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Through the Lens of History: Focusing on the Holocaust Using Film

Student Holocaust Education Day Symposium

Join us on Holocaust Remembrance Day for a day of virtual "live" and "on demand" programming. Grades 4-6 will participate in live virtual events, while Grades 7-12 can access on demand sessions starting at 9 am ET, with a special live virtual event for Grades 7-12 at 1 pm ET.

Thursday, April 24, 2025​

9:00am - 3:00pm ET

All on demand sessions will be available until Monday, April 28th
at 9 am ET.

Recordings of the live Zoom sessions will be available in the virtual library in 10-15 business days.


Scroll down to your desired session and click the on demand video at ANY TIME.
Resources available below! 

Click on your desired section

Avec le soutien de :

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Grades 4-6

10:00 AM

Princess Alice of Greece, a Brave Rescuer During the Holocaust

Princess Alice of Greece was a courageous person. During the Second World War, she hid a Jewish family in her residence in Athens, protecting them even when the Gestapo raided her home. Join Kathy Kacer as she talks about this remarkable rescuer and watch as this story is read by Kathy's daughter, Gabi Epstein.

Kathy Kacer
Award-winning author

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Headshots-Kathy-Kacer-Feb15-2025-FINAL-3 - Kathy Kacer.jpg

Zoom link: This session over. Thank you for attending! 

This session is LIVE on Zoom.

11:00 AM

Tattooed Torah

Based on Marvell Ginsburg’s beloved children’s book of the same name, The Tattooed Torah recounts the true story of the rescue and restoration of a small Torah from Brno, Czechoslovakia. In the film, which has already reached over 11,000 classrooms, the Torah is described as the most “precious possession” of the Jewish people—a symbol that represents memories tied to cultural heritage, family, hope and resilience. Narrated by famed actor Ed Asner, the film teaches historical information about the Holocaust in a manner appropriate for a young audience by embedding it in a relatable, profound and touching story. In addition to watching the short film (~20 minutes), this session will also include relevant survivor testimonies from the iWitness platform on the USC Shoah Foundation's website to help students recognize the connection between the film and actual events.

Cindy Kozierok
Educator

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Resources:

Zoom link: This session is over. Thank you for attending!
The recording will be available in 10-15 business days in the virtual library. 

This session is LIVE on Zoom.

12:00 PM

LUNCH BREAK

1:00 PM

Hold On To Your Music - Meet the Author and Performer

Come and learn about the story of Lisa Jura and the "Children of Willesden Lane" during WWII. Concert pianist, author, and Lisa Jura’s daughter, Mona Golabek, will share a very special reading of her new children’s book, Hold On to Your Music, beautifully illustrated by renowned Italian artist, Sonia Possentini. After the reading, Mona Golabek will be available for questions from students and their teachers.

Mona Golabek
Founder & President of 
Hold On To Your Music Foundation.

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Headshot-Mona Golabek - Rebecca Keel.jpg

Zoom link: This session is over. Thank you for attending!
The recording will be available in 10-15 business days in the virtual library. 

This session is LIVE on Zoom.

2:00 PM

The Story of Simcha: An Introduction to the Holocaust

This program will introduce students in upper elementary grades to the Holocaust through the story of SImcha Holzberg. After providing an introduction to the topic of the Holocaust and providing some basic context, students will view a short animated film (10 minutes) that conveys the experiences of Simcha Holzberg, a Holocaust survivor from Warsaw, Poland. This short film allows young students to become acquainted with the subject of the Holocaust with an emphasis on spiritual resilience and the values of giving, continuity, and caring for others. Following the film, students will discuss Simcha's story and what they learned about his experiences.

Irene Resenly
Echoes and Reflections 

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Resenly Head Shot 2024 - Irene Ann Resenly.jpeg

Zoom link: This session is over. Thank you for attending!
The recording will be available in 10-15 business days in the virtual library. 

This session is LIVE on Zoom.

We would love your feedback! Please complete the short survey and tell us how we did: 
https://bit.ly/Echoes-and-Reflections

Grades 7-9

On Demand

1:00 PM

Drawing Closer to Testimony

This “live” Zoom program for grades 7-12 will explore testimony through art with internationally acclaimed artist, David Kassan. Over the past 11 years, David has been painting life-size portraits of Holocaust survivors, preserving their stories through this unique and indelible format. During the program, David will sketch Holocaust survivor, Mariette Doduck, while she recounts her experiences during the Holocaust. Students will watch Mariette’s portrait come alive as they speak.

Mariette Doduck
Holocaust Survivor
Click the image for full bio

Marie-Doduck-new.jpeg

This session is LIVE on Zoom.

David Kassan
Artist

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Zoom link: This session is over. Thank you for attending!
The recording will be available in 10-15 business days in the virtual library. 
Interested in exploring Mariette’s story further?
Mariette’s memoir A Childhood Unspoken is featured in Seeking Refuge: Immigration to Canada Before, During and After the Holocaust, a new classroom lesson from the Azrieli Foundation’s Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program designed for middle school and up. The lesson focuses on the War Orphans Project and includes survivor testimony, primary sources and guided activities. Teachers can reach out to them directly to request more information or order the memoir: memoirs@azrielifoundation.org

Nobody Told Me

When teaching about the dark times in history – it is important to draw attention to those who shared their light with others. Nobody Told Me is a 30-minute documentary created in collaboration with the Johannesburg Holocaust & Genocide Centre, highlighting the horrific living and working conditions in the Warsaw Ghetto during WWII. The story of Dr Halina Szencier-Rotstein is told through the eyes of her daughter, Wanda and her grandson, Luc, and includes interviews with historians and experts in the field, as well as archive footage of Warsaw during, and post, the war.

Resources:

*This link is available until April 25th 

Catherine Boyd
Johannesburg Holocaust & Genocide Centre
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Cathy Wilson
Johannesburg Holocaust & Genocide Centre

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Cathy Headshot - Cathy Wilson.png

On Demand

Holocaust Survivor Nate Leipciger's Testimony Presented by His Granddaughter

Jenn shares Nate’s story through a combination of personal interviews, a PowerPoint presentation, and her own experiences. She provides historical context, explores his life in Canada, and discusses important lessons about hatred, the misuse of symbols like the swastika, and the dangers of intolerance. Most importantly, she conveys Nate’s vision for the future: that true coexistence requires more than mere tolerance—we must mutually accept one another, as long as we allow each other to live in peace. Nate’s Story: Nate Leipciger was born in Chorzów, Poland, on February 28, 1928, alongside his sister, Linka. In September 1939, the German army invaded Poland, and soon after, Chorzów was declared "Judenrein" (free of Jews). Nate’s family was forced to relocate to Sosnowiec, which became a de facto ghetto. They were later deported to Auschwitz, where Nate was separated from his mother and sister, never to see them again. By chance, Nate’s father managed to move him into his line, allowing them to remain together. Nate endured the horrors of multiple concentration camps, including Auschwitz-Birkenau, Funfteichen, Gross-Rosen, Flossenbürg, Leonberg, Mühldorf am Inn, and Waldlager, two sub-camps of Dachau. On May 2, 1945, Nate and his father were liberated. In 1948, they immigrated to Canada, where Nate built a new life. He later married Bernice, and together they raised three daughters. Today, their family includes 9 grandchildren and 12great-grandchildren, a testament to resilience and hope.

Jenn Green
Carrying Testimony from Generation to Generation

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Resources:

On Demand

Introducing White Bird - Humanity in the Face of Hatred

The USC Shoah Foundation, Lionsgate, and Kingdom Story Company partnered to educate young people about the courage to choose kindness in connection with the film White Bird. During this session presented by the USC Shoah Foundation, students will be introduced to the film White Bird, learn about the impact of antisemitic Nazi policies on Jewish communities in Vichy France during the Holocaust and how acts of courage and kindness showed resistance to antisemitism during this period. Students will engage with featured clips from the film that convey the effect of antisemitism on the key character of the film, Sara Blum, a young French-Jewish girl, and watch audiovisual testimony from survivors of the Holocaust, who lived through similar experiences and discover how acts of kindness made a difference in their life, during this period. By the end of this session, students will reflect on the importance of kindness and write a pledge that shares how they will apply kindness in their daily life.

Sedda Antekelian
USC Shoah Foundation

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Resources:

The USC Shoah Foundation presents a suite of multimedia educational resources that accompany the film for educators to deepen their own knowledge and extend classroom learning about the Holocaust with testimony and film. See the USC Shoah Foundation’s educational website, IWitness--Teaching Film with Testimony: White Bird, webpage (https://iwitness.usc.edu/sites/whitebird)--to find clips of audiovisual testimony, classroom activities, as well as viewing and discussion guides for the classroom and for families.  

This lesson presented is based on a combination of two activities that accompany the film in IWitness:

You can watch White Bird: A Wonder Story on Amazon Prime, Apple TV and other streaming services

Rewatch the clips from Sedda's session here: 

  1. White Bird Trailer - on the home page in the banner: https://iwitness.usc.edu/sites/whitebird

  2. Lily Redner's Clip: https://iwitness.usc.edu/sites/whitebird?at=cg&clip=1682&entry=1_fdd7zcvq

  3. Short clip from the Film can be found in the IWitness activity "White Bird - Humanity in the Face of Hatred" https://iwitness.usc.edu/activities/7897

On Demand

Glimpses of Jewish Life Before the Holocaust

In this session, students will learn about the richness and diversity of Jewish life in Europe before the Holocaust. They will begin by reflecting on their perceptions of Jewish life prior to the Holocaust before viewing a short film that illustrates the range of experiences of Jewish teenagers in pre-World War II Europe. Following further reflections, students will have the opportunity to learn more about the experiences of specific Jewish teenagers through visual history testimony and additional primary and secondary sources.

Jennifer Goss
Echoes & Reflections

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JGossHeadshot - Jennifer Goss.png

Resources:

We would love your feedback! Please complete the short survey and tell us how we did: 
https://bit.ly/Echoes-and-Reflections

Grades 10-12

1:00 PM

Drawing Closer to Testimony

This “live” Zoom program for grades 7-12 will explore testimony through art with internationally acclaimed artist, David Kassan. Over the past 11 years, David has been painting life-size portraits of Holocaust survivors, preserving their stories through this unique and indelible format. During the program, David will sketch Holocaust survivor, Mariette Doduck, while she recounts her experiences during the Holocaust. Students will watch Mariette’s portrait come alive as they speak.

Mariette Doduck
Holocaust Survivor
Click the image for full bio

Marie-Doduck-new.jpeg

This session is LIVE on Zoom.

David Kassan
Artist

Click the image for full bio

david kassan-min.png

Zoom link: This session is over. Thank you for attending!
The recording will be available in 10-15 business days in the virtual library. 
Interested in exploring Mariette’s story further? 
Mariette’s memoir A Childhood Unspoken is featured in Seeking Refuge: Immigration to Canada Before, During and After the Holocaust, a new classroom lesson from the Azrieli Foundation’s Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program designed for middle school and up. The lesson focuses on the War Orphans Project and includes survivor testimony, primary sources and guided activities. Teachers can reach out to them directly to request more information or order the memoir: memoirs@azrielifoundation.org

On Demand

Dignity and Rights

Students will learn about the role that othering plays in the denial of dignity and rights. In a journey through our galleries and a viewing of the film Canada, Antisemitism and the Holocaust, students will examine the Holocaust and recognize othering as a starting point for many human rights violations, including genocide.

Ashley Doering
Canadian Museum for Human Rights
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Ashley Doering (2) - Ashley Doering.jpg

On Demand

Exploring the Holocaust Through Survivor Testimony: The Howard Chandler Journey

This session will immerse students in Holocaust history through the powerful testimony of Howard Chandler, a 96-year-old Holocaust survivor from Toronto, Canada, featured in the "Journey with Howard Chandler" app. Led by Dr. Josh Andy, the session combines Howard's personal story with historical context using filmed testimony, digital mapping, and interactive analysis. Students will explore key moments of Howard's journey, deepening their understanding of the Holocaust, antisemitism, and the importance of remembrance. Emphasizing critical thinking, empathy, and media literacy, the session will guide students in analyzing survivor testimony within a broader historical framework.

Ellen Resnek
Classrooms Without Borders

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Dr. Josh Andy
Classrooms Without Borders

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Josh Andy - Ellen Resnek.jpeg
Ellen Resnek - Ellen Resnek.png

Resources:

On Demand

Echoes of Survival - Surviving Against All Odds: the Holocaust Testimony of Jack Borenstein, Shared by His Granddaughter

Danya Koplowitz
Carrying Testimony From Generation to Generation

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Jack_Danya Koplowitz - Danya Koplowitz.jpeg

In this presentation, Danya Koplowitz recounts her grandfather's experiences during the Holocaust. Born in 1924 in Ostrowiec, Poland, Jack Borenstein was spared during the mass deportation in 1942 due to a work permit his father secured for him at a local steel factory. He remained there until 1944, when he was deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau and later transferred to Buna, where he was forced to disarm unexploded bombs. Jack endured multiple camp transfers before being liberated on April 30, 1945, at the Feldafing Hitler Youth Camp in Germany. He immigrated to Toronto in 1950, where he built a successful life, running a popular diner and raising a family.

On Demand

Reflecting on Liberation: Tragedy or Triumph?

January 27, 2025 marked 80 years since the liberation of Auschwitz, now commemorated as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Was liberation the happy ending we think it was?Did the liberators and the survivors feel a sense of triumph? Join Sheryl Ochayon, Project Director for Echoes & Reflections at Yad Vashem, to explore filmed testimonies, photographs and other primary sources that tell the more complicated story of liberation as it really was, for the survivors and the liberators.

Sheryl Ochayon
Echoes & Reflections

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Conf 4 best maybe - Sheryl Silver 2.jpg

We would love your feedback! Please complete the short survey and tell us how we did: 
https://bit.ly/Echoes-and-Reflections

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