Teaching Eleanor Roosevelt gives teachers and students the information they need to incorporate Eleanor Roosevelt into middle and high school curriculums and assignments. Designed by the Eleanor Roosevelt Papers and tailored to the New York State Standards of Learning, this electronic classroom introduces readers to the history of Val-Kill, the influence Eleanor Roosevelt had on issues at home and around the world, her thoughts on a variety of topics, family memories of their time at Val-Kill, and answers fifty frequently asked questions about Val-Kill and Eleanor Roosevelt. Teachers will find five sample curricula (complete with documents they can download for classroom use) and five ways to incorporate Eleanor Roosevelt into discussions of twentieth century American History. Students will find quotes and articles by Eleanor Roosevelt they can use in homework assignments as well as a glossary providing detailed definitions of 134 people, places, and events that played an important role in Eleanor Roosevelt's life.

This one-hour program provides students with an understanding of the work of Eleanor Roosevelt as an activist, world traveler, mother, and humanitarian. A National Park Ranger presents the program in the school classroom. Through hands-on investigation students will examine objects from Eleanor's suitcase with the assignment to imagine the objects uses and significance.

• Grades: 3 - 6
  
• Format: One-hour program in the classroom
  
• Schedule: September through April
  
• (Meets NYS Social Study Standards 1-6 and addresses curriculum elements: community, self, family, geography, human rights and local history)

Eleanor loved the quiet beauty of Valkill and the rich variety of creatures living in the pond and stream. Through hands-on investigative exploration students will use their observational skills to collect data, identify and classify organisms, and participate in a web-of-life game by applying their newly learned knowledge of the fresh water ecosystems at Valkill.

• Grades: K - 5th
  
• Format: Two-hour program at the park
  
• Schedule: Spring & Fall
  
• Class Size: 10 - 30 students

For more information about these programs call the park Education Specialist at 845-229-9115 or send email to Susanne_Norris@nps.gov.

To visit Eleanor Roosevelt's Val-Kill call the Reservation Center at 1-800-967-2283 or go to reservations.nps.gov.