Educational Project Launches in British Schools
Children aged nine to 11 gain a new way to learn history through the story of a real-life Kindertransport refugee.
Updated on Oct. 29, 2026 in Pre-Teens
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A new partnership between the WE ARE HERE! Foundation and PaJeS is bringing the In My Pocket Project to over 20 schools across Britain. The educational initiative provides children aged nine to 11 with history-focused programming based on a real-life account of the Kindertransport.
Why it matters
This program offers a structured way for pre-teens to engage with historical trauma and resilience through personal narrative. By expanding into British schools, it provides a new resource for educators to teach students about the displacement of children during the 1930s.
The In My Pocket Project has reached 10,000 primary students globally since 2023, and the new partnership expands this reach to over 20 British schools. While the program has been implemented in Australia, South Africa, Lithuania, Latvia, and Mexico, its effectiveness in UK classrooms is currently being established.
The players
WE ARE HERE! Foundation
An organization founded by Eli and Jill Rabinowitz that focuses on historical storytelling and Holocaust education.
PaJeS
A Jewish education organization that supports schools and manages the implementation of the project in Britain.
Dorrith M. Sim
An author whose childhood experience as a Kindertransport refugee serves as the basis for the project's educational materials.
The details
The program utilizes the autobiographical picture book In My Pocket, written by Dorrith M. Sim and Gerald Fitzgerald, as its primary teaching tool. Sim was seven years old in 1939 when she traveled to Britain on the Kindertransport to live with a foster family in Edinburgh. Educators affiliated with PaJeS facilitate the project, which aims to help students connect with this history through the lived experience of a peer who experienced forced migration at a young age.
Timeline
Dorrith M. Sim arrived in Britain on the Kindertransport in July 1939.
The program has reached 10,000 students since 2023.
Health Landscape
The In My Pocket Project adds a new educational dimension to the Kindertransport historical legacy. It continues the trend of utilizing personal narratives to help young students process historical trauma and themes of displacement.
For parents and guardians of pre-teens, this program highlights the value of using literature to introduce complex historical topics. You can discuss the program with school administrators if you are interested in how historical narratives are used to build empathy and resilience in students aged nine to 11.
The takeaway
Using personal narratives can be a gentle way to introduce children to significant historical events. Parents can encourage their children to read memoirs or biographies if they express interest in learning about the experiences of people from other generations.
Further reading
For more on fostering development during the pre-teen years, visit our Pre-Teens section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Australianjewishnews.
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