National Park Service/Featured project

a living classroom

Your National Parks are a wealth of curriculum based experiences, aligned with local, state or national standards of learning. Check the parks listed below for fantastic learning opportunities for you and your students, inside the classroom and in the parks.

Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP) is a program of the National Park Service's Heritage Education Services office. Over the years TwHP has developed a variety of products and services. These include a series of lesson plans; guidance on using places to teach; information encouraging educators, historians, preservationists, site interpreters, and others to work together effectively; and professional development publications and training courses.

Basically, TwHP uses the historic sites listed on the National Register and National Historic Landmarks to help teach and illustrate historic themes in American history. Students learn to use primary sources (documents, photos, maps, etc.) to analyze historic events and relate them to broader themes in American history. Some of the lessons include Civil War, Historic Preservation, Women’s History, and the Industrial Revolution.

The lesson plans can be used for all grade levels and students and teachers can even create their own. You should go the TwHP website to see all the plans.