5. Interdisciplinary Approaches
The lessons in this section take an interdisciplinary approach to teaching and learning about the Holocaust. Building on the skills and strategies introduced in the previous sections, these units take an arts-based or humanities-based approach to reading graphic narratives.
Why an Interdisciplinary Approach?
Much has been written about the challenges of teaching genocide. The complexity of subject matter such as the Holocaust is daunting. An interdisciplinary approach that foregrounds empathy, lived experience, and narratives of trauma is beneficial for two reasons. First, genocides are complex and touch on many different subjects, thus our mode of teaching must be similarly nuanced. And second, this approach helps young people learn about prejudice, bigotry, and religious intolerance without overwhelming them with statistics and graphic videos.
Learning Objectives
Students will be able to:
- examine the art and testimony in graphic narratives of the Holocaust.
- explore the conventions used in graphic narratives.
- practice writing text and creating illustrations for their own graphic narratives.
Guiding Questions
- What important artistic ideas are important in creating graphic narratives?
- What is the importance of testimony in graphic narratives?
- How do you create a graphic narrative of a historical event?
Sequence
Visual Art
- Lesson 1: Overview: Narratives in Visual Art
- Lesson 2: Introduction to the Holocaust Using Art
- Lesson 3: Reflecting on Testimony
- Lesson 4: How to Read a Graphic Narrative
- Lesson 5: Student Created Graphic Narratives & Unit Wrap Up
Humanities
- Lesson 1: Starting the Process
- Lesson 2: Building Historical Narratives with Evidence
- Lesson 3: Colour and a Narrative Lens
- Lesson 4: Testimonies and Storyboarding
- Lesson 5: Literary Circles
