My dad, a New Zealander, was a prisoner of the Germans in World War II - he
was captured on Crete and spent six years in POW camps. I have read his
memoirs that he wrote afterwards, including his account of a forced march
through Poland to Germany as the Allies advanced. They make moving reading
and have helped me understand my dad (now dead) a lot better. A case of I
wish I had known then what I know now.
I am sharing this for two reasons -
1. Prisoners did not have to be physically marked to be marked for life (my
dad was not tattooed or anything) and in those days you were expected to
come back from the horrors you had seen and suffered and just get on with
it.
2. There were many more nationalities who were POW of the Germans in WWII,
apart from the Jews, although none suffered as much as they did. Sometimes,
from the messages I read on LM_NET, it appears that the war started in 1941
when Pearl Harbour was bombed, and that the only combatants were the
Germans, the Americans and the Jews.
Shonda said "(they must choose any aspect of World War II but the Holocaust
is always the central theme" so maybe it is time to broaden the kids'
perspectives. If it were me, I would show them episodes of Hogan's Heroes
and get them to compare that life with the real thing; explore some of the
great escapes (The Great Escape movie was based on a true story), or the
Dunkirk evacuation or look at the work of the French Resistance or
investigate people like Nancy Wake. Could lead to all sorts of discussions
about what it is about one's country and way of life that people defend
literally to the end. Maybe could even lead to some thoughts about why the
violence in Iraq continues - those are the sorts of lifelong learnings that
I think should evolve. What can we learn from these events that help us
understand the way things are now? What can we learn from these events to
change things in the future?
Barbara
Barbara Braxton
Teacher-Librarian
Palmerston District Primary School
PALMERSTON ACT 2913
AUSTRALIA
T. 61 2 6205 6162
F. 61 2 6205 7242
E. barbara@austarmetro.com.au
W. http://www.palmdps.act.edu.au
-----Original Message-----
From: School Library Media & Network Communications
[mailto:LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU]On Behalf Of sbrisco
Sent: Thursday, 25 March 2004 2:58 PM
To: LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU
Subject: Re: TAR: Prisoners of WWII
Just something to share....
Our 7th grade English teacher requires her students to do a research paper
on the Holocaust (they must choose any aspect of World War II but the
Holocaust is always the central theme). Last year one of the boys in her
class invited his grandmother (a Holocaust survivor) to visit the class and
talk about her experiences. The program was held in the library, so I was
able to share in the experience of hearing her story.
She was about 16 when she and her family were separated and she talked about
the horrors of death camps. She also spoke of walking from Auschwitz to
Bergen-Belsen without any shoes between the months of January-March in
1945-- in the snow. (She explained that later she realized that she was in
the same camp as Anne Frank.) She told the students that she arrived late
in March and was liberated in April by the British. (She even tried to put
some humor into the program by telling the students that she believed she
survived because she was "pretty" and always "flirted" with the younger
soldiers who would share their food with her or give her privileges that
others could not have--- the reality of her cunning behavior was not lost on
our students (I just don't think they realized how close to death each of
those behaviors brought her---I shudder to think.)
The students were extremely interested in her tattooed arm which she shared.
I remember seeing the triangle on her arm with the numbers and realized that
the students probably didn't understand the impact that this woman was
making on our lives at that moment -- especially mine. I was amazed at her
strength and demeanor but I was humbled by the fact that she represented a
living piece of history that I would never truly understand. Her presence
as a speaker and as a survivor was both an honor and a privilege for me---
one that I will never forget.
~Shonda Brisco
Trinity Valley MS / US Librarian
Fort Worth, TX
sbrisco021@charter.net
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