and responding to historical forces.

Subject: U.S. History

Suggested Grade Levels: 9th–12th

Time Required: 90 minutes / 1–2 class periods (45–50 minutes each)

Addressed Kentucky Standards:

  • HS.UH.CH.1: Examine the ways diverse groups viewed themselves and contributed to the identity of the United States in the world from 1877–present.
  • HS.G.MM.1: Analyze how cultural, economic, and environmental factors contribute to migration patterns and population distribution at multiple scales.
  • HS.UH.CE.5: Evaluate how groups facing discrimination worked to achieve expansion of rights and liberties from 1877–present.

Materials:

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