Someone once said, "Teachers create all other professions." Here at the Smithsonian, where we have taxidermists, entomologists, numismatists, and many more professionals, we certainly know how true the statement is. The wide array of dedicated teachers who inspire the work we do at the Smithsonian have truly helped shaped the Institution and the creative research, exhibits, and programs presented to thousands of visitors daily.

In honor of these teachers, and National Teacher’s Day, we wanted to highlight some of the Archives educational resources. In addition to having many primary sources, including letters, diaries, and photographs in our collections, the Archives’ Education pages also have lesson plans and resources that provide ideas about how to use primary sources in the K-12 classroom.

In hopes that our collections might help history come alive in the classroom, the Archives has created an Education Resource Package that includes some of these lesson plans and activities. Now that the weather is warmer and we’re all spending more time outdoors, and with summer school break just around the corner, we also encourage you to check out the "Create your Own Field Book" activity from our Field Book Project partnership, and our Smithsonian History Coloring Book.

We hope you enjoy, and we welcome your feedback!