Poetry and Art from Testimony

by Elizabeth Chapin-Pinotti

This is a wonderful lesson to accompany either social studies or English lessons on the Holocaust or Holocaust literature.  It is also a great lesson to work students through after viewing the Simon Wiesenthal film: Genocide.

This lesson also complements Night by Elie Wiesel and The Diary of Anne Frank

Grade Level: 9 through 12

Objectives:

• To analyze closely testimony from the Holocaust.
• To express in artistic and poetic form meanings the students created in their analysis.

Materials:

• Copies of survivor, rescuer, or liberator testimony or web access
• art supplies or computers for the variation.

Background:

When American soldiers liberated the Nazi concentration camps in 1945, they were stunned and outraged by what they saw. Here is a reaction that was recorded at the time:

Procedure:

Read the book of Poems by Elizabeth Chapin-Pinotti Lest We Forget: Poems in Remembrance - A collection of poems centered on themes of the holocaust and dedicated to those who survived and those who did not.  They are one author’s reaction to survivor testimony.  The books are available at Amazon.com or if you would like a classroom set email cplearning@gmail.com and I will send you copies.

Print out survivor stories from the links below.

Break students up into groups and have them read the stories together.

Have students choose a passage about the Holocaust at least three sentences long, but no longer than five sentences altogether. Add no words of your own, except for a title. Do not abridge or paraphrase the passage you select. Decide in advance which words will matter the most in your poetic expression of the text.   Decide what time of poetry format will fit the feel of the poem – a formal type or more free form.  Decide what words will work best – what will be included.  Practice reading your poem out loud.

A poetry handbook on styles and types can be found at: http://www.chapinpinottilearningcenter.com/mysite3/CPLC%20GATE%20Writing%20Poetry.htm

Art: As a class or in small groups, if technology allows, look over and discuss the Art of the Holocaust at http://fcit.usf.edu/HOLOCAUST/arts/art.htm

Have students paint or draw a picture representing the Holocaust

Alternative:  Have students select an image online of the Holocaust

Alternative:  Have students make a collage of Holocaust images or representations

Keeping with all of the guidelines mentioned above, students may also:

• Use a computer to set the lines of their poems, carefully choosing appropriate fonts, styles, and point sizes and overlay it on a picture or collage of the Holocaust
• Use art supplies to hand letter their poems.

Survivor Story Links:

• http://fcit.usf.edu/HOLOCAUST/resource/Website.htm#survivors
• http://fcit.usf.edu/HOLOCAUST/arts/lit.htm
• http://fcit.usf.edu/HOLOCAUST/resource/Website.htm#victims

Other Resources:

• http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/holocaust/timeline/camps.htm
• http://fcit.usf.edu/HOLOCAUST/RESOURCE/resource.htm