Nations Classroom Blog

Here is an exclusive look at the six newest portraits being added to the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C. this November!  

“Back to School” is just around the corner - and we at NationsClassroom are teachers’ biggest fans.  And we’re not alone. The historic attractions on our tours love supporting teachers; in fact, most of the attractions offer virtual Classroom Resources designed to enhance learning without having to leave the classroom.  We’ve compiled a list of our favorite “Educator Resources” from some of NationsClassroom’s most popular historical east coast destinations.

So even if a school trip isn’t in your immediate future this year, we encourage you to take a look at these resources designed to make learning history come to life in the classroom. 

Disappointing news for all the "Hamilton" musical fans:  Despite "Hamilton" being one of the most successful musicals in Broadway history, the well-reviewed and highly-anticipated "Hamilton the Exhibition" is closing permanently in Chicago. 

In the most recent issue of Teach and Travel Magazine, Student & Youth Travel Association member tour operators selected five U.S. cities as the "Top Emerging Destinations" for student travel in 2019 - and one of our favorite NationsClassroom tour destinations made the list.  

The National Memorial Day Parade, held annually along Constitution Avenue in  Washington, D.C., will take place this Monday, May 27th at 2pm.  

Last week, we discussed how writing about travel experiences can enhance a college application essay.  This week, we will follow up that discussion with some general college application essay tips gathered from over 100 college admissions officers across the country, coupled with my personal experience over ten years of helping hundreds of seniors apply to schools ranging from local technical colleges to Ivy League schools.  

Here are a four winning writing tips I can offer:

Are you heading to D.C. this year?  This week one of the most popular D.C. museums just made an exciting announcement.

The New Year has brought new changes to the D.C. parking scene, which is good news for our tour groups traveling via motorcoaches.  Did you know that according to the National Park Service, 1,200 motorcoaches arrive each day in D.C. during peak travel season.  Luckily for our student tour groups, traveling D.C. by motorcoach just got easier.

As a high school AP Language and Composition English teacher, the Newseum’s free app Today's Front Pages caught my attention.  I’m always looking for new ways for my students to analyze non-fiction texts in my classroom.  The app claims to bring the front pages of hundreds of newspapers worldwide daily to your phone or tablet.  The best part? It’s free. So could it live up to its claim? I had to see for myself.

On July 24th 1897, Amelia Earhart was born in Atchison, Kansas.  Most of us know that Earhart went on to be the first woman to pilot a plane solo across the Atlantic Ocean, after which she was awarded the United States Distinguished Flying Cross.  Amazingly, her accomplishments for the aviation industry did not end there - read below for five more fascinating facts about Amelia Earhart’s life.