Our answers to the most frequently asked questions from community members, parents/caregivers, teachers, and K-12 education leaders help everyone better understand what our curriculum includes (and doesn't include) and how we work with K-12 schools.
What are the top two questions absolutely everyone is asking? Click on the questions to read our answers!
Our curriculum is primary source-based (documents and objects created during the time period under study) and is connected to concepts outlined in state frameworks, so it broadens what teachers are already introducing. Content connections include early colonial America, the Civil War, suffragists and reformers, WWII, civil rights, US Constitution, and more! This history has always been there, as the primary sources are from the Library of Congress, National Archives, Smithsonian, and archives and libraries across the country!
Questions from Community Members
We do many things! We train educators to teach our LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum in mainstream classes. Our goal is to make sure every student understands that LGBTQ people (as we label and understand today) have always existed! This is so important from a historical standpoint but also from a social standpoint. When students see, for example, that people who we understand today as transgender were often revered in earlier times, and that their influence and perspectives impacted the course of history, then understanding and respect for transgender people can flourish. We also work with school and district leaders to help them build community support for LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum. Right now, our information sessions for parents and caregivers are popular! And our programming for youth gives them a voice and structure to bring about policy changes that are most important to them.
Questions from Parents/Caregivers
We have consulted with experts in elementary education and use developmentally aligned language when incorporating primary source content. Our K-3 curriculum is nuanced and gentle. A high school student looked at one of our early grade units and said, "If I had learned this in elementary school I would have immediately recognized myself, and felt better about myself." This unit is based on the life of Sarah Rosetta Wakeman. Sarah was born on a farm and left at 19 years old to join the Union Army. Since women were not allowed to be soldiers, Sarah took on a male gender identity and joined the Union army as Lyons Wakeman. Sarah’s story is preserved in letters to family, some signed Sarah and some signed Lyons. The illustrated story concludes with the line, "I was an uncommon soldier, but history will teach you there were many more like me!" The unit includes vocabulary develop- ment, map reading, and the "What's My Secret?" interactive game, which contextualizes history with people who also had secrets: Mary Elizabeth Bowser, Fitz John Porter, Elizabeth Van Lew, Betty Duvall, Ellen and William Craft, and Harry T. Buford.
Questions from Teachers & School Administrators
Questions from State Education Agency Leaders
Questions about Volunteering and Employment