What is the right age to teach your kids why you really hate Nazis?

Unclebaldrick

Unclebaldrick

Well-Known Member
We are headed to DC in a couple of weeks and I have been thinking a lot about what to show my six year old. Is she too young to take her to the Holocaust Museum? I've been thinking a lot about this lately. Earlier this month I showed her videos of 9/11 including people jumping to their death to avoid the fire for the first time and it made quite an impression on her.

The holocaust isn't something I really wanted fully immerse my child in at this age but, considering the rise of Nazism and Naziism-lite here and around the world, I think the time has arrived. Its never to soon to start hating Nazis after all.

Anybody wanna weigh in on this - even you Nazi bitch-boys?

I am kind of worried about making this a real downer trip as our first must see is the Enola Gay. However, I feel that showing my kid around my school and other things in DC that have positive memories and context for me might balance it out.
 
M

mooray

Well-Known Member
Six is too young, imo. They generally don't have the life experience to grasp the impact, and if they somehow could at that age, it'd be traumatic. I wouldn't have shown the 9/11 videos either. Don't really need to etch these things in a kid's head just yet. It's a time to build confidence and security, so that later on, when they realize how awful the world can be, they're able to handle it without an overwhelming feeling of vulnerability taking hold.
 
CunningCanuk

CunningCanuk

Well-Known Member
Just from one dad to another, my two cents.

I’d avoid anything too shocking for a 6 year old. Particularly if she is sensitive. Let her keep her innocence for as long as possible. There’s lots of time to prepare her for the evil that’s around us.

My daughter is 13 and there is nothing we won’t discuss now. They grow up fast.
 
CatHedral

CatHedral

Well-Known Member
Unclebaldrick said:
We are headed to DC in a couple of weeks and I have been thinking a lot about what to show my six year old. Is she too young to take her to the Holocaust Museum? I've been thinking a lot about this lately. Earlier this month I showed her videos of 9/11 including people jumping to their death to avoid the fire for the first time and it made quite an impression on her.

The holocaust isn't something I really wanted fully immerse my child in at this age but, considering the rise of Nazism and Naziism-lite here and around the world, I think the time has arrived. Its never to soon to start hating Nazis after all.

Anybody wanna weigh in on this - even you Nazi bitch-boys?

I am kind of worried about making this a real downer trip as our first must see is the Enola Gay. However, I feel that showing my kid around my school and other things in DC that have positive memories and context for me might balance it out.
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Our people is like a bus teetering on a cliff. Almost half of it is in the air over the same sort of gulf that swallowed one of the most civilized nations. With this clear and present danger, I think yes.
The Enola Gay would be an object lesson in what we did to authoritarian aggressors and how much different we are from our grandparents’ America.
 
hanimmal

hanimmal

Well-Known Member
I would consider if you want them to be exposed to that online on their own, or with you at a museum.


But more than anything maybe explain what it is and let your kid decide? It is not going anywhere and there might be something different that they would rather learn about.
 
Unclebaldrick

Unclebaldrick

Well-Known Member
BudmanTX said:
stop in at the smithsonian alot of stuff there
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Technically speaking, the Smithsonian is dozens of museums though the Holocaust Museum is not part of the Smithsonian. It includes the Air and Space, National Portrait Gallery, Natural History Museum, American History Museum, Museum of African American History, Native American History Museum and about a dozen others.

She's smart as fuck and could probably handle it. We have had a lot of discussions about slavery, bigotry, hate, religious extremism and other elements of human history that I would hesitate to blithely expose a child to.

She's also non-binary so perhaps our preparation for understanding hatred and violence began sooner than we would have chosen since she has already become a target for it personally and politically.
 
Unclebaldrick

Unclebaldrick

Well-Known Member
hanimmal said:
I would consider if you want them to be exposed to that online on their own, or with you at a museum.


But more than anything maybe explain what it is and let your kid decide? It is not going anywhere and there might be something different that they would rather learn about.
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Yeah, she digs mummies but we are only going to be there a couple of days and that Museum is closed for both.
 
hanimmal

hanimmal

Well-Known Member
Unclebaldrick said:
Yeah, she digs mummies but we are only going to be there a couple of days and that Museum is closed for both.
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Damn, that would have been a really interesting historical journey of the Jewish people from start to what thankfully was not the finish.

I don't know anything about DC/museums outside of Henry Ford museum though so I am not really able to be much help outside of just asking.

Look forward to hearing how it goes either way though.
 
BudmanTX

BudmanTX

Well-Known Member
Unclebaldrick said:
Technically speaking, the Smithsonian is dozens of museums though the Holocaust Museum is not part of the Smithsonian. It includes the Air and Space, National Portrait Gallery, Natural History Museum, American History Museum, Museum of African American History, Native American History Museum and about a dozen others.

She's smart as fuck and could probably handle it. We have had a lot of discussions about slavery, bigotry, hate, religious extremism and other elements of human history that I would hesitate to blithely expose a child to.

She's also non-binary so perhaps our preparation for understanding hatred and violence began sooner than we would have chosen since she has already become a target for it personally and politically.
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she has been a target,that blows, by other kids or population?

i'm happy bout how smart the kiddo is, that's impressive

just imo, i would just take her to the smithsonian think from what you have explained think she's had enough, and honestly that would give her happy memories....js
 
Unclebaldrick

Unclebaldrick

Well-Known Member
hanimmal said:
I would consider if you want them to be exposed to that online on their own, or with you at a museum.


But more than anything maybe explain what it is and let your kid decide? It is not going anywhere and there might be something different that they would rather learn about.
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I guess one thing I think about is this: holocaust survivors regularly staff the Holocaust Museum. I grew up next to Skokie Illinois. I have met dozens, maybe hundreds of survivors. The impact of getting change from a shopkeeper or meeting a friend's grandmother and noticing the concentration camp tattoo always hit me like a brick and fixed the event as very, very close in time. Not sure it would have that effect on her though.
 
Unclebaldrick

Unclebaldrick

Well-Known Member
hanimmal said:
Damn, that would have been a really interesting historical journey of the Jewish people from start to what thankfully was not the finish.

I don't know anything about DC/museums outside of Henry Ford museum though so I am not really able to be much help outside of just asking.

Look forward to hearing how it goes either way though.
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I was thinking more of a museum of survivors of the nazis, not one honoring one.

Sorry, I could not resist. Mentioning that Henry Ford was a Nazi is a knee jerk reaction to me any time his name comes up.
 
Unclebaldrick

Unclebaldrick

Well-Known Member
BudmanTX said:
she has been a target,that blows, by other kids or population?

i'm happy bout how smart the kiddo is, that's impressive

just imo, i would just take her to the smithsonian think from what you have explained think she's had enough, and honestly that would give her happy memories....js
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First by their parents, lately by the kids too. Too much innocence might be a mistake.

I think we just leave real early so we can see the mummies on Sunday.
 
Roger A. Shrubber

Roger A. Shrubber

Well-Known Member
sounds like your kid is smart enough to deal with it...i'd get it out of the way, seems like they've already had some experience dealing with peoples hate and prejudice, this may be the time to show them just how much hate and prejudice there is, and where it can lead to if no one does anything about it till it's too late
 
Unclebaldrick

Unclebaldrick

Well-Known Member
Roger A. Shrubber said:
sounds like your kid is smart enough to deal with it...i'd get it out of the way, seems like they've already had some experience dealing with peoples hate and prejudice, this may be the time to show them just how much hate and prejudice there is, and where it can lead to if no one does anything about it till it's too late
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As well as investing in her the certaintude that people can be really, really fucked up and what it can lead to.
 
ComputerSaysNo

ComputerSaysNo

Well-Known Member
Hello from Germany (we hate Nazis, too),

I've just asked my mother (retired primary school teacher, primary school is for ages 6-10 here); she does not recall teaching her school kids about the Holocaust, definitely not before 4th grade (age 9-10) and definitely not in detail.

She mentioned my brother was shown "Schindler's List" in 6th grade and she found that quite egregious.

You have to know that we are taught A LOT about the Holocaust in schools in Germany. It's almost too much, because you become a little jaded.

In my opinion your kid is way too young to be confronted with such horrors. Same about 9/11, probably too early.

I very much appreciate you being that thoughtful about teaching your kids politically and historically.

The best you can do for your kids is make them think critically, question the authorities, question themselves, be free thinkers.
 
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