Tolerance & Holocaust Top Projects

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Thank you so much for your generous support in expanding our classroom library. Although our original project wasn't fully funded, your contributions allowed us to provide students with engaging and diverse books for independent reading.

Books like the poetry collection featured in the attached slideshow have been especially impactful. The poems inspired many students to try their hand at writing their own poems—an opportunity that has not only sparked creativity but also helped them discover their voices.

Your kindness has made a meaningful difference in our classroom, and I am truly grateful for your role in fostering a love of reading and writing among my students.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Couso

Particular students that are especially engaged are those from diverse backgrounds or those who are English language learners. They often find personal connections in the stories, which helps them feel seen and valued. Others are intrigued by the unique illustrations and narrative styles, leading to enthusiastic discussions and even requests for more books from specific cultures. Overall, the diversity in the collection enriches our reading experience and makes literature a celebration of our shared humanity.

We incorporate arts and crafts related to the stories, like creating cultural artifacts or holiday decorations, to deepen their connection to the material. I encourage questions and discussions, making it a collaborative learning environment. Discussing characters' choices and cultural contexts encourages students to think critically about their own beliefs and experiences.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Flugaur

There are times in life when the very existence of humanity depends on the willingness of a teacher to step into hard conversations. This is the situation in teaching a novel like Maus by Art Spiegelman to six classes of 9th graders in a school that has a large middle eastern population during the war concurrently occurring between Israel and Palestine. Our students will often espouse the views of their parents and the media without understanding the historical accuracy of why Israel exists, the persistent generational trauma of Holocaust survivors and their families, and the impact this current war has on the future of Jewish people internationally. My goal with this unit is to counterbalance my colleagues' fear about "teaching the Holocaust directly during this time" and "there were many other good books about WWII and not just the Holocaust," in order to bring this directly to my students at least once during their high school careers.

We are working on not only learning about graphic novels, but also the Holocaust from a historical perspective with a focus on anti-semitism and hate against one group of people without politically denying the need to understand this so history will not repeat. It is an opportunity to teach soft skills and still infuse the necessary English Literary Standards for our state, including symbolism, foreshadowing, and reading comprehension.

In my class, we read aloud all novels, because rather that try to fight the students that refuse to read at home, I find exposure to chosen novels so necessary that I will read them aloud to six sections each year, all year. Each student has a copy of the novel in their hands (thanks to your generosity), a digital copy online for at-home access, and additional digital resources that we use daily as a follow-up to their readings. These are chapter-based questions citing evidence from the text for the entire unit.

Although this is a difficult time to be Jewish in our current world climate, I was thrilled to see the face of my single Jewish student in one Honors class as she raised her hand to explain what gefilte fish was to her peers. She feels seen in my classroom. There are others as well who champion human rights, even at this young age, and are deeply attached to humanity and the survival of all people. They are young, but they are mighty.

I will not be able to express ample gratitude for the care and commitment you have given me by bringing these novels into my classroom through your donations. In the Talmud it says, "He who saves one life saves the entire world." This is how your generosity will play out because I believe my students will save our world in the future because of the work we do today. Thank you for your willingness to allow me to bring this forth to them and pave the way for the future. With heartfelt gratitude to you from all of us.”

With gratitude,

Dr. Cohen

Thank you for donating to our book project. These books were used during our unit on World War II to teach about the devastations that occurred during the Holocaust. Students were able to gain a greater understanding of what happened through the voice of a survivor. We greatly appreciate your support of our middle school student's learning. Without your help, we would not have been able to offer this book as a reading for our entire classes. Thank your for the generous donation to our language arts classroom.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Noakes

Thank you so much for donating to my classroom! The students have enjoyed adding this book to our classroom reading list! Their eyes have been opened to new stories and historical events because of your donation. Several students have taken an interest in Anne's story and continued reading other books related to her story. They were all able to connect the events in the book to the content that we were going over in our history lessons. Your donation has positively impacted several students and will continue for years to come with my future classes.”

With gratitude,

Ms. Doyle

Reading is a fundamental form of transferring knowledge, sharing history, and creating empathy. So many people have forgotten that we must treat one another with care, respect, and kindness. When we read "Maus," we are reminded that we must be upstanders and that every voice matters.

Thank you for supporting our efforts.”

With gratitude,

Dr. Klasek

Thank you so much, again, for donating to this project. With your help, I now have 40 copies of Maus by Art Spiegelman in my classroom - this book will help me challenge, grow, and educate my students!

As mentioned in this project description, these books won't be used in the classroom until next school year when I teach an elective about Graphic Novels and Literature. However, the donation of these texts was a key component in convincing my district to approve the course.

Students signed up for their next year of classes in various classrooms throughout the school, and I was able to provide teachers who helped students sign up for classes with a copy of Maus. This was a significant factor in generating interest in the course, and helped the new elective stand out among other popular elective options.”

With gratitude,

Mr. Benter