Living History at Chapman Elementary School Library – Growing Compassion Through Literacy and History

Two dozen faces at Chapman Elementary School Library gazed in wonder as 98-year-old Ingrid Nielsen brought literature to life right before their eyes. “I was born and raised in a different country – Denmark,” Ingrid began. “I came home from school one day and my father said, ‘Germany has invaded Denmark.’”

Ingrid’s personal history closely resembles the story of Annemarie Johansen, the fictional heroine of Lois Lowry’s Newberry-winning novella Number the Stars. Although a few years older than Annemarie, Ingrid remembers coming face-to-face with German officers on her way home from a nursing shift, just like Annemarie does while coming home from school.

Helping Danish Jews escape the Nazis during World War II

Like Annemarie’s Uncle Henrik, Ingrid’s brother-in-law Ernst smuggled Danish Jews to Sweden. As he sailed from Gilleleje – the very village mentioned in the novel – Ernst relied on the same surprising secret Annemarie learns about: handkerchiefs. Powdered with rabbit blood and cocaine, the handkerchiefs distracted Nazi police dogs from the scent of the hidden passengers and temporarily stunned their sense of smell. “When I read this book about Annemarie,” Ingrid told the students, “I thought, ‘It’s just like my life!’”

Responding to her 5th-grade students’ fascination with the book’s historical context, Karen Danesi (center) jumped at the opportunity to have Ingrid expand on that history with the class. Photo by Amber Thompson.

In November 2022, fifth-grade teacher Karen Danesi assigned the historical fiction book to several of her students, hoping to stretch their interests beyond the borders of the fantasy genre. “They all came back gushing about it,” she says, “and it had a ripple effect. More students read it, and we had a reading group to talk about the Danish Resistance, World War II, and Hitler.”

When Karen and her class came to the library, one student asked Judy Christophersen, the school’s librarian, for more information about the Danish Resistance. “It didn’t come up on the catalogue search, but I knew I had some books,” Judy recalls. Judy also had another resource to offer: the real-life stories of her dear friend Ingrid. “Do you think she’d be willing to come talk to the kids?” Karen asked eagerly. “I’d do backflips to make that happen!”

Bringing fiction to life from personal experience

Ingrid, thankfully, required no backflips. As a mother of five and a former preschool director, she loves any opportunity to interact with children. She read Number the Stars overnight and prepared to share her own story with the students, inviting them to view the world with kindness, compassion, and courage.

Ingrid’s memories include seeing King Christian X ride out on his horse, just as described in the novel. She experienced years of food shortages, blackout curtains, and German soldiers patrolling the streets. When Ingrid and her countrypeople learned of Hitler’s plans to arrest and deport Jews, they found ways to secretly aid their Jewish friends and neighbors. As Ingrid explained to the Chapman students, “The Jewish people are just like us. They’re just a different religion, and that’s all. We respect that.”

One of the doctors Ingrid worked with as a nurse hid a Jewish family in his attic for over a year. “We all knew it, but we didn’t tell anybody,” Ingrid told her fifth-grade audience. “He took them food, clothes, and books. Once in a while, the nurses would give him something for the kids.”

Ingrid Nielsen (center) grew up in Denmark and served as a nurse during WWII. She is pictured here with her daughter, Karen Van Sickle (right) and “adopted granddaughter” Jenna Christophersen (left). Photo by Amber Thompson.

True tales of resistance, courage and danger

Ingrid also told the students about tending to a German soldier who had broken his leg: “He came to the hospital, and I had to take care of him. He told me he had two children back in Germany and he wanted to go home. He didn’t want to be in Denmark; he didn’t want to do anything bad. Soldiers have to do what the leader says, not what they wish to do. The German people are good people; there is nothing wrong with them. They cannot help what Hitler did.”

While she served as a nurse, Ingrid’s brothers Arne and Viggo secretly circulated forbidden newspapers to counteract Nazi propaganda. Once, Ingrid encountered one of her brothers disguised as a patient as he hid from Nazis who had caught on to his resistance work. She pretended not to know him, understanding his false identity protected him. Only after the war ended did Ingrid’s parents learn of their children’s efforts with the Danish Resistance. As Uncle Henrik tells Annemarie in Number the Stars, it was “safer not to know”.

Ingrid brought history into the present for 10- and 11-year-olds in the North State. “How did you feel when there was a bombing?” they wanted to know. “Did you ever see Hitler in person? Were you happy when the war ended?” She also brought words off the page and into the classroom, highlighting the value of what they had read. “They were impressed that she is 98 years old, that she had lived among Nazis, and that she experienced this topic they were inspired by,” says Judy. “Plus, she loves libraries, books, and kids. It was a match made in heaven!”

Before they left the library, the students burst into applause to express their gratitude. “Ingrid, I’m happy you’re here,” one student announced.

“I’m glad I’m here too,” Ingrid chuckled.