In this article, the authors describe how an embodied arts-based approach to teaching the story of Anne Frank enhanced eighth graders' experiences in three middle school classrooms. The article begins by framing the theories that guide the authors' perspectives on embodiment and drama-infused instruction to promote literacy learning. This is followed by a theoretical framing with an overview of the Anne Frank: Bearing Witness project from which samples were derived. Next, the article offers three drama-based strategies to highlight the ways in which movement engaged students' minds and bodies: using an instructional tool called the cordel, inviting students to sculpt each other's bodies to better understand the meaning of the Anne Frank diary, and dramatizing a poetic text from the historical period to deepen a growing empathetic stance. By engaging in these and other arts-based strategies, eighth graders and their teachers took intellectual risks and produced moving interpretations of the Anne Frank narrative and associated paired texts. The strategies created "thick air" around the topic and elevated the likelihood of eighth graders committing themselves to the work. They promoted students' empathetic perspective taking and embodied meaning making. ELA teachers are encouraged to consider how these arts-based strategies could enhance their teaching of Anne Frank's diary and other challenging and meaningful texts.