Anne Frank’s diary is the voice of the Holocaust—the voice that speaks for the millions Hitler silenced. Anne went into hiding at the age of 13, a rambunctious and at times difficult child. Her diary reveals her maturation into a gifted young writer by the time she was discovered two years later. Anne was eventually transported to the concentration camp Bergen-Belsen, where she died of typhus shortly before the Allies liberated the camp. Anne Frank’s diary is the legacy of young girl denied her adulthood by Hitler’s killing machine, and stands for the many women and men, young and old, whose lives Hitler’s final solution snatched. Anne Frank: The Life of a Young Girl would be useful for classes on World History, World Culture, Literature, Religion, Ethics and the Holocaust. It is appropriate for middle school and high school.

• absurd
• articulate
• cower
• ferocious
• incorrigible
• indulge
• ominous
• optimistic
• poignant
• premonition
• privation
• relinquish

1. The Holocaust was the pinnacle of anti-Semitism—prejudice against Jews. But it was not the first time Jews became the scapegoats and targets of irrational hate and fear. Why is there such a long history of anti-Semitism in the world?

2. The Franks were originally from Germany but moved to Holland. Why did Otto Frank relocate his family?

3. It was dangerous to be a Jew during Hitler’s Third Reich. What were some of the dangers Jews faced? How did Hitler limit the freedom of the Jewish population?

4. Discuss how Otto Frank quietly prepared for the worst and made arrangements to ensure the safety of his family.

5. What finally prompted Otto Frank to take the family into hiding?

6. The Frank family, along with another family and a dentist, hid for over two years. Discuss the problems the inhabitants of the “secret annex” faced during their hiding.

7. Anne Frank revised her diary. Why did she do this?

8. The Holocaust is perhaps the saddest chapter in world history. Over six million Jews died. How was this able to happen?

9. Miep Gies, Otto Frank’s assistant, took care of the family while they were in hiding. After the Gestapo comes for the Franks, Miep Gies saved Anne’s diary. Why?

10. Anne Frank’s diary has been translated into dozens of different languages and is read throughout the world. Why has the diary had such an enormous impact?

1. Create your own diary and record the daily events of your life.

2. Create a timeline of the Jewish restrictions and regulations of the Third Reich.

3. Read Anne Frank’s diary and discuss how Anne matures during her stay in the annex.

Air Dates

• September 06, 1999

© 1996-2007 A&E Television Networks. All Rights Reserved