Bedzin Study Questions

Questions for Students during the Będzin Exhibit Visit

Directions: As you go through the exhibit answer the following questions in complete sentences.

The questions are organized by the title of the panel

Będzin Before the War - Section I

Geography

• Where is Będzin located in the world?

• Based on Doris Martin’s description of Będzin, how would you feel living in that environment?

Biographies

Write out 2-3 interesting facts about each individual below:

• Doris Martin

• Hadassa Broder

• Arnold Shay

• Rose Rechnic

• Jane Lipski

• Rutka Laskier

• Sam Pivnik

Out of these seven individuals, whom do you relate to most? Explain.

Education

• Why do you think were there regulations on the number of Jewish students in public schools?

• What does the bottom photo tell you about these people?

Family

• What did family mean to people during this time?

Judaism

• Sam Pivnik describes Jewish social clubs. What was the role of these social clubs for Jewish youth?

Będzin: Occupation and Ghettoization - Section II

Occupation

• What are some thoughts you have in regards to Sam Pivnik’s description on the German invasion?

• When did the Germans invade Poland? Why is that significant?

Restrictions

• Why was the curfew implemented as mentioned by Rose Rechnic? Why was this significant?

Judenrat and Jewish police

• What was the Judenrat?

• Pick either Jane Lipski’s, Sam Pivnik’s, or Rose Rechnic’s thoughts on the Judenrat and explain their feelings on it. What are your own feelings towards it?

Resettlement

• To what sort of places did the Germans move the Jewish population?

• How many people shared with Rose Rechnic family’s the two-bedroom apartment?

Work

• Who were the two people you could have worked for according to Pivnik?

• How does Rutka Laskier feel about the situation? Use evidence from the exhibit to back up your answer.

Daily Life

• What became the main need during this time of occupation?

Będzin: Ghetto Life and Deportations - Section III

Relocation to Kamionka

• Where was Kamionka located?

• Based on stories in this panel, how did people generally feel about the relocation?

Further Restrictions

• What were some new restrictions Jews faced? How did Rutka Laskier feel about it? Use evidence from the panel to back up your claim.

Resilience

• Analyze the photo in the middle of young women picking vegetables. Write down everything you see clearly, and then write down things that can be inferred about the individuals in the photo.

• How did young people find hope in such a dark time?

Resistance

• What were some ways in which people resisted?

• Did those people ever see consequences because of it?

Selections and Deportations

• Define Aktion and explain the importance of this word.

• Where was the main destination for Będzin Jews?

Liquidation

• Define liquidation.

• How did Doris Martin’s family survive?

• What does the chart on this panel say?

Będzin: After the Ghetto: Postwar Lives - Section IV

Auschwitz

• What was Auschwitz? Be specific and include all the camps included in Auschwitz

Liberation

• When was Auschwitz liberated?

Będzin After 1945

• What had become of Będzin according to Sam Pivnik?

• What happened to the seven individuals that we have been following throughout this exhibit?