As COVID-19 deaths spiked in 2020, Suzanne Firstenberg’s public art installation "In America: How could this happen…"
Mobile-Friendly Resources
Examine collections of the Museum's key resources on major themes in American history and social studies teaching. Additional resources can be found in the main search areas of the website.
Working in a 1:1 or BYOD school? Interested in exploring the possibilities for mobile in your classroom? Get started with these resources, and stay posted for more! For podcasts, note that you will need to download a podcast app.
3D Tour: Gunboat Philadelphia
Get Revolutionary access to Smithsonian objects with the 3D Charter Collection. In this tour, take a close look at the Gunboat Philadelphia, a warship sunk in Lake Champlain in 1776. Students can rotate, expand and control their own explorations of this unique artifact. The tour includes historical background and a 1935 film of the Gunboat being raised from the Lake.
Changing America: To Be Free
Americans reacted to the Emancipation Proclamation in different ways. Use the Changing America: To Be Free iPad app to go beyond the well-known stories of Emancipation and gain insight into this profound moment in the lives of many different people. Students can search, sort and read personal responses to the Emancipation Proclamation across the north, south and border states from men and women of all ages. A related teacher guide provides suggestions for using the app in the classroom.
History Explorer Podcast: Freedom Songs
In this episode of the History Explorer podcast series, Christopher Wilson, Director of the Program in African American Culture, discusses the use of freedom songs during the civil rights movement and how they are incorporated into public programs on the museum floor. The resources include a teachers guide and student worksheet.
History Explorer Podcast: Japanese Internment and WWII Service
In this episode of the History Explorer podcast series, curatorial assistant Noriko Sanefuji interviews Grant Ichikawa, a US veteran who enlisted after being relocated to a Japanese American internment camp with his family in 1942.Allowed to join the army after a need for interpreters, Mr. Ichikawa served proudly and in 2011, he and other veterans were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal for his service.
Interactive Star-Spangled Banner
Explore features of the Star-Spangled Banner using this interactive flag included in the online exhibition entitled The Star-Spangled Banner: The Flag that Inspired the National Anthem. Using this interactive tool, students can click on hotspots and learn something new about the flag each time they click. They can also zoom in on the image of the flag in order to see incredible detail.
Tracking the Buffalo: You Be The Historian
What can we learn by studying a buffalo hide painting? In this activity, students will learn about the culture of the Plains Indians by determining the meaning of stories told on a buffalo hide painting and compare their interpretations to that of a Smithsonian historian. This activity is meant to help students learn more about Native American culture by analyzing and learning from objects; a guiding student worksheet is included. It is included in the website Tracking the Buffalo: Stories From a Buffalo Hide Painting.
What Can You Make From a Buffalo?
The northern Plains Indians used every part of the buffalo. In this interactive matching game, students will match objects made by Native Americans from the body parts of buffalo to the appropriate part of the buffalo's anatomy. It is interactive whiteboard and iPad friendly and is included in the website Tracking the Buffalo: Stories From a Buffalo Hide Painting.
