Changing Lives of Women and Children in Nazi Germany

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Changing lives of Women and Children in Nazi Germany The Nazis believed that individual people did not matter. What was important, they believed, was a strong central government. Individuals were forced to accept the roles given to them in society - women should be educated to become housewives and mothers, men should be educated to become workers and soldiers. The biggest changes were in the lives of women and children: • Books of nursery rhymes were published which encouraged children to play with guns and enjoy fighting. Children's songs were about bloodshed, violence and anti-Semitism. • All schools were single sex and girls and boys were educated quite differently. Girls studied no foreign languages and the only maths and science they learnt was linked to cooking and childcare. This was all part of a deliberate plan to prevent women having careers. A woman could work until she got married, but she was then expected to give work up to become a housewife. • All school lessons were based on Nazi ideas. School textbooks were rewritten and included Nazi versions of German history. Maths problems involved calculations about bombing Poland and killing invalids. Children were taught Nazi beliefs everyday in subjects such as Ideology and Eugenics. • A woman's life was described as "Church, Children and Cooking". Women were discouraged from wearing make-up, smoking or buying expensive clothes. They were expected to allow their hair to grow and put in plaits or a bun. Physical fitness for all, both girls and boys was encouraged. • Women were expected to have at least four children. If they did they were given a medal every year on the birthday of Hitler's mother. This was called the "Mutterkreuz", the Mother's Cross. • Boys were educated differently. They studied science and mathematics and took part in a great deal of physical exercise. • There was a
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