Innovation Across the Nation

The latest collaboration between the Smithsonian and USA Today has been released.

Earlier this month, The Office of the Under Secretary for Education, the Office of Communications and External Affairs, and the Office of Advancement announced the release of Innovation Across the Nation, the seventh in a series of printed educational activity guides produced in collaboration with USA TODAY. Using the Smithsonian’s vast scholarship, research, and educational prowess, Innovation Across the Nation builds on the themes and activities of the summer’s Inspiration Nation, encouraging K-8 learners to put their own creativity into action with Smithsonian examples of ingenuity from our collections and programming.

More than 58,000 copies of this terrific guide will be sent to pick-up sites across the country including the FUTURES exhibition at the Arts and Industries Building, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, and several Smithsonian Affiliate museums. The objects, stories, games, and puzzles within this guide will further our institutional goal of making an educational impact in communities across the country, especially to learners with inadequate access to computers or the internet.  

“Ashley Naranjo led an interdisciplinary content team of educators to create this guide, including people from the National Air and Space Museum, the National Museum of African American History and Culture, the Na­tional Museum of Natural History, the National Postal Museum, the Office of the Under Secretary for Edu­cation, the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, and the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives,” said Julissa Marenco, Assistant Secretary for OCEA. “It is an impressive achievement; we appreciate all the people throughout the Smithsonian community who contributed their time and talents.”

“Smithsonian educators work every day to make our robust content more accessible, and these high-quality no- and low-tech educational materials show the depth and breadth of what we give forth to the world,” added Under Secretary for Education Monique Chism. “With this engaging collection, learners can explore Washington, D.C.’s memorials, grow plants to conduct scientific observations, and invent their own color hues.

“These collaborative endeavors have made a real impact,” Chism continued. “Since June 2020, we have distributed 545,000 print activity guides for children and 3.7 million printed newspaper inserts for intergenerational learning.”

This latest release can be accessed and downloaded at the blog post, https://learninglab.si.edu/news/jumping-into-innovative-thinking, (or seen below) and the entire series can be found at https://s.si.edu/high-touch-learning. We hope you appreciate all the work your colleagues put into this guide, and we hope you share it with the K-8 learners in your life.

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ICYMI: Highlights from the week that was June 2 – June 8, 2019 Using a museum’s approach in the classroom Sidedoor: Sumo wrestlers vs. firefighters Awards ceremony highlights the reach and impact of Smithsonian Education for teachers and students