This 90-minute, in-person program, is offered free of charge to junior and senior high school students in Calgary. A 30-minute overview of the Holocaust and antisemitism is followed by a 30-minute documentary introducing students to Alberta Holocaust survivors and their descendants. In the final half hour of the program, students will delve deeper into the personal history of a few Holocaust survivors with a connection to Calgary. Students come away with a deeper appreciation of the resilience and trauma experienced by our survivors.

The Second Voices Project is a series of Holocaust survivor testimonials brought into schools by second and third-generation descendants of Holocaust survivors. With help from a generous grant from The Government of Alberta, Calgary Jewish Federation has created multi-media presentations whereby children and grandchildren bring their parents’ or grandparents’ survivor testimony to life in grade 4 to 12 classrooms. Students learn the history of the Holocaust through a survivor’s story while absorbing valuable lessons about human rights, tolerance, and the dangers of hatred. Contact our department to determine which testimonial would work best for your classroom needs. These free presentations generally run 90 minutes in length and allow for questions at the end. The presentations are offered in person as well as virtually.

Offered at no charge, this year’s Holocaust education symposium will take place this May in both an in-person and virtual format.   Free busing will be provided to students from their schools to Mount Royal University on May 2 and 3. Space is limited at MRU, any registered schools unable to secure a spot at MRU will have the option of having Symposium at the Calgary Central Library or at their school. Virtual Symposium will take place May 8 to 12.  Symposium includes the welcome remarks, a brief presentation by a university professor, the documentary: Path to Nazi Genocide, and a presentation by either a Holocaust survivor or their descendant. Contact us for more information.

A replica suitcase is available for classes to borrow for up to three weeks. It is designed to put primary documents and artifacts connected to someone who went through the Holocaust, into the hands of students. They are then encouraged to examine, describe, and analyze the items as a means to investigate issues of discrimination, segregation, hiding, and resistance, as well as the aftermath of war and immigration. Learning is supported by student information cards and teacher guides. Recommended for elementary school classes, grade 4 and up. This program is offered free of charge.

Established in 1953, Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center, is entrusted with the task of commemorating, documenting, researching and educating about the Holocaust: remembering the over six million Jews murdered by the German Nazis and their collaborators, the destroyed Jewish communities, and the ghetto and resistance fighters; and honoring the Righteous Among the Nations who risked their lives to rescue Jews during the Holocaust. For approximately $250 per program, Yad Vashem offers teachers and their students the opportunity to delve deeper into the victims of the Holocaust and the roles of bystanders and perpetrators. It is highly recommended that the virtual tour of Yad Vashem be undertaken before students are led through any of the interactive Yad Vashem programs.