Education Materials

Resources and activities to use at home, in the classroom, and some to guide your visit at the museum.

 


 

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A History of Walls: The Borders We Build Cover

Explore Border Walls with Creative Writing and Visual Literacy Activities

Best for high school students

A traveling exhibit featured at ASM in 2020, A History of Walls: The Borders We Build, serves as the foundation and springboard for this exploration. These writing prompts and activities will help you explore ideas and information about border walls with your students.

 


 

Woven Through Time: American Treasures of Native Basketry and Fiber Art

Explore the ancient and abiding fiber-weaving traditions of the region.

Discovery Hunts in Woven Through Time

 

Discover the Meaning of Baskets

Discover this object in the Woven Through Time exhibit

Discover this object in the Woven Through Time exhibit

Split-twig Animal Activity: Video

map showing climates of Arizona

This resource kit explores how climate change impacts the natural resources Native American basketmakers use and will help students reflect on the impacts of climate change in their own lives. Download this activity sheet.


 

The Pottery Project: 24,000 Pots, 2,000 Years

The Pottery Project celebrates 2,000 years of Native pottery-making traditions in the U.S. Southwest.

Discovery Hunts in The Pottery Project

Discover this object in The Pottery Project exhibit

Discover this object in The Pottery Project exhibit

Self-Guided Discovery Hunt for The Pottery Project exhibit


 

Additional Resources

a mammoth in Late Pleistocene Arizona

Arizona in the Late Pleistocene Era. Use this resource kit to learn about this exciting chapter in Arizona's history and discover what archaeology can tell us about the past. Best for grades 2-4.
 

Title slide to "The Navajo Treaty of 1868"

This Smithsonian webinar guides teachers through strategies for teaching about treaties and their relevance today. Recommended for middle school educators.

Title slide to "The Navajo Treaty of 1868"

This digital lesson supplements the Smithsonian webinar by providing Native perspectives, images, documents, and other sources to help students and teachers understand the remarkable nature of the Navajo Treaty of 1868. 

The Impact of Words and Tips for Using Appropriate Terminology

American Indian Perspectives on Thanksgiving

Smithsonian Institution Resources for Teaching about Native peoples

Smithsonian Learning Lab brings the world into your classroom

Lesson Plans that help fight Native invisibility

U.S. Immigration: Linking Past to Present (Video)

U.S. Immigration Film Discussion Guide

U.S. Immigration History and Policy

black and white bowl with a depiction of a bat

Be a Photo Detective: Look at Photographs for Clues

Discover ASM Coloring Book for grades K-1

Arizona Native Nations Activity Sheet

At the Foot of Black Mountain: Tucson's Multicultural Past