National Park Service Historic Preservation Education

“The preservation of [our] irreplaceable heritage is in the public interest so that its vital legacy of cultural, educational, aesthetic, inspirational, economic, and energy benefits will be maintained and enriched for future generations of Americans”

(Title 1, Section 1(b)(4) of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended)

To preserve our nation’s heritage and provide access to its rich education benefits, the National Park Service provides educational resources and guidance for professionals in historic preservation and related fields, educators and teachers, students, and interested members of the general public.

Teach and Engage Youth

Teaching with Historic Places program publishes over 150 free, ready-to-use lesson plans about real historic sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Discover how historic places can enliven school subjects with both original and primary source readings, historic photographs, maps, suggested activities, and more. This award-winning National Park Service program also features a professional development website called Teaching Teachers the Power of Place for educators, historic site directors, preservationists, and others interested in using historic places to teach.

Teaching with Historic Places also offers a Youth Summits online resource. This site provides detailed guidance for planning youth summits in historic preservation, including information about fundraising, organizing, budgeting, and designing successful youth summits. The resources on this website show examples of how this exciting method for invigorating local preservation efforts can affect real change in diverse communities.

Archeology for Kids is an online educational resource from National Park Service Archeology, where students can learn about who archeologists are and what they do. NPS Archeology also features resources for educators interested in using and teaching archeology in and out of their classrooms.

Discover Preserved Places

The Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itineraries series website features 60 free travel guides with detailed information about heritage destinations and historic sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places. All 50 states, U.S. Insular Areas, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia are represented in the series. Each itinerary includes descriptions of each historic place and its importance in American history, thematic essays, historic site contact information, interactive maps, and links to related preservation and tourism web sites.

Learn to Preserve

The National Park Services offers written guidance, training, webinars, and more for people interested in becoming preservation hobbyists or professionals. Visit the Learn How to Be a Preservationist page to see a complete list of resources.