Children had it more difficult than anyone in the camp. Since they were often young and weak, the Nazis had no use for them, and often they were sent straight to the gas chambers from the train. However, the few that passed the first health and strength inspection were not necessarily more fortunate than the ones that got killed.
Work
Children below age 12 were almost always sent immediately to the gas chambers, unless they were especially strong or skilled. The skilled and strong children were often sent to work in mines or refineries, such as the oil installations at Ruhr, known today as Ruhrpumpen. Since no proper equipment was given to them, they often got injured or even died on the job.
Pastimes
Everyone knows that children are always full of energy and love to play... So what did the children in Auschwitz do for fun? In the first 3 minutes of this video, Tomas Fleischmann, a Holocaust survivor, talks about his life as a child in Auschwitz. He tells about some of the things they did to pass the time, and his discovery behind the bricks in the wall of his bedroom.
Food
Each child got a small cup of "tea", or dirty water, for breakfast. For lunch, they were given a small portion of watery soup with little pieces of vegetables and possibly some meat. For dinner, they were given exactly 300 grams of blackened bread, and a small bit of either marmalade or cheese to go along with it. Due to these extremely minute portions of food, malnutrition was a major cause of death especially in children. Along with the lack of food, there was also a lack of clean drinking water. Children, not knowing any better, drank any water they could get their hands on; even though most of the water in the camp was filled with fatal diseases. Also, since Auschwitz was built on a swamp, lice and rats ran rampant and infested lots of food.
Everyone knows that children are always full of energy and love to play... So what did the children in Auschwitz do for fun? In the first 3 minutes of this video, Tomas Fleischmann, a Holocaust survivor, talks about his life as a child in Auschwitz. He tells about some of the things they did to pass the time, and his discovery behind the bricks in the wall of his bedroom.
Food
Each child got a small cup of "tea", or dirty water, for breakfast. For lunch, they were given a small portion of watery soup with little pieces of vegetables and possibly some meat. For dinner, they were given exactly 300 grams of blackened bread, and a small bit of either marmalade or cheese to go along with it. Due to these extremely minute portions of food, malnutrition was a major cause of death especially in children. Along with the lack of food, there was also a lack of clean drinking water. Children, not knowing any better, drank any water they could get their hands on; even though most of the water in the camp was filled with fatal diseases. Also, since Auschwitz was built on a swamp, lice and rats ran rampant and infested lots of food.