Each spring, Jewish families around the world pause for Yom HaShoah, a day set apart to remember the six million Jewish lives lost during the Holocaust.

For homeschool families and faith-centered households, this day becomes more than history. It becomes formation. It becomes witness. It becomes a quiet act of courage in a noisy age that forgets quickly.

If you have wondered:

• What is Yom HaShoah?
• Why do families observe it?
• How can children learn about the Holocaust in age-appropriate ways?
• What books should we read together?
• How can Christian families participate meaningfully?

this guide will walk you through everything you need.

(And at the end, you can download my free printable Yom HaShoah Family Learning Guide by joining my email list).

What Is Yom HaShoah?

Yom HaShoah is the annual day set aside to remember the six million Jewish men, women, and children murdered during The Holocaust.

The Hebrew word Shoah means catastrophe.

Families, schools, synagogues, and communities around the world pause to:

• honor victims
• listen to survivor testimony
• study history
• pray
• and teach the next generation what must never be forgotten

Holocaust remembrance is not only about the past. It is about shaping the moral imagination of the future.

When Did Yom HaShoah Begin?

After World War II, Jewish communities recognized the need for a shared day of remembrance.

In 1951, the State of Israel established Yom HaShoah as a national memorial day. The date was intentionally placed near the anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, honoring both those who were murdered and those who resisted evil with courage .

This matters.

Yom HaShoah remembers grief and bravery together.

When Is Yom HaShoah Observed?

Yom HaShoah takes place each spring during the Hebrew month of Nisan, shortly after Passover and before Israel’s Independence Day .

This placement quietly tells a story:

deliverance
suffering
survival
restoration

History rarely moves in straight lines. Scripture already taught us that.

How Is Yom HaShoah Observed Around the World?

Across Israel and Jewish communities globally, remembrance takes visible form.

Families observe Yom HaShoah by:

🕯 lighting candles (sometimes six, one for each million lost)
📖 reading survivor testimonies
🎥 watching first-person accounts
📚 studying Holocaust history together
⏳ keeping moments of silence
🙏 praying for the protection of the Jewish people

In Israel, a nationwide siren sounds and the entire country stops moving for two minutes. Cars halt. People stand. Even highways become still .

It is one of the most striking acts of collective remembrance in the modern world.

Why Should Homeschool Families Observe Yom HaShoah?

Children should not first encounter the Holocaust as a statistic in a textbook.

They should meet it as a human story.

Observing Yom HaShoah helps families:

• honor God’s covenant people
• resist historical amnesia
• recognize warning signs of injustice
• cultivate compassion and courage
• teach children to stand against hatred
• connect faith with real history

As I wrote in my Yom HaShoah guide:

“It is a day of memory with a steady heartbeat of dignity.”

Download the Free Yom HaShoah Family Learning Guide

To help families observe this day meaningfully, I created a printable Yom HaShoah Family Learning Guide designed for use around the table with children of all ages.

Inside the guide you’ll find:

• a simple historical timeline
• Scripture readings
• survivor video suggestions
• discussion questions
• map activities
• prayer liturgy
• book lists by age level
• remembrance practices for families

You can receive the guide free when you join my email list here:

Join my list & get the guide!

Let this year be the year remembrance becomes part of your family rhythm.