Students researched landmarks of Thessaloniki – streets, buildings and arcades – to discover any associated Jewish history. They visited the sites and researched literature to write about the Jewish history of these sites and to create a digital map detailing these landmarks. Students visited the city’s Railway Museum, where the journey of the Jewish community to Auschwitz began, to learn more about the Holocaust in relation to their hometown.

Students learned that their hometown has a rich Jewish past dating back to the 2nd century B.C., and that Thessaloniki used to be the Jewish centre of Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries, during which the Jewish community of Thessaloniki flourished. This realization reinforced their feelings of solidarity towards fellow Jewish citizens.

The students’ learning journey is reflected in the digital map that has been created detailing important Jewish landmarks in their hometown including synagogues, residences and schools. The digital map will be constantly updated as more landmarks are researched, creating a permanent and contemporary tribute to Jewish life and culture in Thessaloniki.

This My Hometown project is ongoing, and the school intends to organise an event to present the project team’s work to the local community and to raise public awareness of the rich Jewish history of the town once the research nears completion.