Education Programs at The Defiant Requiem Foundation
Over 100 programs offered since 2008
There’s a lot going on behind the scenes at The Defiant Requiem Foundation. In addition to its public-facing programs — the concert-drama Defiant Requiem: Verdi at Terezín, the Emmy-nominated documentary film Defiant Requiem, and other special programs presented online and in-person around the world — the Foundation also plays a major role in educational programs for teachers, students, and the general public.
On January 29 and February 28, 2024, DRF will present two workshops for teachers. The January event, in partnership with the Leo Baeck Institute at The Center for Jewish History will introduce NYC public school teachers to a new set of high school lesson plans about Terezín using the archival collections of the Leo Baeck Institute. The February event is co-presented by Centropa, an organization devoted to preserving Jewish memory. This online workshop introduces teachers to resources from both organizations that relate to Jewish life in Prague, the Terezín concentration camp, and cultural resistance.
These programs are part of Defiant Requiem’s educational mission to use the story of Terezín to introduce and deepen students' knowledge of the Holocaust and cultural resistance, past and present. The Foundation offers educational programming and materials for teachers of social students, English language arts, music and art to support the use of the 45-minute documentary film, Defiant Requiem in classrooms. The modules were developed through a rigorous process of conceptualization, critical review, and evaluation, and have been revised and refined based on feedback from dozens of highly experienced teachers from public, private, charter, and parochial schools.
Since its founding in 2008, The Defiant Requiem Foundation has offered over one hundred educational programs, including workshops for teachers and presentations for students in schools, across the United States.
Curriculum details and additional information at education.defiantrequiem.org. Contact DRF Director of Education Alexandra Zapruder (azapruder@defiantrequiem.org) for inquiries about specific materials and programs.