18 January, 2022
This lesson plan uses the story of Martha Blend and other Kindertransportees to discuss the Kindertransport program and the lives it affected.
What happened to the Kindertransport children? – This lesson is suitable for 11–14-year-old students. Through testimony, artefacts and memorials it introduces the history of the Kindertransport – a programme that rescued 10,000 children from the Nazis. It is suitable for use in a range of subjects – such as History, Art and Design, English, RE, PSHE, Citizenship.
Produced in partnership with The Harwich Kindertransport Memorial and Learning Trust, and with thanks to the BBC and The Wiener Holocaust Library.
In this lesson, your students will:
-Learn about Kindertransportee Martha Blend and her autograph book
-Hear what happened to arriving children who didn’t have foster families to go to through historic photos and a rare BBC audio recording of the children and young people themselves
-Explore a new memorial currently in construction and hear from the sculptor himself
View and download the resource here
18 January, 2022
This lesson produced by the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust looks at six occasions where British people took action to resist the persecution of Jewish people during the Holocaust.
This lesson explores the stories of British people who took risks and showed great courage and determination in order to save the lives of Jewish people during the Holocaust. Each have now been awarded a medal as a ‘British Hero of the Holocaust’ by the UK government.
This activity would work well for secondary school students (Key stage 3 and 4 or equivalent) with some basic background knowledge of the Nazi persecution of Jews in the 1930s and the Holocaust. It will help them to make the connection between the Holocaust and Britain during the Second World War, and explore the role of rescuers and resisters.
View and download the resource here
21 September, 2020
Brick Lane has been described by many as the ‘heartland’ of the Bangladeshi community in Britain, representing five decades of the struggle to belong and be recognised as part of the global city of London and the wider multicultural nation. Perhaps the most visible testament to this presence is ‘Banglatown’ – the short stretch of Bangladeshi-owned curry restaurants, cafés and other retail spaces that crowd the southern end of Brick Lane. The story of Bengali Brick Lane is a lens onto a vibrant but little-known history of the East End, of London, of Britain and its former empire – which is one strand in the tapestry of modern multicultural, post-imperial Britain. It is a story, too, of the street itself, and its iconic place within London and Britain’s history of migration.
10 September, 2020
It can be a struggle to answer the inevitable question: ‘Where are you from?’ when you’re not quite sure. A young woman of mixed heritage searches for an answer by looking back over three generations of her family. Documents, family stories and of course the British staple of tea and biscuits help her figure out a way to reply.
A personal look at questions of identity, at a time where migration, political isolation and reclaiming history are hot topics. Is it important to look to your own past in order to better respond to wider issues present today?
