Shakespeare’s “The Merchant of Venice” focuses on the theme of racism, primarily between Jewish people and Christians. Students were interested that racial profiling and stereotypes continue to exist in the same way as they did 600 years ago. This prompted a discussion of how humanity can sometimes cruelly work to eliminate other races and cultures. To build an understanding of historical atrocities I had the ENG1D Grade 9 English students research genocide events. Students had to create a brief summary of the event and then make it shareable. Here are some samples.

First Nations in Canada – Danny Barrett & Jacques Lafrance

Sudan Genocide – Devin Turgeon

Cambodian Genocide – Hannah Onnis & Madisyn Hardy

The Ukraine Famine – Ryan Schram

Rwandan Crisis – Riley Parent & Brookelyn Abraham

Cambodian Genocide – Carter Garvie

Sudan Crisis – Markus Luomala

Rwanda Crisis – Devon Couch & Ben Mannisto