Beyond the Exhibits | North Carolina Museum of History

Educators, this one’s for you! You probably know the North Carolina Museum of History as a field trip destination, but you might not know about the wealth of educational resources we offer for use outside of the building.

Take the North Carolina Museum of History BEYOND the exhibits (see what we did there?) and into your classroom. These resources don’t require a permission slip, a bus driver or bagged lunches—just an appreciation for history. Designed to provide high-quality and interactive learning experiences to your students, no matter your Tar Heel ZIP code, Beyond the Exhibits materials and programs focus on the North Carolina experience and correspond to the North Carolina Standard Course of Study. The best part? Most of our resources are free!

Free Resources Include:

Bits of History Podcasts— From a look at early Spanish exploration of the mountains to an overview of the life and times of Jim Hunt to a deep dive into the development of the banjo, our Bits of History podcasts cover a wide range of subjects related to the North Carolina's history and culture.

History-in-a-Box kits— With History-In-a-Box Kits, educators can use a fresh approach to introduce topics in history. These multidisciplinary teaching tools provide you with background materials, reproduction artifacts, lessons, and activities that tie North Carolina history with language arts, science, math, and visual art. Reserve a kit topic and we’ll ship it to you to use in your classroom for up to 3 weeks. There’s no rental fee, simply the cost to ship the kits back.

Image: Students working on a History-in-a-Box kit.

LIVE! Streaming Events—During our LIVE! streaming events, museum educators, curators, and special guests share some “stuff” from our past and “meet” people from history who helped shape our present. We stream LIVE! from the museum’s exhibits and from history spots around the state. Join us via YouTube; viewers can even ask questions during the program and we’ll answer them LIVE!

On-Demand Distance Learning Classes—“Visit” the Museum of History through Distance Learning classes that are ready when you are! Our distance learning programs explore topics in North Carolina’s past where students participate in hands-on history opportunities.

Tar Heel Junior Historian Association—Made up of History Clubs around the state, the Tar Heel Junior Historian Association inspires and empowers North Carolina 4^th-12^th grade students to discover local and state history—in an active, hands-on way. THJHA membership includes free copies for you and your club members of our semiannual history magazine, The Tar Heel Junior Historian, written especially for students. The association also encourages junior historians to share what they learn through annual state contests.

Image: Students and teachers gathered together for the Tar Heel Junior Historian Annual Convention, April 2019.

Videos on Demand—Sing along with 14,000 years of North Carolina history, follow the stories of the Tar Heel soldiers and nurses through WWI, or hear what artifacts have to “say” about their experiences in the American Revolution through our Videos on Demand page. Based on primary sources, these narrative films are available instantly when you need them!

Low-Cost Resources:

Online Professional Development Workshops—These distance-learning programs are geared just for educators and for those interested in earning continuing education credits (up to forty contact hours per workshop). Access the workshops anytime during the program dates.

Want more info? Follow Beyond the Exhibits on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram for program announcements and updates. Or, join us in-person at the museum to learn more at our Educators’ Night Out on Monday, August 19!