Commemorate and celebrate the 250th anniversary of our nation with America250 and worldwide edtech leader Discovery Education!
America’s Field Trip takes learning beyond the classroom, allowing students to experience firsthand the places that have helped shape the nation and build a deeper connection with America’s history and culture.
Below educators will find standards-aligned lesson plans and ready-to-use activities that leverage Discovery Education’s award-winning platform and provide instructional inspiration. Designed to have different levels of investigation and discovery, these models are familiar to students and easily incorporated into the lesson cycle.
Educator Guide
New for the 2024-2025 school year is an educator-facing instructional video with an accompanying educator guide and classroom activities that help teachers at every grade level align the contest prompt, “What does America mean to you,” with standards frameworks.
For each grade band below, please note that the ready-to-use activities are only interactive when accessed through the free Discovery Education Experience platform.
Grades 3–5
Lesson Plan: America’s Future
Students will explore their role in shaping the future of their community and America at large. They will start by sharing their thoughts on what America means to them and their hopes for the nation’s future. They will also learn about the concept of active citizenship, which dates all the way back to America’s independence. Through readings and discussions, students will discover examples of active citizenship in America’s past and present. Students will then work in groups to create plans to get involved in their community or work toward positive changes as they collaborate to be active citizens who strive to make America the best it can be.
Students will explore what it means to be civically engaged and how civic action is tied to American identity. They will brainstorm their own ideas about civic action, investigate misconceptions, and analyze historical examples of civic action from the past to present. Through discussions, station activities, and personal reflection, students will discover the power of civic action and identify ways they can make contributions or improvements to their community.
Students will explore how the Preamble to the United States Constitution outlines opportunities for reflection and civic action. Students will consider the importance of civic action in their school and community, analyze the text of the Preamble, and identify how the goals outlined in the Preamble create a blueprint for civic action today and in the future. Through peer discussion, historical inquiry, and textual analysis, students will explore how the concept of “We the People” empowers them to become engaged community members.
In addition to these resources from Discovery Education, below are some questions and prompts that may be helpful for students to consider as starting points as they prepare their submissions. Students are not expected to specifically address any or all of these questions in their responses.
What has shaped America over the past 250 years? Think about the impact of individuals, ideas, documents, historical movements, and events and how they have affected the growth and development of our country.
How has America influenced your family? Think about opportunities and benefits your family has enjoyed, challenges your family has faced, and service your family has given. Consider previous generations too–not just your immediate family.
What do you hope for America’s future? Think about what you hope the country can achieve and how you can help make it a reality.
Additional thought starters for high school students:
Read and reflect on the first two paragraphs of the Declaration of Independence.
What do the key ideas, values, and promises represented in the Declaration of Independence mean to you? What do you think they meant to Americans in 1776?
America's Field Trip
Engaging students nationwide to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary!
This contest invites students in grades 3–12 to share their perspectives on what America means to them — and earn the opportunity to travel for field trip experiences at some of the nation’s most iconic historic and cultural landmarks.
