These resources, activities and lessons can be downloaded and used in the classroom or at home to explore SOL-aligned topics in Richmond history. Questions or looking for something that you don’t see here? We would love to help! Email education@thevalentine.org.
Elementary Lesson Plans & Activities | Grades Pre-K – 5
Whose Hat is That? - Grade Pre-K & K
Using historical images of hats, students will recognize descriptions of work and the names of jobs. Students will also compare the past to the present.
Virginia Standards of Learning Alignment: K.1 a, c, e, f, g; K.2 a, b
Essential Skills:
-
- Compare and contrast
- Draw conclusions
- Identify community helpers
Downloads:
Whose Hat is That? Lesson Plan PDF
Whose Hat is That? Bingo Card PDF
Whose Hat is That? Student Workbook PDF
Watch:
Whose Hat is That? Discovering Community Helpers with the Valentine Education (YouTube)
Richmond Changes: Exploring Maps - Grades K- 4
Overview: Students will explore the concept of time (past versus present), utilize map skills to look at changes in historic maps of Richmond over time and create a map of their own neighborhood.
Essential Skills
- Compare and contrast
- Develop mapping skills
- See how Richmond has changed over time
Virginia Standards of Learning Alignment:
K2, K3, K4, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.5, 1.10, VS.1a, VS, 2e, VS.3g, VS.5b
Downloads:
Richmond Changes: Exploring Maps Lesson Plan PDF
Richmond Changes: Exploring Maps Richmond Maps PDFs (zip)
Richmond Changes: Exploring Maps Create Your Own Map Template PDF
Watch:
Richmond Changes Exploring Maps with the Valentine Education Team (YouTube)
Mapping the Monuments: History Makers in Richmond - Grade 1
Learn about Powhatan, Pocahontas, Christopher Newport, Maggie Walker, Arthur Ashe and other Richmonders who shaped local, state and national history!
Virginia Standards of Learning Alignment: 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.5, 1.10, VS.1a, VS, 2e, VS.3g, VS.5b
Essential Skills:
-
- Compare and contrast, past and present
- Develop mapping skills
- Identify individuals who contributed to national, state and local history.
Downloads:
Mapping the Monuments Lesson Plan PDF
Mapping the Monuments Images PDF
Mapping the Monuments Bingo Cards PDF
Mapping the Monuments Design Your Own Monument Worksheet PDF
Greek by Design - Classical Architecture in Richmond - Grade 3
Students will examine buildings in Richmond better understand how Greek and Roman architecture influenced design in Richmond during the Federal Period.
Essential Skills:
- Compare and contrast
- Draw conclusions
- Identify Classical versus Neoclassical architecture
Virginia Standards of Learning Alignment: 3.1a, b, e, g, 3.3, 3.5
Downloads:
Greek by Design Lesson Plan PDF
Playing in the Past - Photo Detective Activity - Grade K-1
Students will be photograph detectives – analyzing primary source images of Richmond kids playing to discover what children did for fun in the past and compare to their favorite activities in the present.
Essential Skills:
- Compare and contrast
- Demonstrate skills for historical thinking
Virginia SOLs Alignment:
K.1, 1.1, VS.1, VUS.1
Downloads:
Playing in the Past – Photo Detective Lesson Plan PDF
Playing in the Past Images PowerPoint or PDF
Community Symbols & Seals - Grades K-1
Learn about how designs, illustrations and symbols can reflect a community’s values. Create a community symbol of your own!
Essential Skills:
- Compare and contrast
- Define Community
Virginia Standards of Learning Alignment:
K1, K2, K.7, K.8, 1.1, 1.10, 1.11, 1.12, 1.13
Downloads:
- Community Symbols and Seals Lesson Plan PDF
- Community Symbols and Seals Images PDF or PowerPoint
- “Make Your Own Seal Worksheet” PDF
Watch:
Community Symbols and Seals with the Valentine Education Team (YouTube)
Secondary Lesson Plans & Activities | Grades 6-12
Creating Suffrage Memes - Grade 6-12
Overview: Using postcards from the early 20th century, students will explore basic propaganda techniques used in the suffrage debate and create memes to celebrate the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage, or to encourage all citizens to vote in 2020.
Essential Questions:
- What is propaganda? How is it used to persuade?
- Describe the similarities and differences between how postcards were used in the early 20th century and how memes are used in social media today.
- What makes an effective meme?
Virginia SOL Alignment:
History & Social Sciences USII.1, USII.4, CE.1, VUS.8, English 6.3, 7.3, 8.3
Downloads:
Analyzing Suffrage Propaganda - Grade 6-12
Suffrage Propaganda: How do we get your vote?
Grade: 6-12
Overview:
Compare and contrast two primary source suffrage era postcards through the lens of basic propaganda techniques used in the suffrage debate.
Essential Questions:
- What is propaganda? How is it used to persuade?
- How has propaganda been used in the past? How is it used today?
- Describe the similarities and differences in the pro-suffrage postcard and in the anti-suffrage postcard.
SOL Alignment:
History & Social Sciences USII.1, USII.4, CE.1, CE.3, VUS.8, English 6.6, 6.7,7.6, 7.7, 8.6 and 8.7
Downloads:
Analyzing Suffrage Propaganda Lesson Plan PDF
Ballot Battle- Suffrage Movement History PDF
Monument Avenue’s Beginnings - Grade 8 - 12
Monument Avenue’s Beginnings: Looking at Primary Sources Related to the Lee Monument – Grade: 8 – 12
Learn about the beginning of Monument Avenue through examining letters, maps, and newspaper articles from when the Lee Monument was created. These primary source documents, from the time period, allow us to see the monument from a variety of perspectives.
Essential Questions:
- How do monuments get their meaning? How does that meaning change over time?
- Who gets to create monuments? Whose voices are being heard or lifted up by monuments and whose voices are missing or suppressed?
- What is missing from Richmond, Virginia’s current monumental landscape?
Virginia SOL Alignment:
VS.1, VS.8, USII, USII.3, USII.4, CE.1, VUS.1, VUS.7, GOVT.1, GOVT.3, GOVT.9
Downloads:
Monument Maker - Grade 6-9
Monument Maker: What’s Missing from Richmond, Virginia’s Monumental Landscape? – Grade 6-9
Overview: Explore stories of fellow Virginians who contributed to Richmond’s story. Consider the city of Richmond’s existing monumental landscape and craft your own proposal for which of these History Makers should be honored with the next monument!
Essential Questions:
- How do monuments get their meaning?
- How does that meaning change over time?
- What is missing from Richmond, Virginia’s current monumental landscape?
Virginia SOL Alignment:
VS.1, VS.9, USII.1, CE.1, CE.4, VUS.1, GOVT.1a,b,d, f, g; English 6.6, 6.7,7.6, 7.7, 8.6 and 8.7
Downloads:
Other Resources | All grades
Valentine Collections Research Tips
Interested in doing your own research? The Valentine’s online Collections Database is a great place to start! Check out our Collections Database Research Tips for a guide to help students explore the museum’s collection of 1.6 million objects related to Richmond history.
Create a Richmond Resilience Zine
Overview: Zines are small, self-published books, usually created by hand using simple supplies like pen and paper. In this activity, we’ll walk you through creating your own mini-book about the theme of resilience in Richmond.
Supplies:
Scissors, paper, pens/ pencil. Optional: markers or colored pencils, stickers, stamps or any other art supplies you may have available.
Downloads:
Richmond Resilience Zine Instructions (PDF)
Zine Making Template (PDF)
Watch:
Make Your Own Zine Instructions (YouTube)
Richmond Summer Bingo
Download this fun Bingo sheet and see how many of these classic Richmond pastimes you and your family can cross off the list to get a “BINGO”!
Downloads:
Richmond Summer Bingo (English PDF)
Richmond Summer Bingo (Spanish PDF)
Learn the Story of Valentine’s Meat Juice
The valentine museum has a legendary history that all begins with a mysterious product called Valentine’s Meat Juice. Learn more in this short video from Valentine Educator Alex Cortes.
Watch:
