Stage 5 | History Program
TOPIC: The Modern World and Australia
Stage 5
Year 10
Duration:
7 weeks (semesterised course)
Detail:
18hrs/21 lessons (52 mins per lesson)
(Depth Study 6: Genocide and The Holocaust)
Historical Context of the Overview Despite attempts to create a lasting peace at the end of World War I, the world was engaged in another global conflict within 20 years. Not only did this conflict cause greater loss of life, it
witnessed the Holocaust, which resulted in the coining of the term genocide. Despite attempts by the UN to put measures in place to prevent genocide from occurring again, there are many
examples of the systemised killing of groups of people post-Holocaust. This unit considers the nature of genocide, why it occurs and how it can be prevented. The Holocaust is used as a case
study (alternatives could be Rwanda or the Cambodian Genocide). A film study of Schindler’s List is included, along with a consideration of film as historical text. Construction of history, through
consideration of revisionist/denial versions of the Holocaust, is also considered. A major feature of this unit is the Guided Inquiry.
Key Inquiry Questions -
Focus Historical Skills -

How did the nature of global conflict change during the twentieth
century?
The highlighted historical skills are targeted in this unit:

What were the consequences of World War II? How did these
consequences shape the modern world?

How was Australian society affected by other significant global
events ad changes in this period?
Framing Questions Content Questions

What is genocide?

How and why does genocide occur?

Where and when has genocide occurred?
Comprehension: chronology, terms and concepts

Read and understand historical texts

Use historical terms and concepts in appropriate contexts (ACHHS165, ACHHS183)

Sequence historical events to demonstrate the relationship between different periods, people and places
(ACHHS164, ACHHS182)
Analysis and use of sources

Identify different types of sources

Identify the origin, content, context and purpose of primary and secondary sources (ACHHS169, ACHHS187)

Process and synthesise information from a range of sources as evidence in an historical argument (ACHHS170,
ACHHS188)

Evaluate the reliability and usefulness of primary and secondary sources for a specific historical inquiry
(ACHHS171, ACHHS198)
This unit of work was written by Emily Shanahan, Roseville College. Copyright © of the unit of work is owned by AISNSW.
NSW syllabus content prepared by the Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW for and on behalf of the State of New South Wales is protected by Crown copyright. .
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Conceptual Questions
Perspectives and interpretations

Is all mass killing genocide?


Can genocide be avoided? How?
Identify and analyse the reasons for different perspectives in a particular historical context (ACHHS172,
ACHHS173, ACHHS190, ACHHS191)

What should ordinary people do to stop future genocides?

Recognise that historians may interpret events and developments differently (ACHHS191)
Contestable Questions

Holocaust Denial – did the Holocaust happen?

Is the term owned by the Jewish diaspora?

Memorialisation of the Holocaust – should it happen?
Empathetic understanding

Interpret history within the context of the actions, values, attitudes and motives of people in the context of the past
(ACHHSS172, ACHHS173, ACHHS190, ACHHS191)
Research

Ask and evaluate different kinds of questions about the past to inform an historical inquiry (ACHHS166,
ACHHS167, ACHHS184, ACHHS185)

Plan historical research to suit the purpose of an investigation

Identify, locate, select and organise information from a variety of sources, including ICT and other methods
(ACHHS168, ACHHS186)
Explanation and communication

Develop historical texts, particularly explanations and historical arguments that use evidence from a range of
sources (ACHHS174, ACHHS188, ACHHS192)

Select and use a range of communication forms, such as oral, graphic, written and digital, to communicate
effectively about the past for different audiences and different purposes (ACHHS175, ACHHS193)
This unit of work was written by Emily Shanahan, Roseville College. Copyright © of the unit of work is owned by AISNSW.
NSW syllabus content prepared by the Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW for and on behalf of the State of New South Wales is protected by Crown copyright. .
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Outcomes -
Focus Historical Concepts -
A student:

Continuity and change: some aspects of genocide, such as how it is defined or enacted,
have changed over time. Other aspects, such as the intentional killing of a group of people,
have remained the same.

Cause and effect: reasons for genocide and the effects both locally and globally.

Perspectives: people from the past may have had different views and experiences. For
example, Nazi racial policies would be viewed differently by Germans and non-Germans. A
further example would be the varying interpretations of what constitutes genocide as
opposed to tribal warfare.

Empathetic understanding: the ability to understand another’s point of view, way of life
and decisions made in a different period of time or society, eg understanding the reasons
why various groups made the decision to commit genocide, and understanding the varied
responses to genocide.

Significance: the importance of understanding the impact of genocide on various groups in
their time and later periods.

Contestability: how historians may dispute a particular interpretation of an historical
source, event or issue, eg whether or not the Holocaust occurred.

HT5 3 explains and analyses the motives and actions of past individuals and groups in the
historical contexts that shaped the modern world and Australia

HT5 4 explains and analyses the causes and effects of events and developments in the
modern world and Australia

HT5 6 uses relevant evidence from sources to support historical narratives, explanations
and analyses of the modern world and Australia

HT5 7 explains different contexts, perspectives and interpretations of the modern world and
Australia

HT5 8 selects and analyses a range of historical sources to locate information relevant to
an historical inquiry

HT5 9 applies a range of relevant historical terms and concepts when communicating an
understanding of the past
Site Study –
Key Historical Language -
Relevant at any point throughout the unit, after the overview
genocide
Holocaust
Schindler
anti-Semitism
Possible site studies include:
Aryan
Auschwitz
Belzec
concentration camp

Visit to the Sydney Jewish Museum
diaspora
Einsatzgruppen
Final Solution
Führer
gentile
Gestapo
ghetto
Judenrat

Kristallnacht
Mein Kampf
Nazi
Nuremburg Laws
pogrom
SS – Schutzstaffel
Zyklon B
Yiddish
Hebrew
Weimar Republic
Wannsee Conference
Shoah
This could include: hearing from a Holocaust Survivor – oral history and testimony,
examining primary source material, lectures etc. Teacher would benefit from reading:
Museums as Sites of History – Exploring the Sydney Jewish Museum, Avril Alba in
Teaching History: Journal of the History Teacher's Association of NSW, Vol 38, No 4, p3437

Virtual site study of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
This unit of work was written by Emily Shanahan, Roseville College. Copyright © of the unit of work is owned by AISNSW.
NSW syllabus content prepared by the Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW for and on behalf of the State of New South Wales is protected by Crown copyright. .
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Site Study –
Key Historical Language -
Relevant at any point throughout the unit, after the overview
Assessment overview

Virtual site study of The Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute

Virtual site study of the Armenian Genocide Museum of America

Virtual site study of the The Museum of Genocide Victims

Virtual site study of The Killing Fields Museum – Learn from Cambodia
The Modern World and Australia
Semester 1
Semester 2
Depth Study 6 | Genocide and The Holocaust
Term 1, Weeks 1-7
Term 3, Weeks 1-7
Assessment for learning
Assessment as learning
Assessment of learning

Individual Guided Inquiry progress feedback.

Individual Guided Inquiry
Individual Guided Inquiry - Weighting: 30%

Class discussion on Genocide

Film analysis – Schindler’s List

Student questions to group presenters of Genocides

Group research on different Genocides

Structured writing – Nazi Germany

Group research on the Nazi Police State

Source analysis on Anti-Semitism

Virtual tour and source comparison of Auschwitz

Visual representation/essay of Kristallnacht

Analysis of Berlin Olympics
Overview: This task provides the opportunity to develop
research skills while investigating a chosen genocide. Students
will not only research different perspectives of the events, but
also use primary sources to understand the experience of
individuals who experienced the genocide. The research will
be presented as either a documentary or website.

Mindmap/class discussion on other groups persecuted by the Nazis

Revisionist history exploration

Critical writing on the extent to which Hitler was to blame for the
Holocaust

Mock presentation on the prevention of
Genocide
Outcomes to be Assessed:
HT5-3, HT5-4, HT5-6, HT5-7, HT5-8, HT5-9
This unit of work was written by Emily Shanahan, Roseville College. Copyright © of the unit of work is owned by AISNSW.
NSW syllabus content prepared by the Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW for and on behalf of the State of New South Wales is protected by Crown copyright. .
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Content
Teaching and learning strategies –
Resources
including opportunities for extension activities & adjustments
Overview



(AFL) Class Discussion – What is Genocide? Create mindmap as students discuss/debate. Briefly
consider the http://www.history.com/topics/what-is-genocide as a comparison for students. View images
on the Museum of Genocide Victims site to convey impact.

Group Research on genocide: in groups of three or four, select (or be allocated) a research topic:
Armenian Genocide, Cambodian Genocide, East Timor, Kosovo/Bosnia, Burundi, Bangladesh, Sierra
Leone, Rwanda, Sudan (or other topic). Students to research the following questions in relation to their
topic:

Define “genocide”

Identify the races, cultures or nations involved in the conflict researched

Briefly outline the reasons for the conflict

Why did one side commit genocide against the other

How was the genocide carried out

How many victims were there

Where those carrying out the genocide punished? Why or why not?

What was the effect of the genocide on the victims and their society?

During the second lesson, students present a Prezi or PowerPoint to the class on their findings in a 3-5
minute presentation to give students an overview of the variety of genocides throughout the 20th Century

Using sites such as http://leninimports.com/nuremberg/party/rallies.html show images from the
Nuremberg Rallies. Discuss: Where did Hitler come from? How did he become the leader of the Nazi
Party? How do the pictures show Hitler’s power? Why did so many people want to hear him speak? What
did he speak about? How were German people feeling at the time?

In pairs or individually, students research why Hitler became chancellor in 1933

Students to write a paragraph on why Hitler became Chancellor in 1933

Support weaker students by assisting them with a dot-point chronology of Hitler’s rise to power

Extend more able students by pushing them to consider using the following terms in their paragraph:
Mein Kampf, propaganda, Weimar Republic

Use the Holocaust Encyclopedia to provide an overview of the systematic, bureaucratic, state-sponsored
persecution and murder of 6 million Jews by the Nazis
Definition of genocide (2 lessons)
Overview of Nazi Germany/the
Holocaust (1 lesson)
The Museum of Genocide Victims
http://genocid.lt/muziejus/en/
What is Genocide?
http://www.history.com/topics/what-isgenocide
The Holocaust Chronicle (2000), L
Weber (ed)
The Holocaust Encyclopedia
http://www.ushmm.org/learn/holocaust
-encyclopedia
This unit of work was written by Emily Shanahan, Roseville College. Copyright © of the unit of work is owned by AISNSW.
NSW syllabus content prepared by the Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW for and on behalf of the State of New South Wales is protected by Crown copyright. .
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Content
Teaching and learning strategies –
Resources
including opportunities for extension activities & adjustments
Students study:

Introduction to the Guided Inquiry
(3 lessons)

Anti-Semitism and Hitler (1
lesson)

Police State and Opposition to the
Nazis (1 lesson)

Introduce the Guided Inquiry. This is the ongoing research task for the duration of this unit. Three lessons
in the library with IT Support are provided to assist students in commencing their research and
presentation.

Students to read pp323-324 of The History and Sociology of Genocide. Consider the following questions:

Identify and describe the 3 ways Chalk and Jonassohn see the Holocaust as unique in their study of
genocide.
-
Do scientific advances and progress make genocide more or less likely to occur? Give reasons for the
answer.
-
Could genocide happen in Western societies in the 21st Century? Give reasons.

Consider “Why Anti-Semitism” from The Holocaust Chronicle and answer:

What is “anti-Semitism”?
-
Describe what happened to the Jews in Europe from 70CE to the 1800s
-
What form has anti-Semitism taken?
-
What link is made between anti-Semitism and the Holocaust?

Students to briefly find two differing opinions of Hitler from people at the time: share the opinions and
discuss why the opinions differ

Students to read Anti-Semitism http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.u,/GERantisemitism.htm and consider:

What view does Hitler have of the Aryan race?
-
What is his view of Jews?
-
Discuss the flaws of his arguments – students to research “Aryan” and Hitler’s heritage.

See extension at end of unit for continued program for gifted students.

Aim of lesson is to help students understand the amount of policing that the Nazi Party introduced and
also the opposition to the Nazis within Germany.

Divide students into 6 groups to research the following topics:
-
The SS
-
Concentration camps
-
The Gestapo
-
Polics, courts and prisons
Nazi Propaganda Posters
http://calvin.edu/academic/cas/gpa/post
ers2.htm
The Holocaust Encyclopedia
http://www.ushmm.org/learn/holocaustencyclopedia
Anti-Semitism
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.u,/G
ERantisemitism.htm
www.historyplace.com/worldwar2/holoc
This unit of work was written by Emily Shanahan, Roseville College. Copyright © of the unit of work is owned by AISNSW.
NSW syllabus content prepared by the Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW for and on behalf of the State of New South Wales is protected by Crown copyright. .
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Content
Teaching and learning strategies –
Resources
including opportunities for extension activities & adjustments

Hitler’s Anti-semitic Policies 1935
to the Final Solution – research
lesson (1 lesson)
-
Informers
aust/timeline.html
-
Heinrich Himmler
http://www.ushmm.org

Students only need 10 minutes to informally gather information, appointing spokespeople to share the
information.
http://history1900s.about.com/library/hol
ocaust/blholocaust.htm

Continuing in the same groups, explore images of Nazi propaganda posters on Nazi Propaganda Posters
http://calvin.edu/academic/cas/gpa/posters2.htm
Each group to select 3 posters and discuss:
The Holocaust Chronicle (2000), L
Weber (ed)
-
What can I learn from this source?
Virtual Auschwitz:
http://www.remember.org/auschwitz/
-
What is being said or being shown?
-
When was it produced?
-
Where was it produced?
-
Why did the Nazis produced it?
-
What evidence do we have to support these points?
-
Explain posters of choice to the rest of the class, with students considering whether Germans were
fearful or enamoured by the Nazis.

Support: Group quieter or less engaged students together and use questions to ensure they keep
participating

Extend: Explain how Hitler changed Germany from a democracy to a dictatorship. Research at home and
write 200-300 words.

Students to use the identified websites to complete the questions. (Research lesson).

What were the Nuremberg Laws of 1935 and what was their effect?
-
What happened to Jews on Kristallnacht, November 1938?
-
Why did Hitler build ghettos?
-
Where were the ghettos?
-
Describe life in the ghettos?
-
What were the Einsatzgruppen? Describe their activities.
-
What was the Final Solution?
-
Name the six Death Camps and describe their location.
Suggested textbook (optional) –
Retroactive 2
This unit of work was written by Emily Shanahan, Roseville College. Copyright © of the unit of work is owned by AISNSW.
NSW syllabus content prepared by the Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW for and on behalf of the State of New South Wales is protected by Crown copyright. .
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Content
Teaching and learning strategies –
Resources
including opportunities for extension activities & adjustments
-


Nuremburg Laws (1 lesson)
Kristallnacht and The Ghettos (1
lesson)
Describe Auschwitz and how it operated.

Support: Direct students to the Holocaust Encyclopaedia or provide them with a copy of the Holocaust
Chronicle as it has clear pictures, clear responses and will act as a visual guide to enhance their
understanding.

Extend: Students to explore the virtual tour of Auschwitz http://www.remember.org/auschwitz/ and
compare this with written accounts from survivors and/or Nazi collaborators. Is it likely Auschwitz was a
Death Camp?

Retroactive 2, 6a.2 – Using the Law (or internet research)
Students to read what life was like during the early years of Nazi rule. As a class, draw up a list of the
most invasive or restrictive principals.

In pairs/threes, students to consider what their lives would be like should such laws be imposed, and then
consider the laws across three generations (ie – for them, their parents and their grandparents) and
consider the following:
-
Which groups would be well accommodated?
-
Which groups would be hindered by the laws?

As a class, determine what the laws would mean for the class and for the school in general.

Extension: research the Berlin Olympics. What evidence is there that Germany knew their laws and
principals were shameful or unethical? Could the international community have intervened at this point?

Students to research:
-
What was Kristallnacht?
-
How did the Germans justify Kristallnacht?

Discuss findings as a class

Students to gather photographs of Kristallnacht and create a 1 minute Photostory/movie of the event.
Consider giving students one of two perspectives: a modern, Western empathy viewpoint or a Nazi,
Germany viewpoint to use Kristallnacht as propaganda

Share a selection of the differing viewpoints with the class when completed

Students to account for how the same images can be used in a persuasive manner – either to inspire or
depress.
This unit of work was written by Emily Shanahan, Roseville College. Copyright © of the unit of work is owned by AISNSW.
NSW syllabus content prepared by the Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW for and on behalf of the State of New South Wales is protected by Crown copyright. .
| 8
Content
Teaching and learning strategies –
Resources
including opportunities for extension activities & adjustments



Persecution
The Final Solution (1 lesson)
Film as History (1 lesson)

Mindmap – who else did Hitler persecute? Probe students to come up with a list incorporating the
following:
the work-shy; unhealthy; tramps; homosexuals; prostitutes; gypsies and travellers; alcoholics; beggars;
mentally and physically handicapped; juvenile delinquents; severely disabled; ethnic minorities; nonChristians

In four groups, students to research:
-
Propaganda and how Hitler stirred up resentment
-
Sterilization Law, which allowed Nazis to sterilize people with certain illnesses or perceived illnesses
-
Concentration camps and, from 1936, who was being sent to them by the Nazis
-
The Euthanasia Campaign

After 15 minutes, each group reports back to the class for a discussion on which groups of people were
affected – students should complete a table on each topic identifying groups and issues

Watch Auschwitz: The Nazi Final Solution

Students to take notes on the key events

Support: provide a scaffold with directed questions such as Who, When, Where to guide students

Extend: After the documentary, consider the culpability or blame for the Holocaust. Was it solely Hitler?
Who else was to blame? Write a response to the question “To what extent was Hitler to blame for the
Holocaust”?

Teacher should read “Visions of History”

Students to read: Reel History p15-16 and consider the following:

DVD: Auschwitz: The Nazi Final
Solution
-
What problems do cinematic historians face in making historical films?
-
What do cinematic historians turn to?
Visions of History: Film in History
Education, Marnie Huges-Warrington in
Teaching History: Journal of the History
Teacher’s Association of NSW, Vol 37,
No 4, p4-9
-
Identify the ways that cinematic strategies manipulate the representation of history on screen?
Reel History (2002), R B Toplin
-
Why do some observers reject cinematic history?
Schindler’s List
-
Consider the implications of the answers to these questions when watching Schindler’s List.
Students to read: Reel History p203-205 and consider:
-
What can films do that the printed word cannot do?
This unit of work was written by Emily Shanahan, Roseville College. Copyright © of the unit of work is owned by AISNSW.
NSW syllabus content prepared by the Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW for and on behalf of the State of New South Wales is protected by Crown copyright. .
| 9
Content
Teaching and learning strategies –
Resources
including opportunities for extension activities & adjustments



The Real Oscar Schindler (2
lessons)
Evaluating Schindler’s List as a
source (1 lesson)
-
What may films such as Holocaust and Schindler’s List do?
-
What is the potential of cinematic films?
-
Is there any cause for concern about the use of film in interpreting history?
Students to research praise and criticisms of Schindler’s List, and identify problems under the following
headings:
-
it is a Hollywood product
-
It is a fictional narrative
-
It is seen from the perspective of the perpetrators of the Holocaust
-
The Holocaust cannot be directly represented

Support: Simplify the questions: what are the benefits of history through film? What are the drawbacks?

Extension: Is it unethical to make money by telling the story of the victims of the Holocaust?

After school viewing of the film Schindler’s List. Students to watch at home if unable to attend.
Students to take notes on the characteristics of Schindler and the relationship portrayed between
Schindler and the Jews.

Documentary: Voices From the List.
Voices From the List

Students to take notes using the worksheet provided. This will assist with the evaluation of Schindler’s
List as a source.
Accompanying Worksheet/s

Support: Abridged version of worksheet provided.

Extend: Use the reading list to read Schindler Jew survivor stories eg The Boy on the Wooden Box.

Hexagonal Thinking: Teacher to read about it here Hexagonal Thinking
http://edu.blogs.com/edublogs/2012/08/what-computers-cant-do-hexagonalthinking.html?utm_source=feedburner

Teacher to design approximately 25 themes/issues/characters on hexagons and copy for students to
work in groups of 4. Students to link key themes/events together, to assess Schindler’s List as a source.
Eg, words on hexagons might include: dramatization, artistic interpretation, saved 1100 Jews, etc

Students to work in groups of 4 to link the hexagons together: it is hoped students will identify a pathway
with drawbacks linked at one end, and positives of the film at another

This pathway can form the basis or scaffold for an extended response
Hexagonal Thinking
http://edu.blogs.com/edublogs/2012/08/
what-computers-cant-do-hexagonalthinking.html?utm_source=feedburner
This unit of work was written by Emily Shanahan, Roseville College. Copyright © of the unit of work is owned by AISNSW.
NSW syllabus content prepared by the Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW for and on behalf of the State of New South Wales is protected by Crown copyright. .
| 10
Content
Teaching and learning strategies –
Resources
including opportunities for extension activities & adjustments


Revisionist/Denial versions of
Holocaust (2 lessons)
Prevention of genocide (2
lessons)

Students should move to another group, leaving behind their links. When examining another group’s
design of hexagons, they can reflect on their own and make changes as necessary

Using the hexagons as a scaffold, students to write a response to the following question:

Explain the positives and negatives of studying the Holocaust through the film Schindler’s List.

Support: What aspects of Schindler’s List represent the Holocaust? What aspects of Schindler’s List are
not useful for someone studying the Holocaust?

Extend: To what extent is Schindler’s List useful to an historian studying the Holocaust?

Explain to students that “revisionist” views challenge previous histories.

Students to use Why wasn’t Auschwitz Bombed?, the Zundelsite and A Genuine eye-witness account to
answer the following questions:
-
What is the purpose of each of these sites? Support your answer with evidence from the sites.
-
Examine the language used – is it neutral or emotive/persuasive? (Find examples)
-
How do the authors of the sites use evidence? Are they even handed? Are their conclusions logical
and unbiased? (Give examples)
-
Who is the intended audience?
-
Do you think these sites are publishing “legitimate” history? Justify your answer.
-
What have you learned about Internet sites as a result of this exercise?

Extension: Consider the sites on Holocaust Denial. To what extent does evidence support or deny their
claims?

In groups of three/four, students are to present an argument either accepting or denying (should your
students truly believe this, consider revising the course with them first!) that the Holocaust happened.
Students must support their case with archaeological and written evidence.

Students should be divided into groups with those who have researched their same topic for the Guided
Inquiry.

In these groups, students should read the UN site on Prevention of Genocide.

Students are to identify areas in their topic where intervention could have occurred or the course of
history could have been prevented.

Considering all the areas where international intervention could have stopped atrocities, students are to
write a proposal to be presented to the Office of the Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide,
Why Wasn’t Auschwitz Bombed?
www.air-photo.org/english/reasons.html
The Zundelsite www.zundelsite.org
A Genuine Eye-Witness Account of
Shootings of Jews on the Eastern Front
www.fpp.co.uk/Auschwitz/docs/Bruns/in
dex.hmtl
BBC Holocaust Denial
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/
genocide/deniers_01.shtml
Holocaust Denial on Trial
http://www.hdot.org/
Complicity in the Holocaust: Churches
and Universities in Nazi Germany,
Robert P. Ericksen
Office of the Special Adviser on the
Prevention of Genocide
http://www.un.org/en/preventgenocide/a
dviser/
This unit of work was written by Emily Shanahan, Roseville College. Copyright © of the unit of work is owned by AISNSW.
NSW syllabus content prepared by the Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW for and on behalf of the State of New South Wales is protected by Crown copyright. .
| 11
Content
Teaching and learning strategies –
Resources
including opportunities for extension activities & adjustments
articulating the missed opportunities which would have prevented their genocide from occurring.

Optional Extension Unit – run in
conjunction with Core Unit

Holocaust Literature Review

Understanding Historical Fiction
and/or Biographies
Students present their cases to the class in the final lesson.
Approach to Optional Extension Unit

Identify students who would benefit from an extension project for the duration of this unit through initial
overview discussions (AFL)

Commence by encouraging students to read a range of Historical Fiction and/or Biographies relevant to
the Holocaust or genocide

Students research either individually or in pairs to understand the approach needed to write effective
historical fiction and/or a biography

Students identify a person of interest they wish to investigate further – this could be a Holocaust victim
from any country, a Holocaust survivor, someone involved in Resistance, an individual who opposed the
Nazis or another individual connected to a genocide, not necessarily the Holocaust

Students to write a plan of how they would research their chosen individual: ie, proposed people to
interview, proposed places to visit, where they might obtain primary source material, identify historians
who may have already conducted research etc

Students create a dossier for feedback – teacher to provide feedback on how to deepen the research
approach, different types of source materials that might be available etc (AAL)

Option to write a chapter of the proposed biography/historical fiction (AOL)

Peer Review (AAL) – Extension students to provide feedback on dossier and initial writing – Promote the
concept of “Two Stars and a Wish” – ie, two positive comments for every constructive comment

Potential for student work to be “published” for school library
See Extensive Reading List under
“Resources – Books”
Extension students can also explore
libraries to find their own literature
These materials have been developed by the AIS through funding provided by the NSW Government to support new syllabus implementation. Copyright is owned by AISNSW.
Except as set out below or permitted under the Copyright Act, no part may be reproduced, stored or communicated without the approval of AISNSW.
Not for profit organisations may reproduce, store in a retrieval system and communicate the whole or any part of the materials without payment of a fee or other remuneration provided:
a)
The institution does not sell, hire or otherwise derive revenue from such reproduction, storage or communication
b)
The copyright of AISNSW is noted on any part which is copied or noted
If any other licence is sought, inquiries should be directed to the Executive Director of AISNSW.
This unit of work was written by Emily Shanahan, Roseville College. Copyright © of the unit of work is owned by AISNSW.
NSW syllabus content prepared by the Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW for and on behalf of the State of New South Wales is protected by Crown copyright. .
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Teaching and Learning Program Evaluation
Program or Unit Title: ___________________________________________________________
Element
Class: ________________
Teacher: _____________________________________
Evaluation
Program

Was the program well-structure and coherent?

To what extent did the program engage all students in the class?

Did the program assist all students to achieve the learning
outcomes?

What improvements could be made?
Resources

Were the resources used appropriately in terms of age level,
variety and the ability to engage the students?

What improvements could be made?
Assessment

Did the program incorporate a range of quality, valid assessment
tasks?

Reflect and comment on the level of student achievement in this
program.

What improvements could be made to assist students to achieve
the outcomes?
Date Commenced: ____________________________
Date Completed: _____________________________
Signature: _________________________________________
This unit of work was written by Emily Shanahan, Roseville College. Copyright © of the unit of work is owned by AISNSW.
NSW syllabus content prepared by the Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW for and on behalf of the State of New South Wales is protected by Crown copyright. .
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