2025 Educator Summer Institute: WWI and the Age of Innovation

Image: Sepia photograph of rows of young women in working-class factory uniforms seated at long tables filled with bullets and other munitions. Text: 'WWI and the Age of Innovation: Educator Summer Institute'

Summer Institute for 4-12 Educators, July 2025

The National WWI Museum and Memorial is excited to offer a Summer 2025 professional learning opportunity to assist teachers in integrating stories of innovation and change spurred on by the Great War in their classrooms. Spend a week in Kansas City preparing to teach this pivotal historical period by receiving and developing engaging resources that explore innovation in a time of great upheaval.

About the Program

WWI and the Age of Innovation is a five-day residential Summer Institute for educators teaching 4th grade through 12th grade. This competitive and rewarding professional development will be held July 20-24, 2025, at the National WWI Museum and Memorial in Kansas City, Missouri.

The Institute is designed to be academic, interactive and practical, covering three major objectives:

Facilitate participants’ academic growth as they engage in-depth exploration of WWI and innovations and changes that altered the world.
Bring together 4th through 12th grade educators with their counterparts from across the nation, providing a framework for an exchange of ideas and discussion of their teaching implications.
Develop curricula and presentations to bring participants’ new knowledge into 4th-12th grade classrooms and to be shared with other educators around the world.

Black and white photo of a group of white European soldiers posed in and around a WWI-era automobile in front of destroyed houses. — Soldiers pose for a photograph near a car in front of a damaged area in Vigneulles, France. Object ID: 1979.45.44 →

Black and white photo of a WWI-era truck stuck in sand. A team of six horses and their human handlers attempt to pull it out while other soldiers look on. — A truck stuck in sand with a team of horses attempting to pull it out. Object ID: 2017.66.1.47 →

Institute Topics

This program is designed to enhance teaching and understanding of the Great War through the exploration of innovation and change, alongside interactive methods to explore its history and impact, offering educational resources, lectures, and collaborative opportunities for content creation.

Teaching WWI through its many “firsts” and their long-term influences on the world.
The influences of war on production, innovation and society.
Innovation and change during WWI in the following areas:
- Culture and Society
- Medical Technology and Treatment
- Military Weaponry, Communication and Strategy
- Transportation

Core Readings

The Institute's curriculum offers a comprehensive exploration of World War I, intertwining academic scholarship and narrative fiction to enrich lesson development. Check back later for the list of required texts.