Very challenging assignment for middle school kids.
At that level of school all I knew about the Fuhrer was
his moustache and the Nazi salute.
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School Forced to Apologize When Hitler-Themed Homework
Leaves Parents in Uproar
December 11, 2017
Students at a middle school in Gurnee, Illinois, received a controversial homework assignment in their language arts class that has left parents fuming.
“If You Give Hitler a Country,” was assigned to students at Woodland Middle School last week, according to Chicago’s WGN-TV.
The assignment, themed after the children’s book “If you give a mouse a cookie,” featured a character similar to “My Little Pony,” students to draw “Fun & Colorful” pictures to “create a comic strip for little kids that exemplifies Europe’s appeasement towards Hitler.”
School Forced to Apologize When Hitler-Themed Homework Leaves Parents in Uproar
The assignment, themed after the children’s book “If you give a mouse a cookie,” featured a character similar to “My Little Pony,” students to draw “Fun & Colorful” pictures to “create a comic strip for little kids that exemplifies Europe’s appeasement towards Hitler.”
“Everyone in the class was given the paper and it tells you all the directions and requirements,” 8th grader Michael Masterton told WGN-TV.
Michael’s mother, Kelly Masterton, recalled that she was “flabbergasted” by the assignment.
“I asked him ‘did you ask the teacher if you could use these images?’ and he said ‘yes,'” Masterton said, according to Fox News.
Masterton added that she was perplexed and unsure “what the appropriate manner is to use a swastika.”
“I don’t think she did it on purpose to be anti-Semitic. I think she was trying to teach that there was propaganda…It did not come through the assignment that way,” she added.
Another parent let their distaste for the assignment be known, stating that “There’s got to be a better way to teach our kids about the horrific things Hitler did.”
Woodland Community Consolidated School District 50 released a statement apologizing for the matter while reassuring parents that the assignment was in alignment with district curriculum and state standards on the coverage of World War II.
“However, the ‘fun’ and ‘cartoonish’ elements of the activity students were asked to complete did not fully represent the intent of the teachers,” the school district said. “The intent of the student activity was to help students understand the complex issues leading up to World War II, not to minimize the atrocities of Nazi Germany.”
Opinions on the assignment and subsequent backlash from parents were mixed on social media with some users calling the assignment “disturbing,” while others defended the root meaning behind the assignment.
“Yeah that’s mildly disturbing. What kind of animal is that thing supposed to be anyway?” one Twitter user wrote.
“Kids are learning about history and challenged to hypothesize the worst case scenario (Hitler Wins),” another Twitter user wrote. “They are in 8th grade not 3rd. This assignment will also teach empathy and acceptance on top of history and creative writing. I wouldn’t have a problem with this at all.”
The district refrained from commenting on whether any of their teachers would face disciplinary action.
What do you think? Scroll down to comment below.
https://www.westernjournal.com/school-forced-apologize-hitler-themed-homework-leaves-parents-uproar/
At that level of school all I knew about the Fuhrer was
his moustache and the Nazi salute.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
School Forced to Apologize When Hitler-Themed Homework
Leaves Parents in Uproar
December 11, 2017
Students at a middle school in Gurnee, Illinois, received a controversial homework assignment in their language arts class that has left parents fuming.
“If You Give Hitler a Country,” was assigned to students at Woodland Middle School last week, according to Chicago’s WGN-TV.
The assignment, themed after the children’s book “If you give a mouse a cookie,” featured a character similar to “My Little Pony,” students to draw “Fun & Colorful” pictures to “create a comic strip for little kids that exemplifies Europe’s appeasement towards Hitler.”
School Forced to Apologize When Hitler-Themed Homework Leaves Parents in Uproar
The assignment, themed after the children’s book “If you give a mouse a cookie,” featured a character similar to “My Little Pony,” students to draw “Fun & Colorful” pictures to “create a comic strip for little kids that exemplifies Europe’s appeasement towards Hitler.”
“Everyone in the class was given the paper and it tells you all the directions and requirements,” 8th grader Michael Masterton told WGN-TV.
Michael’s mother, Kelly Masterton, recalled that she was “flabbergasted” by the assignment.
“I asked him ‘did you ask the teacher if you could use these images?’ and he said ‘yes,'” Masterton said, according to Fox News.
Masterton added that she was perplexed and unsure “what the appropriate manner is to use a swastika.”
“I don’t think she did it on purpose to be anti-Semitic. I think she was trying to teach that there was propaganda…It did not come through the assignment that way,” she added.
Another parent let their distaste for the assignment be known, stating that “There’s got to be a better way to teach our kids about the horrific things Hitler did.”
Woodland Community Consolidated School District 50 released a statement apologizing for the matter while reassuring parents that the assignment was in alignment with district curriculum and state standards on the coverage of World War II.
“However, the ‘fun’ and ‘cartoonish’ elements of the activity students were asked to complete did not fully represent the intent of the teachers,” the school district said. “The intent of the student activity was to help students understand the complex issues leading up to World War II, not to minimize the atrocities of Nazi Germany.”
Opinions on the assignment and subsequent backlash from parents were mixed on social media with some users calling the assignment “disturbing,” while others defended the root meaning behind the assignment.
“Yeah that’s mildly disturbing. What kind of animal is that thing supposed to be anyway?” one Twitter user wrote.
“Kids are learning about history and challenged to hypothesize the worst case scenario (Hitler Wins),” another Twitter user wrote. “They are in 8th grade not 3rd. This assignment will also teach empathy and acceptance on top of history and creative writing. I wouldn’t have a problem with this at all.”
The district refrained from commenting on whether any of their teachers would face disciplinary action.
What do you think? Scroll down to comment below.
https://www.westernjournal.com/school-forced-apologize-hitler-themed-homework-leaves-parents-uproar/
