For Educators, By Educators

For Educators, By Educators Program
Each summer, the National Women's History Museum invites K-12 educators to participate in the Museum's unique For Educators, By Educators curriculum development initiative--a professional development opportunity where educators co-create classroom resources alongside NWHM education staff.

By combining classroom experience with rigorous women's history research, these K-12 educators have the unique opportunity to bring accessible, relevant, and representative digital resources to classrooms across the country. All resources developed through this initiative are included in the Museum's catalog of online Classroom Resources, which are available free of charge.  

Any current K-12 educator is welcome to submit a proposal. Proposals will be reviewed based on their alignment with the Museum's mission, annual focus, and commitment to diversity in topic, grade level, and approach.

2026 For Educators, By Educators Theme
As we celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the National Women's History Museum calls on K-12 Educators to tell the other half of U.S. history. Too often, women's contributions are presented as supplemental rather than central to the events that shaped the nation. We ask that educators rethink their previous approaches to familiar eras in U.S. history--the American Revolution, the Civil War, the Progressive Era, the Civil Rights Movement--and intentionally integrate women's lives and legacies.

The 2026 For Educators, By Educators cohort will work with museum education staff to create a lesson plan that re-envisions a particular era or event in history that incorporates the roles of our foremothers therein. These lesson plans will be grounded in primary sources, the inquiry design method, and sound pedagogy that teachers across the country can implement in their classrooms to ensure their students receive more than just half of the American story.

Details:

• Applications are open April 1, 2026 and close May 1, 2026.
• Program dates: June 1, 2026-July 30th, 2026.
• All work is completed virtually via e-mail, Google Classroom, and required online weekly cohort meetings.
• Proposals are reviewed for alignment with: the Museum's mission, 2026 theme, and diversity in topic, grade level, and teaching approach.
• For 2026, all lesson plans should focus on a particular event in US history and utilize the NWHM's biography compendium .
• All lesson plans must align with the C3 Framework for Social Studies Standards;
• All lesson plans will use Teaching with Primary Sources strategies and primary sources from the Library of Congress;
• Accepted proposals will receive an honorarium of $350 per lesson plan (up to two lesson plans/participant).

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Application Requirements:

• 1 letter of recommendation, preferably from your supervisor or department chair.
• A letter of interest that includes what type of lesson plan you're interested in developing.
• A sample lesson plan you've created.
• All materials should be submitted here.

Questions about "For Educators, By Educators?" Email us at [email protected]