DC History Comes Alive for Grade 7 DC History Class

From Brae Sullivan, Middle School English Humanities and DC History teacher: On November 14, the Grade 7 DC History class visited the DC History Center, which supports their upcoming unit on African Americans in DC and the District’s Black history, and will connect to their end of semester project on local changemakers. Ms. Vanessa, our DC History Center educator, guided our group through the Class Action! exhibit, leading a focused exploration of school desegregation and the fight for equal education for Black Americans. Students engaged with the exhibit by discovering new books they want to read, trying out an "old" typewriter, and testing their knowledge of DC neighborhood geography before receiving a rare tour of the Collections Room, where they viewed artifacts like the shovel that broke ground on the DC Metro. Seeing authentic objects and primary sources up close made the past feel immediate; many students said the experience inspired ideas for future research projects!