Virtual

A virtual history class is an interactive presentation that explores the history of the Holocaust by showcasing key artefacts and survivor testimony videoclips from our permanent exhibition. A class can be easily integrated into history, ethics, and culture/citizenship courses. It is also highly relevant for second language and literature courses.

Topics covered during a virtual history class:

• First section (early 20^th century): Jewish communities in Europe and North Africa at the beginning of the 20^th century, Jewish holidays
• Second section (1919-1939): The Treaty of Versailles and the Weimar Republic, Hitler’s rise to power, the persecution of the Jews, propaganda, the response of German Jews, the pogrom of November 9-10, 1938, the response of Canada and other countries
• Third section (1939-1945): Invasion of Poland, non-Jewish victims, ghettos, deportation, killing centres, different forms of resistance, the Righteous Among the Nations, collaborators
• Fourth section (1945-1955): Liberation, displaced persons camps, immigration of survivors to Canada

Educational Workshops

• • Jewish Voices on Identity and Antisemitism 
  • Life in Hiding: Eva Kuper’s story

Jewish Voices on Identity and Antisemitism | 60 min. From CEGEP onward

10 to 60 participants – Available virtually and in person.

KEY THEMES : INTERGENERATIONAL TESTIMONIES, IDENTITY, HISTORICAL AND CONTEMPORARY ANTISEMITISM

In this workshop, through the voices of Holocaust survivors and their descendants, participants will explore Jewish identities in order to deconstruct the stereotypes and generalizations associated with them. They will discover the various historical forms of antisemitism to better understand it. Finally, they will learn to recognize antisemitic rhetoric from the Holocaust to the present day. 

Life in Hiding workshop: Eva Kuper’s story | gr. 6 – Sec. 1 | 60 min.

10-35 participants (1 group/class)

KEY TOPICS: HIDDEN CHILD – CHERISHED BELONGINGS

In this workshop, participants will discover Eva Kuper’s story. Eva was born in Warsaw in 1940, shortly after the Nazi invasion of Poland. A few months after her birth, her family was confined to the Jewish ghetto in Warsaw. After her mother was deported, Eva and her father managed to escape from the ghetto. They survived the war in hiding.
Through watching a video excerpt of Eva’s testimony and analyzing reproductions of artefacts that belonged to children and teenagers who survived the Holocaust in hiding, students will discover what life was like for them under the Nazi occupation and reflect on the difficult choices they had to make.

Prepare your group by consulting our resources:

• Brief History the Holocaust
• Brief History of Antisemitism in Canada
• Holocaust Maps and Timelines
• Studying Genocide