Hands-On History Onsite Education Programming | Wisconsin Historical Society

Field Trip or Tour

Hands-On History

Bring the museum experience to your classroom!

Hands-On History Onsite Education Programming | Wisconsin Historical Society

mammoth toothThe Wisconsin Historical Society and the Milwaukee County Historical Society present Hands-On History, bringing research-based, best practice, museum education into the classroom. Our onsite 1-hour sessions are designed to engage the minds and excite the imaginations of young history explorers. Aligned with the Wisconsin Standards for Social Studies and designed for grade bands K-2 and 3-5, these sessions will enhance your classroom study of Wisconsin's past.

Request Hands-On History today!

Students engage with these objects the way that historians and archaeologists do, by asking questions and drawing conclusions for themselves: What can we learn from objects? What questions do we ask? How do objects help tell the story of the past? Teachers may choose from an array of topics within the span of Wisconsin history:

First Peoples and the Fur Trade
Explore the history of Wisconsin from the end of the last Ice Age to the height of the Fur Trade Era. From mammoth teeth to mound building to beads of glass, the land we now call Wisconsin is rich with stories from the distant past. Play a game of snowsnake to see who could be the best hunter in your clan!

Hands on History Collage

Hands-On Archaeology
Immerse your class in the discovery of a historic and pre-historic site through hands-on small group interactive work. Students take the on the roles of artist, recorder, digger, and site leader as they search through the layers of Wisconsin history. 

Journeys
They came to Wisconsin (and they keep coming)! From the Native Americans who have always been here to immigrants from all over the world, the story of Wisconsin continues on. Explore the stories of Wisconsin's American Indian nations, Swedes, Germans, Latinx, African Americans, Hmong, and more through images and artifacts from our collections.

Jobs
Dig through our lead mining past; learn the lore of the lumberjacks, explore shipwrecks, discover America’s Dairyland and more as we burrow into Badger history through hands-on exploration of images and artifacts from our collections, focused on the jobs that drew people from all over the world to Wisconsin, our home.

snowsnake

Maritime Archaeology
Calling all underwater explorers! Learn all about shipwrecks and scuba diving in Wisconsin waters. Discover the stories of Lake Michigan shipwrecks, why they sank and how they are studied today through puzzles, games, matching activities and more! Materials for the Maritime Archaeology program been made possible by funding from the Wisconsin Sea Grant Institute.

Milwaukee County schools are served by the Milwaukee County Historical Society. Please contact Mary Jo Knapp (MJKnapp@milwaukeehistory.net) to schedule your visit.

Email Education Services for pricing and scheduling information.