Overview of Guided museum programs for grades 3-8. Our museum programs for grades 3-8 extend and enrich classroom studies in American history, Civics, and English Language Arts. To explore booking a guided program for elementary students, please fill out a reservation interest form.

Investigating the Civil Rights Movement: The March on Washington | Grades 4-5

This program helps students make connections between the organized nonviolent actions of the civil rights movement and civic action for justice today. By examining photographs of less well-known civil rights activists and learning how they used the tools of democracy to fight for justice and equality, students discover what led President Kennedy to deliver his Televised Address on Civil Rights. Students use a graphic organizer in the exhibit galleries to identify civic actions taken during the Kennedy Administration and make connections to civic engagement today.

Allow 2 ½ hours. For further information, email esther.kohn@nara.gov.

Civil Rights, Civic Action | Grades 3-5

Students consider the question, “How do people bring about change in the government and in their communities?” as they investigate the history of the 1963 March on Washington. They examine photographs and documents to discover the story behind the March and President Kennedy’s role in it.  After visiting museum exhibits related to the civil rights movement, students hold their own “March”, drawing on the hopes, dreams, and inspiring words of that historic event.

Allow 2 ½ hours. For further information, email esther.kohn@nara.gov.

Singing for Freedom: Music and the Civil Rights Movement | Grades 3-5

Students investigate archival film footage, audio recordings and song lyrics to discover the essential role music played in the civil rights movement. They practice several freedom songs and hear first-hand accounts of how singing helped motivate and sustain activists who were fighting for racial equality. While in the exhibit galleries, students sing freedom songs and learn about President Kennedy’s key actions and decisions related to the civil rights struggle.

Allow 2 ½ hours. For further information, email esther.kohn@nara.gov.

Who was John F. Kennedy? | Grades 3-5

Students become biographers for the day as they explore John F. Kennedy's early years, his presidency, and the contributions he made to our nation and the world. They analyze historic photographs and documents, view films and television footage, and examine objects in the museum as they gather and record information in our "Biographer's Workbook."

Allow 2 ½ hours. For further information, email esther.kohn@nara.gov.

Presidential Campaigns and Elections | Grades 4-5

Using the 1960 election as a case study, students learn the steps to becoming President of the United States. Students explore objects, photographs, and documents in the museum to discover important information about the 1960 election. The last part of the visit includes an interactive game based on the steps to the presidency. A final discussion draws on students' hopes and ideas to guide the next President of the United States.

Allow 2 ½ hours. For further information, email esther.kohn@nara.gov.

"The Most Powerful and Precious Right": Ensuring the Right to Vote Past and Present | Grades 6-8

This program introduces students to the importance of voting and the struggle for voting rights, past and present. Students examine primary source material -- documents, photographs, and video -- to learn about racial discrimination in voting during the Kennedy years and strategies that public officials, activists, and everyday citizens used to address it. The program also explores voting rights today and actions students can take to protect this “most powerful and precious right” for everyone. Students use a graphic organizer in the exhibit galleries to identify civic actions taken during the Kennedy Administration and make connections to civic engagement today.

Allow 2 ½ hours. For further information, email esther.kohn@nara.gov. 

Elementary School - Program Descriptions 

• • Who was John F. Kennedy? (Gr. 3-5)

  • Presidential Campaigns and Elections (Gr. 4-5)

  • Investigating the Civil Rights Movement: The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom (Gr. 4-5)

  • Singing for Freedom: Music in the Civil Rights Movement (Gr. 3-5)

Middle School - Program Descriptions

• • Leadership for the 60s (Gr. 6-9)

  • John F. Kennedy: Citizen of the World (Gr. 6-7)

  • Report Card for the President (Gr. 7-8)

High School - Program Descriptions

• • Words and Deeds: Examining John F. Kennedy's Inaugural Address

  • Approaching a DBQ: An Introduction for AP Students

  • The Civil Rights Movement: 1960-1963

  • The Cold War Heats Up

  • Launching into the Sixties

  • The Rhetoric of the Civil Rights Movement in the Early Sixties