2.1.3

​Building Background: The Holocaust

By Lauren Rullo

something created by someone who did not witness an event or time period firsthand.
Examples include books, articles, and some websites. 

​Secondary

firsthand account of something witnessed or experienced by the text's creator.
Examples: letters, diaries, photographs, and some documentaries or videos.

​Primary

Primary and Secondary Sources

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is an example of a primary source?

• a biography

• a textbook

• a diary

Primary Source: Survivor Accounts

​Interviews with people who lived through an event are considered primary sources because they share their firsthand accounts of what happened.

Video-
you will hear from Holocaust survivor, Anita Lasker-Wallfisch. She speak about how her life changed in 1933 when anti-Semitism (anti-Jewish feeling) was spreading across Germany. Anita and her family were imprisoned and sent to Auschwitz, but she had an easier time than most because she was a musician.

Taken by Nazis in the early days of WWII.

Trainload of prisoners destined for Auschwitz concentration camp.

​A group of women is in the barracks at Auschwitz in Poland.

January 1945

​Prisoners were tattooed with a prison number.
Survivor, Mr. Leon Greenman's prison number is still visible on his arm.

​Primary Sources: Photographs

Open Ended

Why is it important to hear firsthand accounts?

It is important to hear firsthand accounts because_____.

Secondary Sources: Timeline

Holocaust

the timeline was gathered from secondary sources, including journals and news articles, textbooks, and websites.

​1933-1938	​Nov. 9-10; 1938	​1939-1940	​1941-1945
Nazi's boycotted Jewish businesses	​Nazi's carried out organized attack (Night of Broken Glass) on Jewish citizens.	​Germany invaded Poland, Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, and France.	​Nazis developed a plan to eliminate Jewish people in Europe. (The Final Solution)

Categorize

Options (5)

created by people who witnessed the event

letters, diaries, and interviews

created by someone who did NOT witness an event

textbooks, journal articles, and history books

helps the reader experience an event through someone who lived through it

Sort the characteristics of primary and secondary sources into the correct category.

Primary Source

Secondary Source

Tomorrow-Friday

1. Read about Elie Wiesel (survivor)

2. Discuss rhetorical appeals

3. Read "The Perils of Indifference"