PPS National History Day

Welcome to National History Day!

2024-2025 Theme: "Rights and Responsibilities in History"

You are about to embark on a rigorous but rewarding project experience. National History Day is not a particular day, it's an entire experience. In National History Day, students select a topic in history that relates to the annual theme, conduct thorough research about the topic, and create a project in one of five categories that tells a compelling story. Though participating in NHD, students will not only learn about a topic in history, but also about the craft and process of being a historian.

Though it's a required assignment in 9th & 10th grade history classes, NHD is also a competition. Students may compete on the school, district, state, and national level. Various awards and prizes are available at each level, including some cash prizes and scholarships. No matter where you place, many students find the competition process to be a great and worthwhile experience.

There's no one particular way to create a National History Day project. For example, students can work individually or in groups. Students can also choose from a variety of categories to create their project: poster exhibits, documentaries, websites, research papers, or performances.

No matter what format you choose, you must tell a great story, and the best stories are well-researched and well-organized. A great NHD project will seek to answer these questions:

• What happened in history?

• Why did it happen?

• What was the impact both then and now?

• Why should we care about it today?

• How does it relate to the theme?

All along the way, you will be supported in your journey by your social studies teacher and the PPS Social Studies Department. If you need help with ideas, resources, or anything else, just ask! Be mindful of due dates and rules. And most importantly, have fun! The best NHD projects are the one where students own their work and take pride in the product.

As you make your way through the NHD experience, please use this website as a guide. We wish you all the best on your NHD project experience!