Discussing the Nazi legacy with your kids (1 Viewer)

[Mirof]

For us in Belgium and France it's a bit easier
They are documentaries on T.V. made with the help of historian

Like " The rise of Nazi " 6 x 1Hr
" A life and rise of Hitler" 3 x1 Hr
" Jew and others deportations history" 6x 1Hr
same about the French and deportation, Belgium and deportation"
and many others
When I was young (12 years old) class were visiting Breendonk http://www.breendonk.be/EN/index.asp?ID=History ( we had in first grade school 6 year to 12 year old, an history cursus
beginning with pre history and going on to WWII, history of Belgium than extending to world history )
Just sit with your kid(s), to discuss with him(them) during and after I think lot of families can illustrate a part of it with their own family/relatives history
I remember my mother and my aunt telling me how they flew the german advance, digging in sews whan stukas came with their noise and firing on refugee to get more confusion, my mother who had very black hairs and questioned in the sreet to know if she was a gipsy and luckily directly released . And how she met my father in a shelter during a bombing at the end of the war, afraid and hidding under the coat of a man near her... my father ...
And for all european, the hunting for food, everyday, bombed night and day by german first, then by the allied forces who were bombing factories, rail station, bridges .... they endured ...
But now they are almost all gones, ask them to tell their story to the children, they must learn that war is not "glossy or matt"

 

[DMNamiot]

Hi Guys,

Glad that Chris brought this thread back to light. I have been over here in Europe going on 5 years and during that time my family has seen many amazing sights and some horrifying ones as well. My wife and I made a decision last summer to take our kids to see Auschwitz while we were in the Krakow region. We had already been to Dachau so they were semi prepared for it but the sheer scale of the camp at Auschwitz really demonstrated for my older kids just how horrible this event truly was. The impact on my kids was pretty stark and I guess I could be called a bad parent for wanting my children to see the dark side of humanity but it needed to be done so they could understand what this event was and why it should never be allowed to happen again. History Classes and trips to museums sometimes convey the meaning of an event but the camp at Auschwitz has to be seen to be believed. The one thing that really brought this home was the discovery of how my family was personally impacted by this event, we lost all of our relatives in the Crimea and Ukraine to the Holocaust. When we looked at the book of names I was deeply overwhelmed by the 44 names I found who were all related to my grand father. My wife on a whim looked up her family name and was even more shocked when she discovered that there were 150 people with her name as well, which being of German stock and thinking there would not be any with her maiden name made quiet an impact. Needless to say my children were stunned and now know first hand how deeply this event impacted so many people world wide.

Dave

 

[nmrocks]

Being of German Heritage I always read these threads with interest, someone else mentioned stop/not collecting certain genre and the cruelty of modern war, it has done the same for me, selling off all my rounds and going back to a time in history when wars were between armies. Not to say there wasn't enough civilian casualties and cruelty in the past but the nature of war has totally changed, civilian targets are now the primary targets and armies do there best to defend them. I couldn't glorify in anyway or display the overwhelming horrors and could not seperate the "Honoring those who fought" from the shear tragedy of it all.
The Nazi were mearly more efficient than any others in a typically german logical way, can anyone tell me the differnce between the nazi's and isis? pol pot? stalin? in the end you change the rug and the drapes and the end result is the same, millions dead for the most insane and rediculious reasons.
Ray

 

[jazzeum]

Being of German Heritage I always read these threads with interest, someone else mentioned stop/not collecting certain genre and the cruelty of modern war, it has done the same for me, selling off all my rounds and going back to a time in history when wars were between armies. Not to say there wasn't enough civilian casualties and cruelty in the past but the nature of war has totally changed, civilian targets are now the primary targets and armies do there best to defend them. I couldn't glorify in anyway or display the overwhelming horrors and could not seperate the "Honoring those who fought" from the shear tragedy of it all.
The Nazi were mearly more efficient than any others in a typically german logical way, can anyone tell me the differnce between the nazi's and isis? pol pot? stalin? in the end you change the rug and the drapes and the end result is the same, millions dead for the most insane and rediculious reasons.
Ray

Sadly, true. At the beginning of the book Fear: A Novel of WW I, a semi autobiographical novel by Gabriel Chevalier, the author quotes the following from Pascal's Pensees:

"Can anything be more ridiculous than that a man should have the right to kill me because he lives on the other side of the sea, and because his ruler has a quarrel with mine, though I have none with him."

 

[hotel3alpha]

All,

Well, I watch TONS of documentaries on TV via The History Channel, PBS and Military Channel. So, my kids get TONS of exposure to the subjects of the Nazis and believe it or not they watch them with me. They ask questions, are horrified at some of the images and wonder aloud saying "why"? Since, I love and respect history I find my self having conversations with my kids days after the segment at their behest. Since, the documentaries now a days are so well done, it grabs their attention and sparks conversation about the good and the bad of history.

John from Texas

 

[Poppo]

Hi Guys,

Glad that Chris brought this thread back to light. I have been over here in Europe going on 5 years and during that time my family has seen many amazing sights and some horrifying ones as well. My wife and I made a decision last summer to take our kids to see Auschwitz while we were in the Krakow region. We had already been to Dachau so they were semi prepared for it but the sheer scale of the camp at Auschwitz really demonstrated for my older kids just how horrible this event truly was. The impact on my kids was pretty stark and I guess I could be called a bad parent for wanting my children to see the dark side of humanity but it needed to be done so they could understand what this event was and why it should never be allowed to happen again. History Classes and trips to museums sometimes convey the meaning of an event but the camp at Auschwitz has to be seen to be believed. The one thing that really brought this home was the discovery of how my family was personally impacted by this event, we lost all of our relatives in the Crimea and Ukraine to the Holocaust. When we looked at the book of names I was deeply overwhelmed by the 44 names I found who were all related to my grand father. My wife on a whim looked up her family name and was even more shocked when she discovered that there were 150 people with her name as well, which being of German stock and thinking there would not be any with her maiden name made quiet an impact. Needless to say my children were stunned and now know first hand how deeply this event impacted so many people world wide.

Dave

Auschwitz 2 is the biggest camp, but not the most dramatic, in my opinion, because the gas chambers and crematorium were blown up by the ss in Birkenau, so that only a huge amount of barracks still exists. It is interesting and dramatic the museum in Auschwitz 1.
I was also in Lublin, and much more dramatic is Majdanek camp (in the Lublin subburbs) beacause the camp is whole with the gas chambers and crematorium.It looks like it is still on duty.

 

[Go for Broke]

That's why history is so important. A lot of kids and adults have no clue about history or current events, the price paid and sacrifices made. What evil really is. I never take freedom for granted.

 

[wds0855]

There are two very well done films that I think would be very good for young people to see.
They concern life from the point of view of German people caught up in what occured during WWII and how they participated, and reacted to events, some of which they had no control over. If you think you children are too young, you should view them first yourself and then decide.

1. The Boy In the Stripped Pajamas
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0914798/?ref_=nv_sr_1

2. The Book Thief
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0816442/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1


Walt

 

[Currahee Chris]

All,

Well, I watch TONS of documentaries on TV via The History Channel, PBS and Military Channel. So, my kids get TONS of exposure to the subjects of the Nazis and believe it or not they watch them with me. They ask questions, are horrified at some of the images and wonder aloud saying "why"? Since, I love and respect history I find my self having conversations with my kids days after the segment at their behest. Since, the documentaries now a days are so well done, it grabs their attention and sparks conversation about the good and the bad of history.

John from Texas

Thats my daughter and I. She turned me on to the Sons of Liberty miniseries and really dug into the "World Wars" miniseries History channel did a bit ago

Chris from 22 Acacia Avenue

 

[Denver]

I have not read all the posts at this thread.

Legacy usually connotes leaving good behind.
A better word is Aftermath.

 

[hotel3alpha]

There are two very well done films that I think would be very good for young people to see.
They concern life from the point of view of German people caught up in what occured during WWII and how they participated, and reacted to events, some of which they had no control over. If you think you children are too young, you should view them first yourself and then decide.

1. The Boy In the Stripped Pajamas
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0914798/?ref_=nv_sr_1

2. The Book Thief
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0816442/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1


Walt

Walt,

You nailed it. My daughter wanted to watch this movie and we did. It was touching, moving, and very sad, but a flick we could watch together. Will look into the Book Thief.

John from Texas

 

[nmrocks]

There are two very well done films that I think would be very good for young people to see.
They concern life from the point of view of German people caught up in what occured during WWII and how they participated, and reacted to events, some of which they had no control over. If you think you children are too young, you should view them first yourself and then decide.

1. The Boy In the Stripped Pajamas
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0914798/?ref_=nv_sr_1

2. The Book Thief
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0816442/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1


Walt

I'll second Johns endorsement, great films about children caught in war, one can only be crushed as we watch another round of the same cruelty when we watch the reports coming out of the middle east about the plight of refugees fleeing Syria and Iraq, the men stay and fight and the children are the predominate age group in all the camps.
Unimaginably tragic, with no end in site.
Ray