Child of the Warsaw Ghetto

Child of the Warsaw Ghetto by David A. Adler, illustrated by Karen Ritz. Holiday House: New York, 1995.

Brief Overview:

This is a biography of Erwin (Froim) Baum. It is told through the eyes of a young Jewish boy, who had been placed in Janus Korczak's orphanage after the death of his father. The entire orphanage, along with Korczak, was forced by the Nazis to live in the Warsaw Ghetto in 1940. A detailed account of the Warsaw ghetto uprising is described. Froim is sent to several death camps but was fortunate to survive by being liberated by U.S. soldiers at Dachau.

Suggested activities:

1. Research the most well-known secret archive of the Warsaw Ghetto, code-named Oneg Shabbat ("Joy of the Sabbath"), founded by historian Emmanual Ringelblum in May 1940.

Papers describing life and death in the ghetto were buried in metal containers and dug up after the war.

Discuss the importance of this, and how it is an example of resistance.

2. Have students write a diary entry from the point of view of a member of the Jewish Fighting Organization (ZOB) before or after the Warsaw ghetto uprising. Suggested places to research the ZOB are:www.us-israel.org/jsource/Holocaust/zob.html and any book written about the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.

3. After reading a biographical sketch about Janus Korczak, write a poem to pay tribute to him for his courageous actions. A useful link is http://www.korczak.com/english.htm

4. Write an editorial about what occurred at the Warsaw ghetto uprising. Describe what took place; the people involved, such as Mordechai Anielewicz and General Juergen Stroop, and the roles each played. Statistics and dates should also be included.

Anielowicz http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/holocaust/people/Anielewi.htm

Stroop Report http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/holocaust/people/DocStroo.htm

5. An excellent excerpt written by Mordecai Anielowicz can be found in the book, Images from the Holocaust: A Literature Anthology, compiled by Jean E. Brown, Elaine C. Stephens, and Janet E. Rubin, National Textbook Company: Illinois, 1997. This can be found on pages 326 - 333. This was taken from the book, On both Sides of the Wall: Memoirs from the Warsaw Ghetto, by Vladka Meed. After reading this excerpt write a paragraph reacting to what you read. Share with your classmates.

6. In the November 28, 1960 issue of Life Magazine, a photograph of the "Little Polish Boy" appeared. The photo was taken by Jurgen Stroop as a birthday gift for Adolf Hitler and was published in the Stroop Report Newsletter in 1943. A very poignant poem about this photograph was later written by Peter Fischl, a hidden child of the Holocaust.

It is entitled "To the Little Polish Boy Standing With His Arms Up".

The poem and photograph can be found at http://www.holocaust-trc.org/FischlPoem.htm

The poster can also be purchased through
Social Studies School Service at http://socialstudies.com/for $12.00.