The Hana’s Suitcase learning activity introduces the story of Hana Brady, a victim of the Nazis, to students in grades 6 and up.

Following the footsteps of Fumiko Ishioka, a young educator in Japan looking for information about Hana Brady, students gradually discover some similarities between the young girl and themselves. Students learn about the persecution of Jews and the impact it had on the Brady family in the context of the main events of the Holocaust. Hana’s Suitcase encourages students to reflect on the consequences of discrimination, both today and in the past.

Students learn about the history of the Holocaust in a meaningful manner, consider the impact of racism in our society and gain an overall appreciation of, and respect for, diversity.

Download the Hana’s Suitcase pedagogical activity

The Hana’s Suitcase pedagogical activity is available online free of charge. Click on the download links at the bottom of this page for the activity that corresponds to your province’s curriculum.

Curriculum Links

  • Make connections of continuity with the present by defining concepts related to the Holocaust
  • Perceive traces of continuities or changes related to racism and prejudice today
  • Justify their view of the diversity of cultural communities in Canada

Quebec’s teachers

A print version of this activity is available free of charge* for Quebec teachers by filling out the pre-reservation form. You will receive:

  • The teaching guide with ten in-class activities
  • One copy per student of the Hana’s Suitcase book, by Karen Levine
  • A Brief History of the Holocaust Reference Guide
  • Nine reproductions (maps, museum artefacts, Hana’s drawings)
  • 1 DVD
  • A replica of Hana’s family photo album

* Attention! The activity itself is free; however, shipping/courier costs of the suitcase are at your own expense. In-person pickup at the Museum is free.

Physical version of the Hana's Suitcase activity for Quebec teachers.
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Physical version of the Hana's Suitcase activity for Quebec teachers.

Hana Brady is in the top row, 3rd from left.
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Hana Brady is in the top row, 3rd from left.

George Brady and Baby Hana in 1931.
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George Brady and Baby Hana in 1931. Source :

George and Hana with their dog Sylva.
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George and Hana with their dog Sylva.

Learn more about the Holocaust and the Museum’s collection of artefacts and testimonies

For more information on Theresienstadt, the ghetto located in the city of Terezin, you can read the story of Edvard Neugebauer’s Watercolour in the Objects of Interest section of this website. For more information on the Holocaust, see A Brief History of the Holocaust: Reference Guide.

Download the Educational Program

Elementary 3rd Cycle – Geography, History and Citizenship Education, Ethics and Religious Culture, Languages

Teaching Guide

Hana's Suitcase

Grade 5 - Social Studies, Visual Arts, Learning with Objects: Artifact Exploration Guide

Teaching Guide

Hana's Suitcase

Grades 6, 7 & 8 - Social Studies

Teaching Guide

Hana's Suitcase

Reserve an Activity

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