FAQ—Educators
Find answers to teachers' commonly asked questions.
Free, timed-entry passes are required to enter the museum. For the safety of our visitors and staff, groups larger than six are strictly prohibited. While on Smithsonian property, groups will maintain at least 6 feet (2 meters) of distance between themselves and individuals outside their group. Guided tours and in-person programming are not currently available. See our COVID-19 statement for more information.
All of the museum’s online educational resources—including lesson plans, activities, interactives, and media—are at Smithsonian’s History Explorer. Materials are searchable by keyword, grade level, historical era, and national standards.
The museum provides national outreach to students via the web. In addition to hundreds of online resources, the museum offers an annual webcast event for secondary students, the National Youth Summit. For information on upcoming webcasts and other live online programming, please register for the museum’s monthly email newsletter. For archived versions of past Summits, videos of the museum’s theater programs, or other online materials, please visit Smithsonian’s History Explorer.
Sign up for our monthly e-newsletter or follow us on social media to receive information about new resources, tours, and events for educators and their students.
Yes. A limited number of 90-minute workshops on object-based learning, STEM integration, and using drama in the classroom are available for groups of 10+ participants who are planning a visit to the museum. Our schedule fills quickly, so please contact the museum a minimum of four weeks prior to the date of the proposed workshop or webinar. Workshops do not include a guided tour of the museum. Email the education team at [email protected] for additional information or to request a workshop. Include the name of the group, preferred date, number of teachers, and the grade levels and subjects the participants teach.
We also provide district-level professional development at locations across the country through the Let’s Do History Tour. For more information on the tour, contact Orlando R. Serrano, Jr. at [email protected].
