Smithsonian Resources for Teachers and Learners
What’s the Smithsonian? If you said it’s a museum, you’re right. But it’s also a purveyor of online tools and resources that can help your history and social studies students become exploratory learners.
The facts of history don’t change, right? Thanks to authors like Howard Zinn, the current generation of learners understands that the facts of history may be presented, presented differently, or not presented at all, based on who is telling the story.
I’ll just say this: “Christopher Columbus — American Hero.”
Baby Boomers and Generation X assumed that Columbus “discovered America” because that was the story that was told. Zinn’s A People’s History changed the narrative by telling the story outside of the prevailing America-first narrative. (Hint: Columbus never set foot on the North American continent)
Students now recognize that textbooks and the prevailing narrative are no longer the only authoritative sources for history — of the United States or of other cultures and nations. Where can learners go for more information that can help them learn to think in new ways about history? Let’s look at just a few.
Smithsonian History Explorer
The resources at the Smithsonian History Explorer include teacher resources, lessons, and interactive modules, such as this interactive lesson on the Market Revolution (1820s-1850s), in which students select one or more roles to play in the simulation: from George the Farmer and Lucy the Textile Worker, to Ying the Gold Prospector. Resources are connected to national standards of learning for history students.

Use the Explore section to select grade level, historical era, type of resource or content area.
Use the top menu to find lessons, activities, interactives, teacher resources and more.
Keep an eye on the featured resources on the bottom half of the page, which includes newly released resources, the featured artifact, and a Twitter feed that includes resources for what happened today in History.
Smithsonian Learning Lab
Another tool for promoting engagement for students in creative work that supports thinking like a historian and learning new ways to interact with history is the Smithsonian Learning Lab. Led by Smithsonian Learning Initiatives Specialist Ashley Naranjo, the learning lab offers learners the opportunity to dig into the Smithsonian’s digital archive to Discover, Create and Share about myriad topics in American history and beyond.

The most exciting part of the learning lab is the “Create” feature, which learners can use to curate and publish their own collection of resources they find useful for learning about a topic. These can then be shared within or between classes, and with the rest of the world, and can be used for assessments.
Consider this collection of images from “What decade is it?” Why not use these images in a Kahoot! review or to preview a study of American decades?

Another teacher imagined her students using artifacts from the Smithsonian Learning Lab to inspire creative writing. Check out her lesson on Writing Inspiration: Using Art to Spark Narrative Story Elements.
The Smithsonian Learning Lab’s strength, of course, is that by engaging students in the creation and distribution of meaningful content within the guidelines and standards of the subject area, teachers promote student ownership and engagement as students contribute to the learning process and avoid more passive roles in the social studies classroom.
Other Smithsonian Resources
Smithsonian Education — including Idea Labs
Smithsonian For Educators — includes links to other Smithsonian resources, including: Science Education Center, National Museum of American History, National Museum of African American History and Culture, National Air and Space Museum, several national art museums and galleries, and more.
Learn and Explore — another launching pad for teachers and learners to explore the resources of the Smithsonian
Get in the Loop
Get on Facebook, Twitter, or another social media site and search for “Smithsonian” — find the source you want to follow and return often for new information, tips, resources and more.