Text Set: Taryn MacLean
Text
The Boy on the Wooden
Box by Leon Leyson
Newsela article:
A History of anti-Semitism
https://newsela.com/read/lib-
anti-Semitism/id/29346
A collection of testimonies
from Holocaust survivors
http://web.library.yale.edu/te
stimonies/excerpts/index.ht
ml
How this text will meet the
goals
This novel gives readers a
first-hand look into the
Holocaust. It is about a ten
year old boy whose family
survived the Holocaust by
being placed on
Schindlers list. It also
describes his struggles
during this time. We will
use this text to explore
many of the concepts
surrounding the Holocaust
such as ghettos and
concentration camps.
This article gives a brief
overview of anti-semitism
and its role in the
Holocaust/beyond. It is
important for students to
understand this piece to
the Holocaust as it is this
type of hatred that created
much of the tension during
this time.
One of the goals for the
unit is for students to
understand that this is an
issue that impacted
individuals. With all the
statistics about the deaths
and suffering that
occurred, it is beneficial to
remind students that
everyone who endured the
How this text meets literacy
needs of student
The language of the book is
written at a level that sixth
grade students should be
able to understand. We can
discuss first-hand accounts
of events and how the
language that Leyson uses
in the novel and the events
that he describes can only
be described by him and
other survivors.
This will give students
practice reading nonfiction
writing that provides
information about the topic. It
is written at a sixth grade
level, but students are able
to change the readability
level through the website. It
will expose them to key
words (Jew, anti-semitism,
Nazi, Hitler) that they have
been seeing throughout the
unit.
With videos, students must
think differently about the
content being presented than
if it was just in text. They are
able to see the faces of
these people as they explain
their hardships and can pay
attention to their tone of
voice, emphasis on words,
and facial expressions.

A poem by an anonymous
Holocaust survivor about
missing home- Homesick missing home during
https://www.edu.gov.mb.ca/k
12/cur/socstud/foundation_g
r6/blms/6-2-4b.pdf
Map showing the major
ghettos in occupied Europe,
1939-1944
https://www.ushmm.org/outr
each/en/media_nm.php?
MediaId=356
Map of liberation of major
Nazi camps, 1944-1945
https://www.ushmm.org/outr
each/en/media_nm.php?
MediaId=381
A song called Our Town is This song inspired people
Burning by Mordecai to rebel against the Nazis
Gebirtig
https://www.ushmm.org/outr
each/en/media_so.php?
MediaId=2621
Holocaust was an
individual with his/her own
story. These testimonies
will give students a view
into some of their stories.
This poem shows the
pains of a person who was
language when looking at
his/her time at a
concentration camp.
Students will be able to
discuss how they might
react to being taken out of
their homes with no
warning and what they
would miss about home if
the situation occurred.
We will look at the maps in
order to figure out
locations of ghettos
around Europe while we
discuss that specific
concept. Another map that
we can use is one that
shows the liberation of
major Nazi camps.
Students will see who
liberated the camps and,
in some cases, when the
camps were liberated.
Students will be able to read
the lyrics of the song.
and became popular in the
Krakow, Poland ghetto.
This is the same area that
Leon Leyson (the author
of the novel) was from.
Students will be able to
explore some figurative
this poem as well as vivid
imagery. The way that
poems are written is different
than how people would write
a narrative story, so students
can explore the language
and type of writing used in
poetry.
Map reading involves looking
at different areas and
determining what happened
in the area by using the key.
There is also a scale for
students to be able to see
how far apart the countries
are.
English is not the language
that is was originally written
in, so we can discuss
translation and how certain
lines of text may sound odd
due to the translation. There
is also a recording of the
song (not in English) that the
students can listen to for
mood/tone.