Digital Learning Courses
- Audience: K-12 Teachers
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame has developed several digital learning kits for K-12 teachers throughout the country. These digital courses are entirely free to use and provide comprehensive lesson plans with learning materials and activities in a wide variety of disciplines. These courses are in the form of downloadable PDFs that can be freely reproduced to suit your classroom needs. We are always producing more courses all the time, so check back often to see what's new.
We currently offer the following courses:
- On Track to Change: How 20th Century America Shaped Thoroughbred Racing. This course explores the profound impact of 20th-century American culture, politics, and economics on the evolution of thoroughbred racing. This course delves into the sport’s transformation through key moments such as the Great Depression, advancements in technology, and the cultural shift of gender roles. Through a historical lens, the course offers a unique understanding of how societal shifts influenced both the sport’s development and its role in American life.
- A social studies course for grades 9-12.
- Download the course materials here:
On Track to Change Learning Packet.pdf
- From Track to Trench: Civil War on the Turf. This course will follow the trajectory of America's greatest sport during America's greatest national crisis. The American Civil War changed the face of the nation, and likewise, changed the sport forever. Racing historians split the sport into two distinct categories: pre-Civil War, and post-Civil War. In many ways, the history of horse racing mirrored the history of America itself. They were intertwined in a way that few sports are. How did this happen? What was racing like before the war, and how did it change? What were the key figures that made racing what it is today? Follow along during this journey through America's sport, and America's crisis.
- A social studies course for grades 9-12.
- Download the course materials here:
If you would like to learn more about the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame's digital learning initiative, contact Education Curator Alexandra Reichel at areichel@racingmuseum.net or call (518) 584-0400 ext. 118.
