Heil Hitler: Confessions of a Hitler Youth. Short film. 30:24 minutes. This film is the testimony of Alfons Heck, who participated in the Hitler Youth as a boy. Heck’s testimony is supported by historical films and photographs. Heck unflinchingly describes the effects of Nazi propaganda and makes an assessment of what happened to him from an adult point-of-view. This film works well in contrast with memoirs such as Surviving Hitler: A Boy in the Nazi Death Camps by Andrea Warren or One Survivor Remembers about Gerda Weissman Klein. Warning: There are some brief graphic scenes of dead bodies late in the film. Be sure to preview and make wise decisions about suitability for your students. Available via Facing History & Ourselves.

See also: “Heil Hitler!”: Lessons of Daily Life from Facing History & Ourselves. This lesson uses a short excerpt from a book about the daily lives of children in Nazi Germany.

See also: Youth in Nazi Germany from Facing History & Ourselves. A lesson on various aspects of children’s lives in Nazi Germany.