My students are wise like owls. Dead owls.

Today in class, we started talking about World War Two and the Holocaust as a preview before we begin reading The Diary of Anne Frank. I knew that this would be the first time most of my kids had heard anything about it, with the exception, perhaps, of those few students who suffered through watched the movie Pearl Harbor. And, because I'm uncomfortable leaving the history lesson up to Ben Affleck, I thought I should ask some key questions to determine the level of knowledge of the students. Would you like to hear a sample of some of the answers I got? You would? I knew it. Masochist.

Q: When did World War Two begin?

A: Um, like...1999? Or 1996?

Q: Who was Anne Frank?

A: A girl

Q: What started World War II?

A: An argument

Q: Name two of the countries involved in WWII.

A: Germany and Europe

My favorite comment, though, has to be from the students who became increasingly outraged as I told them about the Nuremberg Laws, which basically stripped Jewish people of all rights and privileges. As I told them how the Jewish people were not allowed to own vehicles (including bicycles), go to the movies, shop in certain places, or marry Aryans, their eyes widened in horror and amazement. Inevitably, in every class, one student would manage to splutter, through the horror:

"But...Miss! That's...that's like...DISCRIMINATION!"

At least they have a social conscience. I was beginning to wonder...