In this teacher’s guide we trace the major steps in the development of what became the “Final Solution to the Jewish Question”. We follow the sections of our similarly named video on this topic, providing points of consideration for the teacher. We stress these are for the teacher - as opposed to students - because the information and consideration points are not necessarily suitable for presentation as such in the classroom. Rather, the material here presented is meant as a brief overview for teachers on the major stages of the Final Solution, in order to establish the foundational historical knowledge necessary for any educational discussion of the Holocaust. We hope this guide will spark some ideas and points you may wish to emphasize for your students when teaching the topic of the Holocaust in your classroom. We recommend also consulting the educational unit, “Teaching about the Perpetrators”, as these topics are in many points complementary.

1. Stages in the Development of the “Final Solution”

2. Introduction:
In this teacher’s guide we trace the major steps in the development of what became the “Final Solution to
the Jewish Question”. We follow the sections of our similarly named video on this topic, providing points of
consideration for the teacher.
We stress these are for the teacher - as opposed to students - because the information and consideration
points are not necessarily suitable for presentation as such in the classroom. Rather, the material here
presented is meant as a brief overview for teachers on the major stages of the Final Solution, in order to
establish the foundational historical knowledge necessary for any educational discussion of the Holocaust.
We hope this guide will spark some ideas and points you may wish to emphasize for your students when
teaching the topic of the Holocaust in your classroom. We recommend also consulting the educational unit,
“Teaching about the Perpetrators”, as these topics are in many points complementary.

3. Before You Begin
Before viewing the video, consider the following questions:
1. What do you know about the “Final Solution”? Who do you think planned it?
2. When did it begin? Was it planned early on (for instance, before the Nazis’ rise to power in
1933, towards the outbreak of the War, only during the War)?
3. Was the planning conducted carefully? Was it applied uniformly throughout Europe?
4. To what degree did the Germans carry out the murders on their own? Were they assisted by
other countries?

4. Introduction and Historiographical Debate

5. Introduction and Historiographical Debate
1. Why do you think the difference between the Intentionalists and the Functionalists is significant?
What does one or the other “tell us” about the Holocaust? How might Nazi ideology factor into
this debate?
2. What do you think we can learn from the conflicting documents presented in the video? Are
they indicative of a certain measure of disconnect or disorder between the Nazi regime and the
various state institutions? Intentional misleading? Other factors?
3. Do you think the approaches are in some respects compatible? How do you think that might be?
For more, see:
The Development of the Final Solution - Dr. Havi Dreifuss
Video - Traditional and Nazi Antisemitism

6. Prewar Anti-Jewish Measures

7. Prewar Anti-Jewish Measures
Almost from the moment of the Nazi
rise to power we see severe anti-
Jewish measures, not only
persecuting Jews but also
separating them more and more
from the rest of German society. To
what extent do you think this was
driven by ideological Antisemitism
(the imperative for “racial purity”;
Jews as an “anti-race”)? Was this also
perhaps to ease future measures
against the Jews, a kind of “out of
sight, out of mind”?
For more, see:
Video - Traditional and Nazi Antisemitism
About the Holocaust: Nazi Germany and the Jews

8. Potential Territorial Solutions

9. Potential Territorial Solutions
The invasion of Poland in September 1939 and the events that followed, including the concentration of the
Jews in ghettos, led the Germans to seek out a territorial solution to the "Jewish question". They therefore
developed a plan for the expulsion of Jews to specific restricted regions (Nisko-Lublin and later on
Madagascar). This "territorial" stage in the development of the "Final Solution" is seen as a radicalization in
German policy towards the Jews and as "potentially genocidal". Why do you think that is? How does this
radicalization factor into the debate between the Functionalists and Intentionalists mentioned above?
For more, see:
The Development of the Final Solution - Dr. Havi Dreifuss
Nisko and Lublin Plan
Madagascar Plan
The Madagascar Plan, July 1940

10. Operation Barbarossa and the Initial Stages of
the “Final Solution”

11. Operation Barbarossa and the Initial Stages of
the “Final Solution”
1. The Einsatzgruppen following the invading army
took part in widespread murder. In the first
weeks of the invasion, the patterns of murder
differed from area to area (for example, in some
areas only men were murdered, in others
women and children as well).
What can we learn from this?
2. Researchers have shown that in most cases
members of the S.S. and police would not have
faced harsh penalties for opting not to partake
in the murder. Nevertheless, the overwhelming
majority did. Why do you think this was so?
German Invasion Eastwards
For more, see:
Teaching about the Perpetrators: A Case Study
“Local Murders” in “How Was It Humanly Possible” Unit

12. Development towards the Final Solution -
Romania and Croatia; Experimental Gassings

13. Development towards the Final Solution -
Romania and Croatia; Experimental Gassings
For more, see:
Murder of the Jews of Romania
Roots of Romanian Antisemitism -
from the Report of the International
Commission on the Holocaust in
Romania
Ivo Goldstein - The Genocide against
the Jews in the Independent State of
Croatia

14. The Wannsee Conference

15. The Wannsee Conference
In the documents presented at the
Wannsee conference (see sample below)
we find a list of countries and their Jewish
populations. The list includes countries not
under German control at that point, some
not taking part in the War. Why do you
think this is so?
For more, see:
The Wannsee Conference
From the Wannsee Conference Protocol: Country List
The “Final Solution” -- A Bureaucratic Process or an Ideological
Genocide? Interview with Prof. Yehuda Bauer

16. Conclusion

17. Conclusion
After viewing the video, which points especially do you think are important to highlight when teaching
about the Holocaust in your classroom?
You can find much more on these and related issues on our educational website and through our online
courses.