In the story Number The Stars, there are two best friends, Ellen Rosen and Annemarie Johansen.  The Rosen's are one of the many Jewish family's living in Denmark in 1943.  The German's have taken over Denmark.  The jews are forced to leave or be captured and persecuted by the German Nazi's.  Annemarie's family helps the Rosen's escape from Denmark.  They are taken by boat to Sweden, where the German's are not invading.  The Rosen's will be safe there but how long will they have to stay?

At the end of Louis Lowry’s Number the Stars, Annemarie’s uncle informs her that the Rosen’s were able to successfully escape to Sweden despite the persistence of the Nazi’s.The war is now over and Ellen and her family have returned to their homeland Denmark.Take on the role of Ellen, a girl forced to flee her homeland in the desperate attempt to save herself and her family from the persecution of the Nazi’s, and write a journal entry of her experiences during the war.Also include feelings of how you (as Ellen) felt during the war and looking back on it.Use the resources included to provide historical information.

1)You will first research the links provided to find out what life was like for the Jews in Europe during World War 2.

2)You may also include information of life in Demark from the book   Number the Stars.

3) Write a journal entry from the point of view of Ellen looking back on the war.

4) Be sure to list the sources used in finding information for your journal entry.

Here are some resources you can use while creating your story.  Use any information on these websites that you find appropriate.

http://www.sdhc.k12.fl.us/~middleton.magnet/global/holocaust/holo.htm
http://www.ushmm.org/outreach/nrule.htm
http://hjem.get2net.dk/chabad/rescue14.htm
http://www.denmarkemb.org/okt43.htm

Rubric

Stays on topic, consistent10pts.
Proper use of CUPS (capitalization, usage, punctuation & spelling)10pts.
Clearly defined beginning, middle and end10pts.
Use of Internet sources clearly cited10pts.
Accuracy of historical information                      10pts.

Activities/Lessons

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2children/teachers_and_parents/lesson.shtml
http://www.teachervision.com/lesson-plans/lesson-2538.html
http://www.people.virginia.edu/~pm6f/Day2.html
http://www.planetbookclub.com/kids/archive/stars.99/starsintro.html
http://www.trek-21.wvu.edu/pdstwo/nmccutchan/html/homepage.htm

Support Information

http://www.lysator.liu.se/nordic/scnfaq33.html
http://www.peachtree-online.com/Yellow_Star_no_art/Adults/occupation.adult.htm
http://www.qt.org/worldwar/timeline/index.html
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2children/

About the Author

http://falcon.jmu.edu/~ramseyil/lowry.htm