The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (Novel Study Guide)

Experience this powerful story about childhood innocence, friendship and suffering set at Auschwitz Concentration Camp during World War II.

Assess students' comprehension of the novel and explore their personal reactions to the events of the book. Imagine what Bruno sees from his bedroom window that makes him feel cold and unsafe. Explore Bruno's state of mind by detailing the lesson he learns from his conversation with Maria, and what experiences he thinks he shares with her. Identify statements about the story as either Bruno or his mother's description of Herr Roller. Match vocabulary words from the novel with their meanings. Describe how Bruno's perspective is different from Gretel's because he is getting to know Maria, Pavel and Schmuel. Aligned to your State Standards and written to Bloom's Taxonomy, our worksheets incorporate a variety of scaffolding strategies along with additional crossword, word search, comprehension quiz and answer key.

About the Novel:
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is a classic story told from the point of view of a young German boy as he befriends a Jewish boy at a concentration camp. Nine-year-old Bruno lives with his family at Auschwitz Concentration Camp. They move there when Bruno's father is prompted to Commandant. While at his new home, Bruno meets and befriends a young boy named Shmuel who lives on the other side of the wire fence that surrounds the camp. One day, Bruno's mother convinces his father to let the family move back to Berlin. Before they leave, Bruno disguises himself and sneaks into the camp to help his friend find his missing father.