About the Project

On July 4, 2026, our nation will commemorate and celebrate the 250th (semiquincentennial) anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. The 2025-2026 school year brings a historic opportunity to build civic knowledge, pride, and engagement with our students. Developed in partnership with C-SPAN Classroom, these nine lessons will allow students to focus less on the division of this time period and more on the beauty behind the American story, Founding principles, and continued quest for a “more perfect union.” We’ll be taking a deeper look at how different communities in America have experienced the promises of the Declaration throughout its 250 years.

Through the creation of birthday-themed lessons, proven pedagogies will be employed for students to analyze primary and secondary sources. To assist teachers in augmenting instruction around designated monthly observances celebrating the contributions of various generations, these themed lessons target the necessary skills (such as contextualization, comparison, evaluation, and analysis) students need to develop a deeper understanding of the complexities associated with the Declaration of Independence.
There will also be monthly professional learning webinars for educators to gain a deeper understanding of the perspectives below. Webinar links are available at the bottom of the page.