Using Holocaust Testimony in the Classroom

In the video, "Using Holocaust Testimony in the Classroom", ISHS staff member Sheryl Ochayon discusses how we recommend choosing and using Holocaust testimony with your students. First discussing the features living survivors brought in their testimony and the unique aspects we lose in a world without survivors, Ms. Ochayon proceeds to contrast and then balance two approaches: the historical, and the personal. A piece of testimony that is only personal or only historical can be counterproductive; it is by choosing testimony that relates, personally, to historical events that we derive a deeper understanding from the survivors. The testimonies discussed in this video are available for viewing from our website.

The video includes testimony by Leo Laufer, Oscar Pinkus, Livia Wiederman

Sheryl Silver-Ochayon is a staff member at the International School for Holocaust Studies, Yad Vashem.

Part 1: Using Holocaust Testimony in the Classroom
Part 2: Using Holocaust Testimony in the Classroom - Childhood During the Holocaust

Archival footage and photographs:

Yad Vashem Photo Archive
Yad Vashem Film Archive
Yad Vashem Archives - The Oral History Section
The Yad Vashem Visual Center
Gathering the Fragments - National Campaign to Rescue Personal Items from the Holocaust Period.
Agentur Karl Höffkes