School Programs
The Historical Society of Princeton offers a variety of school programs designed to expand and augment your school’s Social Studies curriculum. Whether it is in your classroom or in Bainbridge House’s exhibition galleries, the Historical Society’s community collections will enrich your student’s “history experience.”
Field Trips to Bainbridge House
Field Trips to The Updike Farmstead
Walking Tours
Outreach Programs
Professional Development
Field Trips to Bainbridge House
Einstein at Home
Grades K-12
Length: 60 min. (gallery) or 2 hours (gallery plus walking tour)
Cost: $4/student or $8/student
NJCC: 5.1; 5.2; 5.4
Who was Albert Einstein? HSP is thrilled to exhibit a selection of Einstein's furniture and personal belongings to provide a glimpse into the public and private life of Princeton’s most famous resident. By examining his possessions, portraits and photographs, students will discover how Einstein was more that a great scientist, but also an immigrant, musician and humanitarian.
The walking tour includes stops at EMC Square, the locations of Einstein’s favorite eateries and culminates in a stop at his home at 112 Mercer Street.
Field Trips to The Updike Farmstead
Farm Fresh
Grades: 3-8
Length: 60 minutes
Cost: $4/student
NJCC standards: 2.1; 6.1,6.2
In 1954, New Jersey officially became known as the Garden State, but farming has been a way of life in the state for more than 400 years. This interactive program, taking place inside our restored 18th/early 19th century farmhouse in Princeton’s historic Stony Brook and Battlefield Preservation District, will trace the evolution of farming in New Jersey, from the Lenape Indians to the colonists to today. A special emphasis will be made on the Clarke and Updike families, the former residents of the farmstead, and how the Revolutionary War threatened the way of life of most farmers.
Program add-on: FARM FUN!
Length: additional 1-2 hours
Cost: $4/student
Extend your stay at the Updike Farmstead! Students can explore nature through a scavenger hunt, play old-fashioned games and create a craft to take home. Classes are also invited to bring a snack or bagged lunch and picnic on the grounds.
Influential First Ladies
Program available February-June 2012
Grades: 3-12
Length: 60 minutes
Cost: $4/student
NJCC standards: 1.2, 1.3, 1.4; 2.1, 2.6; 6.1; 6.3
In conjunction with the centennial anniversary of Woodrow Wilson’s presidential campaign, election and inauguration, HSP is proud to present this program. This program will focus on three first ladies who have had ties with Princeton- Francis Cleveland, Ellen Wilson, and Michelle Obama- and each has had her own interests, opinions and career separate from her presidential husband. Using the landscapes in The Art of Ellen Axon Wilson: American Impressionist as a backdrop, students will learn about the causes supported by these women and their impact on American history, including Cleveland’s work with the National Security League, Wilson’s “Alley Bill” and Obama’s “Let’s Move” campaign. The program includes the teacher’s choice of either a creative writing or sketching activity.
Walking Tours
Picturing Princeton
Grade levels: K-12
Length: 60 minutes (walking tour) or 90 minutes (gallery plus walking tour)
Cost: $4 or $6 per student
NJCCC standards: 6.1; 6.2
Students become history detectives by exploring three centuries of Princeton history through this lively tour, which highlights the town's diverse architectural styles. By visiting such sites as Nassau Hall, Beatty House and the University Chapel, students will be introduced to topics including the Revolutionary War, immigration and the Industrial Revolution. The 90-minute program includes a museum tour and “Learning to Look” portrait activity.
The Story of Princeton’s Immigrants
Grade levels: 3-8
Length: 90 minutes
Cost: $6/student
NJCCC standards: 6.1; 6.2
We have heard how the Dutch and the English settled central New Jersey; but what about the rest of the story? This walking tour reveals how immigrants form Ireland, Italy, India, and Guatemala have profoundly shaped Princeton form the 19th-21st centuries, Students will learn the signs to discover the roots of their own towns. A perfect fit for fifth-grade curricula on heritage and immigration.
Outreach Programs
Let us bring history to you! HSP offers two outreach programs to support your classroom curriculum. Power Point presentations are conducted in a discussion format, with a lively interaction between the Curator of Education and your students.
Princeton: Then and Now
Grades: K-12
Length: 60 minutes
Cost: $80 per program
NJCC Standard: 6.1, 6.2
The town of Princeton was settled more than 300 years ago. What has changed over the years, and what stays the same? Using the Historical Society of Princeton’s massive photo archives, students will take a photographic journey back in time to compare how the sites we pass by everyday looked in the past. Topics include transportation, shopping, religion and education. At the conclusion of the Power Point presentation, students will design postcards to show a snapshot of Princeton 100 years in the future.
The Life of Albert Einstein
Grades: 4-12
Length: 60 minutes
Cost: $80 per program
NJCC: 5.1; 5.2; 6.1; 6.2
Through this interactive presentation, students will examine the life of the man whose name has become synonymous with “genius.” Learn how a childhood fascination with a compass played a role in the development of the Nobel prize-winning scientist, how he accepted a job in Princeton to escape Nazi Germany and how he used his
Professional Development Workshop
Cultivate the Curriculum
Date: Saturday, January 28, 2012
Time: 9:30 am – 1:30 pm
Location: The Updike Farmstead, 354 Quaker Road, Princeton, NJ
Cost: $50
With the national movement towards gardening in the classroom getting stronger every day, many teachers are incorporating a garden into their students’ daily learning. Research strongly supports that garden-based education improves both academic performance and the learning environment. Cultivate the Curriculum covers everything from choosing a location for your garden (even if it’s indoors), to managing your time in the garden (as well as your class), to incorporating every subject into your garden learning time.
Participants are provided with all the knowledge to choose a manageable garden size, recruit volunteer help, build and maintain a garden space and tap into the never ending supply of teachable moments in the garden. Area, perimeter, creative writing, problem solving, the scientific method, nutrition, cooperation, and good citizenship can all be taught through the experience of planting and caring for your own garden.
Instructor: Suzanne Macauley, Program Director, NJ Agricultural Society.
How to Book a Program:
For more information or to make a reservation, please call Eve Mandel at 609.921.6748 x102, or email eve@princetonhistory.org. All field trips must have at least one chaperone for every 8 children. Groups larger than 30 will be split into two.
