Post-Viewing: Building a Toolbox against Hate

About This Lesson

In this lesson, students will consider the “tools” they need to heed the lessons from their study of Schindler’s List, including the importance of preserving human dignity, choosing kindness over cruelty, and breaking monumental acts of heroism into smaller daily habits. The “Toolbox for Standing Up to Hate” project requires students to create physical representations of the skills, attitudes, and actions that are necessary to respond to and prevent hatred from taking hold in their communities. The toolbox will serve as a reminder to them of the importance of their choices and their responsibility to ally with others to contribute to a world based on knowledge and caring rather than hatred and ignorance.

Essential Question

How can we apply the lessons of Schindler’s List toward standing up to hatred in our own communities?

Lesson Plan

Activity 1: Listen to a Survivor’s Perspective on the Lessons of the Film

• Explain to students that today they will be considering the lessons they can draw from their study of the film and apply to their lives. To help them reflect on these lessons, play Rena Finder’s Message to Young People (01:09). Before you watch the clip, preview the following questions with students and ask them to take notes that will help them answer:
  • What kind of world does Rena Finder envision as a “better” world?  What is her message to young people? 
• Ask students to share their answers using the Think, Pair, Share strategy.

Activity 2: Introduce the “Toolbox for Standing Up to Hate” Project

• Tell students that they will now be working on a project that will support them in standing up to hatred in their own communities.
• Pass out the “Toolbox for Standing Up to Hate” Project handout. Read the instructions for the project as a whole group and answer any clarifying questions. Then give students the rest of class to work individually on their projects.
• Optionally, you might have students complete the project in pairs or small groups. Also, consider providing additional class time, if possible, or assigning the project for homework so students have sufficient time to complete it as thoughtfully as possible.

Activity 3: Discuss How Schindler’s List Has Influenced the Class

• Complete your study of Schindler’s List by giving students the opportunity to share their toolboxes for standing up to hate. (You may need to set aside an additional class period for sharing.) If time is limited, you may ask each student to share one tool from their toolbox with the class. Have students take notes as their classmates share in order to help them remember the variety of tools the class has created.
• After all students have shared, ask students to respond to the following questions in their journals:
  • Were there any “tools” shared by your classmates that you would like to add to your toolbox? If so, what were they and why do you need them in your toolbox
  • Did you notice any patterns in the “tools” shared by the class? Did any themes emerge?
  • What do the toolboxes that you and your classmates created say about the impact studying Schindler’s List had on you? What lessons are you taking away from the film?
• Conclude by leading a class discussion in which students are invited to share their responses.