Middle School History

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7th Grade History: This Month-March-April, 2008

“Paperclips:  Just One Clip at a Time” movie and discussion

The 7th and 8th graders are studying WWII and the Holocaust. Because of this, Halli brought me an inspiring movie for us to watch about a middle school in Tennessee a few years ago. 

Apparently, during World War II, Norwegians were prohibited from wearing any buttons with the likeness or initials of their king on them. In protest they started wearing paperclips, because paperclips were a Norwegian invention whose original function was to bind together. This was a protest against the Nazi occupation and wearing a paperclip could have gotten you arrested.

So, in order for the students to visualize the 6,000,000 Jews who were killed during this war, the students began collecting paperclips. They sent letters, which eventually caught the attention of the media worldwide. They received 25,000 letters from all over the world, as well as 11,000,000 paper clips, which are housed today in an authentic railway car parked on the school property.

What a GREAT project!

Ongoing Student Activity/Assimilation: Students will be given a new identity.

1. They may choose to be an American soldier during World War II, a Jewish person in either Germany/Austria/Poland/France or a national citizen in either Germany/Austria/ Poland/France who rescued or helped the Jews. After choosing their identity, students will need to begin to collect their documentation-such as name, nationality, birth certificate, travel papers, ID, etc. (see envelope in Anne Frank unit)
2. Throughout this unit, students will collect photos, write letters, newspaper articles etc.

World War II Assimilation Required Documentation:

1. Need a birth certificate with name, birth date, nationality, location of birth, mother’s name and birth date, father’s name and birth date.
2. Need official looking traveling papers.
3. Need letters from a relative to prove identity, and to keep as keepsakes/memories. Maybe the relative is warning you, or inviting you to come visit.
4. Need a letter from you to a relative or friend, explaining what is going on.
5. Need 3+ old photos to assemble a mini-scrapbook. Each photo should have a hand-written caption explaining the photo. (This is false information-created by you) This scrapbook can be shown as proof that you are who you say you are, if stopped and questioned. This mini-scrapbook will be in the back of your journal.
6. Need a journal. You will keep a journal of events/feelings/thoughts during this war. You should have at least 10 entries with dates. You might write about things you miss doing -things you did before the war (activities, games, events, sports, school, vacations, etc.) You might write about family members/friends that have been questioned, detained, disappeared or died. You might write about your political beliefs. This journal should be AUTHENTIC!
7. Need 3+ authentic newspaper articles. These will be collected and kept in your journal. They should reflect you, where you are, and important events.
8. Need a list of what important items you keep with you, or ready at all times in case you have to leave in a hurry. Write a few sentences about why you chose that item/it’s importance.