The Daily Record
DMS Students Remember Children Of Holocaust With Butterfly Lessons
Dunn Middle School seventh-grade students in Kayla Carr’s second core English language arts class recently planted and hosted butterfly gardens in memory of the victims of the Holocaust.
For the last few weeks, students have been completing a unit on the Holocaust in which they have analyzed poetry and artwork created by children who lived in concentration camps during World War II. Students worked through their very own “Butterfly Journal” as they completed the unit on the Holocaust.
A large focus of the unit was analyzing the poem “The Butterfly” by Pavel Friedmann. In this poem, Mr. Friedmann explores his feelings of living in the concentration camp Terezin with use of the imagery of a butterfly.
As a cross-curricular activity, students not only analyzed the poem and discussed the butterfly metaphor, but students also planted their own garden with a calla lily as the center. The purpose of the garden was to serve as a reminder to remember the children who lived at Terezin and to create and maintain peace in everyday life.
Jatavius Williams said that he liked learning about the children in the concentration camps and what they went through. He commented, “I liked planting the flowers outside. The flowers remind us about the kids and the importance of remembering them.”
In addition to planting the garden, students also hosted a butterfly garden in class. Students watched five caterpillars grow and transform into butterflies. The students named the butterflies Boss, Lexie, Casey, Jay and Chavo. The purpose of watching the caterpillars grow and then letting the butterflies go was to honor the children of Terezin and serve as a reminder that people deserve to fly free, just like the butterfly.
Javion Raines stated that his favorite part of the unit was watching the butterflies grow. “I liked watching the butterflies, because the butterflies mean hope,” he said.
At left, Kennisha Robinson is among the seventh-grade students in Kayla Carr’s second core English language arts class who planted a butterfly garden in memory of the victims of the Holocaust. At right, Jatavius Williams and Javion Raines also plant flowers in the garden.
Submitted Photos
