Classroom Materials

In March 2021, the National WWI Museum and Memorial launched a collection of nearly 500 animated GIFs on giphy.com. From the funny to the tragic, these short videos were created using archival film...

Though Henry Johnson was hailed as one of the bravest Americans to fight in WWI, due to lasting racism in the U.S. it wasn't until 2004 that he was granted the Medal of Honor. This article from...

In a time before emails and text messages, soldiers in World War I relied on written letters to communicate with their loved ones back home. In these maker activities from the Virginia Cooperative...

Food production was essential in World War I. American citizens were encouraged to create "War Gardens" and grow their own food, allowing more commercially-produced food to reach troops. In this maker...

Many monuments and memorials were constructed in communities across the US at the end of World War I. They were as simple as a small bronze statue or as large as an entire granite building. It is...

Aviation evolved rapidly during WWI, with modern and more effective aircraft replacing the basic machines, shaping the way countries fight wars more quickly than any other weapon in military history.

General Pershing believed that military bands were a key element in maintaining the morale of his soldiers. In this maker activity from the Virginia Cooperative Extension 4-H, young students will...

The U.S. Army adopted the telephone as soon as it was invented, using it in the Spanish-American War. In 1917 General Pershing asked the War Department to recruit women to serve overseas as telephone...

Armies used codes and ciphers to send secret messages back and forth during World War I. One of the most successful use of codes during the war was with a group of 14 Choctaw Indians soldiers from...

This video webcast series from Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum creates an interactive classroom program consisting of 30-minute webcasts that engage middle school students in STEM topics...

Balloons were used in war as early as the American Civil War, but the invention of the dirigible, a steerable airship, opened up the possibilities of this new technology. The German Army and Navy...

The Zimmermann Telegram was a major factor in the U.S. decision to join the Allies in World War I. Using this lesson, students will analyze the context of the telegram from the perspectives of the U.S...

The Wall Street Journal has collected a list of "100 legacies that still shape our lives today." From chemical warfare and guided missiles to blue doctors' scrubs and Pilates, the First World War...