April is one month away from Holocaust Remembrance Day, which is designated on May 1st of each year. On this day, people all over the nation honor and remember those who lost their lives during the Holocaust and those who survived the atrocities of that time period.Taking into consideration the different ages and grade levels, we are introducing, not so much the Holocaust and its history, but "the importance of diversity and the danger of bias and prejudice."
Our activity is titled, "The Butterfly Project."
Students will create a personalized butterfly to represent strength, courage, and freedom. All 600 butterflies will be attached to the walls and hung from the ceilings.
At the end of the three-week project, students will take their butterflies down, and upper grade levels will read and analyze poetry from I Never Saw Another Butterfly, written by Jewish survivors at camp Terezin. All butterflies will be sent to the Holocaust Museum in Houston, which encourages teachers to educate others about the Holocaust. The Museum is in the process of collecting 1.5 million hand-made butterflies, representing the 1.5 million children that lost their lives during this tragic event. Let us all remember and continue educating our children about our freedom to love, respect, and embrace others' race, culture, and customs.
Please check out the lesson plan for upper grade levels on the Holocaust Museum website here.
