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Transcript

Walter Ziffer

"I am Somebody"

Poem

Women from another prison entered the camp

Did you ever run into a women named Anny Ziffer?

In our barracks,

Good news nearly buckled Walter's knees

Heart pumping so fast,

Dizzy

Thrilled by the report of his loved ones' survival

He gazed up at the stars,

So bright and sparkly

I'm free. I'm really free

Whole body tingling with excitment

Walter saw his mother, sister and cousin

unbridled joy trickled down his face

Happiness

Love

Reporter

Summary of Walter Ziffer's life

I am Somebody! is about a 12- year old boy called Walter Ziffer who's life changed when the Nazi troops invaded his town and home. Walter lived with his sister, Edith, father, leo, and his mother, anny. he had a joyful childhood until september 11, 1939. on this day, walter and his family were forced to leave their home and go to a large dance hall were each family had to live in a 12 by 12 foot cubicle made out of bed sheets. They slept on mattresses on the floor on the stage until the Nazi's started deporting the Jews. Luckily, Walter and his family were able to find jobs in a big factory. Here, he met the "love of his life" called Lydia Reindl who he loved till one day she told him that her family was escaping. Heartbroken, he said his goodbyes only to find out that Lydia and her family were caught and shot. This was a major turning point in the book because it's the part when Walter truly starts hating all the Germans. on june 21, 1941, Walter's life began to crumble when the Nazi's announced that everyone was being deported. this day was Walter Ziffer's last "normal" day because over the coarse of four years, Walter would be shipped to many different concentration camps. Walter lived a gruesome life filled with starvation, dehydration, and exhaustion. However, once the war ended, Walter rejoined with his family and continued on with his life knowing the torture he had to face.

Discussion Leader

Questions:

1: Who was the boy who experienced chaos and commotion outside his family's apartment? -Walter Ziffer

2: How much older was his sister, edith? -4 years older

3: Why would the ss officers purposely push and trip the kids as they walked down the stairs? -because the officers knew they were jewish.

4: Why did the ziffers have to sleep on mattresses on the floor? -because they were jewish, they weren't treated equally.

5: how does walter find light in the darkness through this tough time? -because he wasnt going to let the nazi's turn him into something less than human.

Diction Detective

Diction Detective

- " Work makes you free." pg. 116: i chose this phrase because of how ironic it is. it's ironic because no one was ever freed, even if they worked their hardest. i also chose this because it was a mood shift from sad and depressing to a bit of humor because walter believed it was funny.

- "We're free, we're really free." pg. 119: i chose this phrase because it summarizes an important moment in Walter's life. It's important because tt marks the end of all the torture and horror Walter faced. i also chose this because one could expect Walter to be very joyful and thankful but Walter says this pharse in a way that shows that he knew he would survive.

-"I am somebody" pg. 111: i chose this phrase because it has a very powerful meaning behind it. Walter Ziffer would always say this to himself whenever he lost some of his humanity. This phrase was a constant reminder that he was a person and it kept him from going insane or commiting suicide.

-"Muselmann" pg. 112: i chose this word because of its meaning. muselmann was a common term used in the camps to describe someone who was on the verge of death because of starvation or despair. whenever someone called Walter a muselmann he would refuse and tell himself that he was someone so that he wouldn't lose hope.

-" Scrawny" pg. 111: i chose the word scrawny because it's a descriptive detail that summarizes the appearances of the prisoners. Since they had such little food and water, all of the prisoners were skin and bones, especially Walter; he only weighed 87 pounds.

-" Numb" pg. 114: i chose the word numb because it perfectly describes how Walter felt about the deaths around him. Since he has seen and been through so much, the deaths he saw were no longer unusual and didn't affect him.

Artist

ARTIST

Bridge Builder

Text to self: Walter worried about his family dieing. I also worry about my familys safety.

Text to text: In Walter's story him and his family believed that nothing bad would happen to them because they were good people. In the childrens book Terrible Things, the animals believed that they wouldn't get taken by the terrible Things because they did nothing wrong.

Text to world: Walter felt like he was worthless and told himself "I am sombody" to remind himself of his importance. Alot of people feel worthless and have to remind themselves of their importance.

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