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Smithsonian Education

A student leans over a table, writing on a large poster board with a marker during a classroom activity. Surrounding the workspace are colorful pens, papers, and notes, while additional tables, chairs, and a kitchen area with cabinets and a counter appear

New Resources Transform Classrooms into Engines of Civic Engagement by Equipping Educators with the Tools They Need to Take Students from Learning to Leading

The Smithsonian’s Civic Education resource hub offers educators ready-to-use tools and inspiring stories designed to turn civic learning into civic action. Students benefit from guidance that can channel their concerns into meaningful expression and action that shapes the future of the communities in which they live.

Five educators standing on a beach in Alaska hold up crabs found during a Smithsonian Classroom Cultivation workshop. Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III shakes hands with an educator at the 2025 Smithsonian National Education Summit.

2025 Smithsonian Education Impact Report Released

Newly released report shares insight into the programs and partnerships that link Smithsonian learning to communities, classrooms, and cultural institutions across the United States.

A group of teens stand in front of the Renwick Building for a group photo

How the Smithsonian and 4-H Collaborate to Elevate Youth Voices in the Heart of the Nation’s Capital and in Hometowns Across the Country

An in-depth look at how the Smithsonian and 4‑H partnership invites youth across the country into museums as learners, creators, and civic changemakers

A group of workshop participants standing around a table listening to a curator discuss an artifact within Historic New England’s collection.

Implementing Smithsonian’s Creating Portraits of Community Framework with New England Educators

Using place-based learning, portrait analysis, and oral histories, Smithsonian teams up with Historic New England to inspire meaningful classroom experiences

People stand and listen to a speaker in a brightly lit museum room underneath a large gold art installation.

Smithsonian Program Connects Youth Across America Through Dialogue

Since September 2024, the Democracy in Dialogue Virtual Exchange program has offered sets of paired classrooms across the country a key question to explore together: "How has your community played a role in 250 years of the American experience?"

A man in a navy blue shirt and khakis leads a large group of students through an art gallery

Fostering Positive Youth Development at the Smithsonian through National Collaborations

Throughout summer 2023, the Smithsonian partnered with 4-H and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America to unleash the potential of museum visits and out-of-school learning

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Unpacking the Stories Behind Artist Bisa Butler’s Portrayal of the Harlem Hellfighters

Tips for teaching the layered World War I history of the 369th Infantry Regiment on their return from France

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To Reimagine the Future, Start by Expanding the Stories of Our Past

Looking back at beloved children's stories and historical narratives taught in the classroom, two educators ask us to consider whose perspectives were centered. Through ongoing National Youth Summit programming, historical case studies provide an opportunity for students to expand their thinking about stories of our past.

A group of educators sit around a rectangular table with various design materials, phones and laptops.

The Case for Training Teachers in Object-Based Learning

Object-based learning is a pedagogical approach core to many museum experiences, inspiring close observation and deep critical thinking. An educator from the National Air and Space Museum shares how teachers can transfer these ideas to their own classrooms.

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Learning About the Past to Take Care of the Future

Maps, historical photographs, and oral history excerpts are interwoven in a new online exhibition from the Smithsonian’s Anacostia Community Museum to provide a powerful case study for students to meet the people and places that shaped Barry Farm–Hillsdale in Washington, D.C., investigate what happened to the community, and discover similar stories in other communities across the country.

Activities that give young children the opportunity to build meaningful, personal connections with animals can be the spark for a lifelong love of wildlife and cultivate a lasting conservation ethic.

Using Empathy for Animals to Engage Young Children in Early Engineering Education

How do you introduce engineering practices and skills to young learners? Smithsonian educators suggest it starts with empathy.

Hosted by the National Museum of American History, with participation from classrooms across the country, the 2021 National Youth Summit will examine the topic of gender equity, asking students to wrestle with history and take on challenging conversations. (Courtesy of National Museum of American History, Illustration by Krystal Quiles)

Setting the Stage for the Year through the National Youth Summit

The National Youth Summit offers classrooms the opportunity to wrestle with history and take on challenging conversations, setting the stage for ongoing discussions and engagement throughout the school year.

A sampling of the creative projects inspired by artworks and artmaking techniques found within the Hirshhorn’s collections, available from the “Hirshhorn Kids at Home” series. (Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden)

Fun (and Free) Ideas to Keep Kids Learning This Summer

Over 20 unique and creative ideas from across the Smithsonian for engaging learners this summer

Through co-creation efforts with K-12 educators and Asian American community partners, the National Veterans Network, elementary and middle school educators, Asian Pacific American Center interns and National Museum of American History staff, learn more about the stories behind objects. (Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center)

What's Missing from Classrooms When Asian American and Pacific Islander Voices Aren't Included?

Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) have been present throughout America’s past through migration, labor, activism, science innovation, art, literature, community organizing, and so much more. When AAPI stories and voices are missing from what students learn, grappling with our current moment of increased hate and violence, and thoughtfully discussing this with students runs the risk of becoming even more difficult without support and resources to contextualize what we are witnessing today.

When the 2020-2021 school year started, 39 of the nation’s 50 largest school systems were among those that chose a distance learning instructional model. (ake1150sb/iStock/Getty Images Plus)

Learning Science at Home

Homes are special places of discovery, abounding with scientific phenomena and engineering marvels.

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