Jan. 27, 2021

What:         Students observe state’s second Holocaust Remembrance Week
                             
Who:          Harris Middle School sixth-grade students
                     Longfellow Middle School sixth-grade students

When:         Today is International Holocaust Remembrance Day

Where:        https://youtu.be/e2bpdpxMGOg 

This week is the second annual Texas Holocaust Remembrance Week, and in recognition of its significance, sixth-grade students in San Antonio ISD’s International Baccalaureate World Schools at Harris and Longfellow middle schools are participating in the second year of a social studies project on the subject. 

Harris Middle School students and teachers created a video presentation, linked above, which can be used as b-roll for news stories. The presentation reflects the education and learning sixth-grade students have learned – both this school year and the last one.

Additionally, Longfellow Middle School students will be taking virtual field trips with the Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum today and tomorrow, while Harris Middle School students will be taking virtual field trips with the Holocaust Memorial Museum of San Antonio.

In June 2019, Gov. Greg Abbott signed Senate Bill 1828 into law establishing Holocaust Remembrance Week throughout Texas public schools. Sen. José Menéndez authored the bill, which passed unanimously in the House and Senate Chambers allowing Texas to join 11 other states that require some form of Holocaust education in public schools.

In response, teachers from Harris and Longfellow middle schools developed a curriculum unit on the Holocaust. Through this curriculum, sixth-grade students honor the memory of six million people of the Jewish faith who perished in the Holocaust and recognize the subsequent genocides that have occurred since World War II.

While last year during the inaugural remembrance week, students were able to host an exhibition and attend these museums in person, this year the pandemic required the events to go online but it hasn’t dampened the thought and care that students put into their projects. The educational programming and virtual field trips were made possible by the SAISD Foundation.