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For Educators

Educator Resources

Explore ways that educators and students can get involved in the America 250 Oregon commemoration.

America’s Field Trip

Students in grades 3–12 can earn a chance to go behind the scenes at some of America’s most well-known historical landmarks! America’s Field Trip is a nationwide contest designed to engage elementary, middle, and high school students around America’s upcoming 250th anniversary in 2026.

Students are invited to submit an essay, artwork, or poem answering the question “What does America mean to you?” First-place awardees will get to experience one of several unforgettable field trips to places such as the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the National Archives in Washington, D.C., and more. Second-place awardees and teachers can also earn cash awards.

Don’t miss out on this chance to be part of America’s 250th anniversary! Submit your entry by March 30, 2026.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Contest ends at 5pm PT / 8pm ET on 3/30/26. Open to U.S. students (3rd–12th grade), with submission by parent or teacher (unless age of majority). First-pPrize awardees must travel with parent on designated dates. Visit the contest website for Official Rules and full details including how to enter, eligibility restrictions, prize description/restrictions, and judging procedure. Void where prohibited.

Center for Geography Education in Oregon (C-GIO)

Since 1986, the Center for Geography Education in Oregon (C-GEO), previously the Oregon Geographic Alliance, has envisioned geography education having a valued place in Oregon’s psyche. Geography is essential for making sense of the world and understanding one’s place in it. The mission of C-GEO is to improve and sustain geography education in Oregon. C-GEO provides teachers with in‐service, pre‐service, and informal professional enrichment activities and materials to support student growth in spatial thinking, geography content, and geospatial technology skills. Access classroom-ready instructional materials here.

Civics Learning Project

Civics Learning Project is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to strengthening democracy by teaching democracy. Their programs include We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution, a nationally recognized mock congressional hearing competition with local high school participation; courthouse tours, and community action projects for students.

CSPAN Classroom

CSPAN Classroom has a curated list of free video-based materials for social studies teachers ranging from bell ringers, to lesson plans and featured resources. Additionally, there is an America250 Resource page with lots of relevant U.S. History content. 

George Washington and the Founding of America

In 2026, Mount Vernon will commemorate the 250th anniversary of America’s founding with a wide range of online educational resources. Learn more about George Washington’s leadership during the Revolutionary War and his legacy as our first president. Explore interactive content covering Washington’s military strategies, the founding of the U.S. government, and the lives of women and enslaved people in the 18th century. Access videos, primary sources, and teacher-friendly materials on the Mount Vernon website.

Experience History through Interactive Learning

In 2026, Mount Vernon will commemorate the 250th anniversary of America’s founding with a wide range of online educational resources. Learn more about George Washington’s leadership during the Revolutionary War and his legacy as our first president. Explore interactive content covering Washington’s military strategies, the founding of the U.S. government, and the lives of women and enslaved people in the 18th century. Access videos, primary sources, and teacher-friendly materials on the Mount Vernon website.

Take a Tour of Mount Vernon

Explore George Washington’s estate from anywhere with Mount Vernon’s immersive virtual tour. Walk though the mansion and surrounding historic areas, learn about the people who lived and worked there, and see how Washington’s legacy is preserved today. Begin your tour today!

About Mount Vernon

Mount Vernon is owned and operated by the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association (MVLA), a nonprofit organization founded in 1853. The MVLA preserves, restores, and manages the estate to the highest standards and educates the world about the character and leadership of George Washington. The MVLA accepts no government funding and relies entirely on private support to preserve George Washington’s home and legacy.

Made by Us

Made by Us is a coalition of museums, archives, and cultural institutions working together to connect younger generations with history. They create collaborative projects, digital platforms, and resources that make the nation’s past relevant to young people today. Through Made By Us, organizations can find tools, ideas, and networks to participate in the semiquincentennial in meaningful ways.

Civic Season

Civic Season is a nationwide initiative that bridges the time between Juneteenth and July 4 with events, resources, and stories that bring history and civic engagement together. Each year, museums, libraries, and cultural organizations collaborate to highlight ways communities can explore the past and take action today. It’s a chance to connect history to the issues that matter most.

Youth 250 Bureau

Explore how your organization can partner with Youth250 Bureau — from submitting consultation requests to accessing panels, focus groups, and youth voices in program planning.

Youth 250 Toolkits

Dive into the Youth 250 toolkits, which are filled with tip sheets, templates, and guides designed to strengthen meaningful youth engagement.

View the Toolkit

Social Media Content Inspiration

Media Literacy Education

Media literacy is the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, create, and act using all forms of communication. Please check out the following resources:

MY AMERICA: From Ground Zero to Common Ground

MY AMERICA: From Ground Zero to Common Ground is a nationwide, youth-driven art and civic engagement campaign that will honor our past, reflect on our present, and inspire our future. Through artistic expression, civic action, and public commemoration, MY AMERICA will empower young people across all 50 states to reflect on what unity, democracy, and being American means today by creating a large mosaic of an American flag made up of thousands of individual tiles with messages, drawings, and poems. Upon its completion, the flag mosaic is expected to be 150 feet long x 80 feet wide, half the size of a football field.

MY AMERICA is a movement of purpose and participation. It demonstrates that youth voices still shape the direction of our democracy, just as they did in 1776. It reminds us that the American story is ongoing and that the next chapter will be written by those who believe in the ideals that bind us together.

Please complete this form to receive a USA Flag Kit for your classroom. Each kit will contain the fabric tiles, a pre-paid postage form to return the tiles, and instructions. Completed USA Flag Kits must be returned by Thursday, October 1, 2026.

National Constitution Center

The National Constitution Center is the first and only museum dedicated to the U.S. Constitution. Through interactive online tools, exhibits, rare artifacts, and live theater, the Center brings the Constitution to life for visitors of all ages. Their free online resources support deep, engaging instruction in constitutional history — helping students explore the ideas, debates, and enduring principles that shape our nation.

Educators can explore The NCC’s offerings and program applications online at constitutioncenter.org. The NCC Education team offers a weekly email featuring new programs, timely resources, and applications for educators that can be accessed here.

Oregon Department of Education (ODE)

Social Science education in Oregon includes the study of civics, economics, geography, and history and aims to help students develop as rational, humane, and productive citizens in a democratic society. Explore the following resources available through ODE:

  • Oregon K-12 Social Science Standards (2024): These standards provide educators with guidance for selecting and designing learning.  These new standards reflect current educational best practices and the importance of embracing a more complete approach to history, geography, economics, and civics with the inclusion of traditionally underrepresented experiences and perspectives.
  •  ODE’s Social Science Instructional Frameworks: Whether you’re a teacher looking for free online courses, an  educator leading professional learning needing presentation materials, or a school leader seeking communication resources for families, these ready-to-use packages will help you successfully adopt and implement the standards.
  •  Oregon’s Social Science Standards Resource Library: A curated resource site of classroom-ready materials to help implement standards-aligned social science practices.

Oregon History Museums and Cultural Organizations

Oregon is full of amazing history museums and cultural organizations that offer free resources for teachers to help teach the unique traditions, arts, cultures, and histories of communities throughout Oregon. Please check out:

The following organizations offer classroom-ready lesson and unit plans:

Oregon Historical Society

The Oregon Historical Society offers a range of resources to support K–12 educators in teaching Oregon history in meaningful ways. Explore our curricula, units, lessons, and other resources that highlight a variety of themes in Oregon and national history and guide students through inquiry-based learning using primary and secondary sources including objects, photographs, documents, maps, and more. 

  • Curriculum and Resources: Including Resources by Theme and Topic (which includes Black History, Chinese and Chinese American History, Japanese and Japanese American History, Latino History, LGBTQ+ History, Native American History, South Asian History, Women’s History, Geography and Places, and more. 
  • Analyzing Primary Sources: Classroom-ready supplemental materials assist educators in teaching K–12 students how to examine historical images, objects, and documents to enhance their observational and critical-inquiry skills. 
  • School Tours
  • Traveling Trunk Program

Oregon Humanities

Oregon Humanities is committed to bringing people together across differences of background, experience, and belief. Each year, they offer hundreds of public conversations and programs across the state, train and support discussion facilitators, and award grants and fellowships that help people connect, reflect, and cultivate a stronger sense of agency in their communities and nation. Check out their:

Oregon Tribal History

In 2017, the Oregon Legislature enacted Senate Bill (SB) 13, now known as Oregon’s  Tribal History Shared History. This law directs the Oregon Department of Education (ODE) to create K-12 Native American Curriculum for inclusion in Oregon public schools and to provide professional development to educators. The law also directs the ODE to provide funds to each of the nine federally recognized tribes in Oregon to create individual place-based curriculum. 

The ODE partnered with representatives of the nine federally recognized Tribal governments in Oregon to create the Essential Understandings of Native Americans in Oregon. These nine essential understandings have been created to serve as an introduction into the vast diversity of the Oregon Native American experience.

Lesson Plans: Tribal History Shared History includes lesson plans for grades 4th, 5th, 8th, and 10th informed by the Essential Understandings and aligned to the state standards. Critical orientations for Indigenous studies curriculum focus on Place, Presence, Perspectives, Political Nationhood, Power, and Partnerships. These lessons embody indigenous teaching and learning opportunities specific to Native Americans. 

Additionally, please see the K-12 Tribal and Place-based Curriculum specific to each individual Oregon Tribe. Here you will find tribally-specific lessons from:

  • Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde
  • Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians
  • ​​Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs
  • Coquille Indian Tribe
  • Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians
  • Klamath Tribes