Archive for the ‘Classroom Resources’ Category

As you may have heard, Mount Vernon’s recent initiative to “bring George Washington back to school” has proven a resounding success! To date, about 2,000 schools have received (and about 4,000 schools have requested) our free, framed reproductions of Rembrandt Peale’s Porthole Portrait of George Washington. All portraits are accompanied by a “George Washington Celebration Kit” of teaching resources and an American flag that has been flown over Mount Vernon (courtesy of a small army of energetic Mount Vernon volunteers!). Recipients have shared gracious letters of thanks praising the portrait‘s potential to inspire students and other members of the school community.

We’re grateful that schools have so enthusiastically responded to this effort to restore the first president’s portrait to our nation’s K-12 educational institutions. We also appreciate the kind patience of schools currently on our waiting list. Finally, enormous thanks are due to the many generous private donors responsible for funding this ongoing project. (Mount Vernon does not receive government funding of any kind.) We will continue to provide portraits for as long as we’re able!

View answers to common questions about our portrait program!

Enjoy our online jigsaw puzzle version of the portrait!

Members of Mount Vernon’s Education Department have fielded repeated questions about our opinion of the portrayal of Washington in HBO’s popular John Adams miniseries. We’d like to use this opportunity to raise what we think is a more compelling question: How can and should historic sites and classroom teachers capitalize on the interest Hollywood increasingly generates in historical events, places, and people?

As it happens, this very question was the topic of one of our recent distance learning programs, History Meets Hollywood, available for FREE to educators in DVD format while supplies last!

Continue reading Washington, Adams, Hollywood, and Free DVDs! »