Lesson Plan—Google Lit Trip
Emily Wagg--Grades 7/8 History
Objectives: The purpose of this lesson plan is to trace the life of Anne Frank using geography and history. This lesson will work in conjunction with the reading of the
in the Language Arts classroom as part of a larger World War II unit in seventh grade.
Standards: Core Knowledge Curriculum Sequence
 Blitzkrieg: invasion of Poland; fall of France; Dunkirk
 The Holocaust: “Final Solution”; concentration camps (Dachau, Auschwitz)
Procedure:
1) Students will be introduce to Anne Frank with the following prompt: a.
Warm Up prompt: “How long do you think you could handle hiding from someone or something dangerous?” (discuss)
2) Teacher will guide students through a visual timeline of Anne Frank’s life in conjunction with the book they will be reading in ELA. a.
Using the following timeline of the life of Anne Frank http://teacher.scholastic.com/frank/diary.htm
& an interactive timeline on the SMART board: http://www.annefrank.org/en/Subsites/Timeline/#!/en/Subsites/Timeline/Int er-war-period-1918-1939/Anne-Franks-birth/ b.
Students will trace the life of Anne Frank by visiting the locations of her life:
 Born in Frankfurt, Germany to Edith and Otto Frank—(June 12, 1929)
[Frankfurt, Germany, 1930’s—Opera House]

 Anne’s family moves to Netherlands when Hitler rises to power –settles in
Amsterdam
[Hitler waving to crowds in Berlin, Germany]-- http://www.annefrank.org/en/Subsites/Timeline/#!/en/Subsites/Timeline/Interwar-period-1918-1939/Emigrating-to-The-Netherlands/1933/Adolf-Hitlerwaves-to-an-enthusiastic-crowd-in-Berlin-after-becoming-Chancellor-of-
Germany/
 1940—Hitler continues invasion of Belgium, Netherlands and France. Frank family goes into hiding when Hitler begins registration of Jews. Secret Annex

on the grounds of father’s business in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Family goes into hiding on July 5, 1942.
[Secret Annex]—Prisengracht 263 http://www.annefrank.org/en/Subsites/Timeline/#!/en/Subsites/Timeline/World
-War-Two-1939-1945/The-Hiding-place/1942/Otto-Franks-business-premiseson-the-Prinsengracht-in-Amsterdam/
 August 2, 1944—members of the Secret Annex are betrayed and arrested.
They are sent to Westerbork Transit Camp (just north of Amsterdam). https://www.google.com/maps/place/Herinneringscentrum+Kamp+Westerbor k/@52.921213,6.570195,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x47c823a44af0cef
7:0xcb3ff7bb3e12ba18
[Prisoner Barracks at Westerbork Transit Camp] http://www.theholocaustexplained.org/ks3/the-camps/types-of-camps/transitcamps/#.U6w90E1OXct

 In September of 1944, the prisoners are sent to Auschwitz where they are separated by gender. The women are sent to Bergen-Belsen Concentration
Camp in Northern Germany. o Anne dies at Bergen-Belsen in March of 1945 (within days of her sister
Margot). o Anne’s father is liberated from Auschwitz in Jan. 1945. o Anne’s mother, Edith, dies at Auschwitz-Birkenau in January of 1945.
3) Teacher will divide class into discussion groups (approximately three-four students) with an assigned record keeper. They will take time to respond to the following discussion questions. Teacher will ask one representative from each group to answer questions at random.
4) Students will be graded on participation. Full participation in the lesson will earn them 20 points for the day. Distracted actions or commentary will be observed and recorded throughout lesson and will detract from students’ overall points for the day.
Discussion Questions:
1) What might you feel to notice as Swastikas begin to show up around your hometown?
2) Do you think Otto Frank was wise to move his family out of Germany?
3) Is it better to hide and possibly delay death than to be deported right away?
4) Why do you think the family was separated?
5) [If Anne knew that she was headed back to Germany] How do you think it felt for
Anne to return to her homeland via cattle car, headed to a work camp?
6) In your opinion, how important is Anne’s diary?
Summary:
In this lesson, students will be guided through the life of Anne Frank. They will follow the path of Anne’s life using Google Earth, several online timelines, and a webcam experience of the Secret Annex. Anne’s life followed the trajectory of being raised in
Germany, being forced to move to Holland under stressful circumstances, being sent

into hiding and then sent back to her homeland to work until her death in 1945 (just before the war concluded in April). Students will follow these geographic locations listed above to trace the path of Anne’s life and then they will be divided into groups of three to process the discussion questions in response to the images that were presented. They will record their responses in each group and present them to conclude the class session. Students will be graded for participation. Their work will be part of a larger unit on World War Two.