How do you explain World War II to young children?

Question

My 7-year old son asks many questions about World War II. I have the habit not to hide anything, but concepts such as Nazism or the Holocaust are so inherently dreadful that he sometimes seems to believe I exaggerate or even lie to him. His legitimate lack of knowledge of religious and political issues makes it even more difficult for him to get perspective on the stakes that were at hand at the time.

How can I explain World War II to him, without either giving too many details and leaving him confused, or being too vague about it and letting him think the whole humanity is a lost cause?

Thanks for your answers.

A bit of context: I live in Belgium, Europe, so World War II is a huge part of our history and has a very important place in our collective memory. I'm aware that American people may have been much more affected by the acts of terrorism of these past 10 years, and have a different perspective on World War II.

Note: I don't consider this question a duplicate of this one.

Answer 1

The nice thing about one on one discussions versus a classroom lecture setting is that kids that age are pretty good about letting you know they've heard enough. Start vague and answer his questions with more and more detail. At some point his attention will start to wander, so you give him time to process it and he will ask again another day.

I studied the holocaust extensively in extracurricular work when I was 13. Even at that age, I understood what happened, but not why it happened or how it could have been allowed to happen.

I think the best you can explain about the "why" and "how could it" is something like:

Hitler was a very bad man who thought of certain groups of people as no more than pesky bugs that needed to be squished. Just like you have trouble believing it because it is so horrible, people at the time had trouble too, and Hitler was very good at tricking people into thinking otherwise. Also, people tried a lot of diplomacy with Hitler at first because WWI was so bad they wanted to avoid another one if at all possible. By the time they decided to stop him with war, Hitler was already powerful enough that it was very difficult to make him stop hurting people, even though they wanted to.

Anything deeper than that I think you have to go with the lame parent excuse of, "You'll understand when you're older." There are adults today who can't wrap their heads around it.

Answer 2

I'm going to disagree with the accepted answer as to what a seven year old needs to know or what is part of the understanding of WW2.

My issue is that while Hitler's fanatical racism was a part of the "why" and "what" of WW2, the answer glosses over the fact that he was an extreme German nationalist who wanted to rule the world. WW2 was a war of aggression: the Germans under Adolf Hitler invaded other countries, such as Belgium, because they wanted to control everything that happened in Belgium. Part of controlling everything was attempting to exterminate the Jews, yes, but that was a means to the end of creating the great Aryan Empire. And other countries such as the US and Britain didn't get involved because they wanted to save the Jews, they got involved because they or their allies were attacked. If Hitler had been satisfied with just Germany and Austria, there's no evidence to suggest that any country would have intervened in a mass murder of jews inside those borders.

It's insulting to history to say that Hitler was very good at tricking people into regarding jews (and other groups) as less than human. Hitler didn't have any trouble convincing the German people to hate the jews because there was a huge undercurrent of antisemitism already present in Germany and indeed in all of Western Europe. There is a long history of racism and exploitation of non-whites by various European nations. For example, half a century before Hitler, King Leopold of Belgium was decimating the Congo. To say that Hitler was good at tricking people is to misrepresent the truth about how people felt. Many people agreed with him, in Germany and in other nations.

So my suggestion, for a seven year old, would be a simpler truth: WW2 happened because the Germans tried to take over the world, and other countries didn't want to be taken over so they fought back and won. The Germans wanted to take over the world for several reasons. They had been beaten in WW1 and forced to sign a treaty that made life very hard for Germans. A man named Adolf Hitler became very powerful by making speeches about how the Germans could be a powerful state again. He told the German people that they were special and superior to all other peoples, and that they had a natural right to rule the world. Many people believed him, either because they already felt that way or because it made them feel good to think they were better than everyone else. So they started taking over other countries with their army and eventually other countries got together and stopped them.

Answer 3

While I consider this to be a more focused question than the one you link to I think the same principles apply in answering a question like this. You should have a good understanding of what your child can, and probably should, grasp and give your answer accordingly. I don't go into great detail with my son when he asks questions with deep context, and I know I did not understand a lot of the complexities of World War II until almost college.

Answer 4

I lost a grandparent and some great uncles in the war, and my kids know this, so it gave a great reference point. One of their great granddads also won a DFC in WWII and left us his flying logs from the war, which I read to them (a very good read, in a slightly Jeeves and Wooster type of way). We've always had a belief of not lying to the kids, within reason, and to answer any questions they have, to the best of our ability. The war has always been talked about, as has terrorism. I guess being English, we've always grown up with the threat of terrorism, so find it easier to discuss; it's always a thought of ours. The kids have seen news reports of cruelty to animals, and find this hard to digest as well, possibly more so than with humans being cruel to each other.

We have always found that talking openly with the kids about this, has enabled them to grow more aware of morality and the dilemmas they will come across. It also makes them aware of human frailties and the weaknesses of man.

We've talked about death, wars, terrorism, and the one that always gets asked is about cruelty to animals.

Answer 5

In the United States, there are clubs that "re-enact" Civil War battles. These are marvelous spectacles. They show the tools that were used, and that the soldiers involved were ordinary people. If there are any World War II "re-enactor" clubs near you, you could bring your son to an event, and introduce him to some of the members.

You are wise to truthfully answer his questions, and to not go out of your way to discuss topics that you do not think he is ready for.

When you think he is ready, you might want to introduce him to some good books on the topic:

• The Diary of Anne Frank. I have not read this book, but I understand that many elementary schools have children read it.
• Caged Dragons: An American P.O.W. in WWII Japan by Robert Haney. This book shows why so few war veterans are able to describe what they went through during the war. It is very clear. It tells just what Bob Haney saw, in very understated (but powerful) language.
• The Bridge at Remagen by Ken Hechler. This book emphasizes daring, heroism, and the roles of chance and logistics in the outcome of a single event on a single day.
• The Encyclopædia Britannica article on the "World Wars" from the A-Anstey editions (circa 1970), plus the world and historical maps in the appendices. This article is book-length. It is comprehensive, but does not provide a feeling for what it was like to experience the war.
• The Road to Serfdom by Friedrich Hayek. This book provides economic background, and explains how people could become so dependent on governments that were willing to (and/or felt forced to) grind them to dust.

Belgium is within driving distance of where Anne Frank lived, and of Remagen. If your son wants to visit these places, you might be able to arrange it. Also, some people who lived through World War II are still alive; you might be able to introduce your son to some of them. Sadly, Bob Haney has died since this question was posted.

"When you think he's ready" probably means "over the course of a few years". Your son is now 11 or 12 years old, so most of these books are now age-appropriate. The movie version of The Bridge at Remagen has a PG rating. If Caged Dragons were made into a movie, it would probably also get a PG or PG-13 rating.

Caged Dragons has a lot of similar themes to The Hobbit. If your son has read and understood The Hobbit in English, then he is probably ready for Caged Dragons. Based on how he reacts to Caged Dragons, you can decide whether he is ready for The Bridge at Remagen and the "World Wars" article. Based on how he reacts to the "World Wars" article, you can decide whether he is ready for The Road to Serfdom.

Answer 6

Bearing in mind that you don't get to filter the information, if your child's English is strong enough, you could take the simple way out: https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_2 - or if you're looking to filter, just read it to them (necessary if your child's English isn't strong enough).

Answer 7

I think this is an excellent question, because it's very difficult to give an objective and concise explanation for the Second World War, never mind to a younger audience.

Perhaps this may work, by focusing on both the big picture and the beliefs behind the conflict. The answers so far have also not mentioned much outside of a European or American context. I hope the below deals with themes general enough to be applicable to broader moral lessons and historical examples. Focusing on Hitler and declaring the problem his lone "insanity" I think is dangerous morally and intellectually.

...

Germany, Italy, and Japan believed that conquering their neighbours would prove they were better than everyone else. Many Germans thought they had been treated unfairly, and blamed others for their problems, especially the Jews. But blaming Jewish people and thinking themselves the best was wrong. When people think they are better than everyone else, they start to treat other people badly.

From 1939-1945 the world was in a war between the Allies and Axis. The big four Allied powers were China, the British Empire, the Soviet Union, the USA. The big three Axis powers were Nazi Germany, the Kingdom of Italy, the Empire of Japan. Many more people were with the allies. Belgium, the Netherlands, France, and Poland, for example, tried their best to defend against Germany, but were conquered.

Millions of people died, many of them were innocent. In the end by putting aside their differences and working together, the Allies won the war. But it was too late for many people, like those who were murdered in the Holocaust. Because the Germans believed the Jews were to blame for their problems, they thought that if they killed them it would solve their problems. They murdered families. Men who could fight, old people who could not, even children like you, even babies.

This is why you must not be mean to others. The more people who think it's okay to be mean to someone because they are different, the more likely it is someone will get hurt. When everyone thinks it's okay to blame people because they are different, it becomes easy to hurt them, even if they're completely innocent.

Answer 8

Take him to the Ardennes. Tell him that many men died there to stop a bad man from causing harm to him and the rest of the world. Tell him that brave men gave their lives for future generations (himself, and God willing many more!) Tell him that we should always appreciate that such men have lived. It's a great lesson about right and wrong and what can happen when people stand up for what is right. And conversely, what can happen when people don't stand up for what is right.