History Time

A Newsletter for Kansas Educators

October 2025

Make and Take: Sizing

American Indian Housing Styles

October 13, 2025 is Indigenous People’s Day. Celebrate the day by learning more about the various Native American groups that lived in Kansas. This activity helps students learn about different traditional Native American housing styles. Students will physically “draw” the footprint of a tipi, bark lodge, grass lodge, or earth lodge to aid in visualizing the structures. Pair this activity with Read Kansas! Lesson P-6 for a more in-depth learning experience.

Standards Based Lesson:

American Indian Homes in Kansas

Standard #5: Relationships among people, places, ideas, and environments are dynamic. 

This first grade lesson pairs perfectly with the sizing activity above. Read Kansas! lesson P-06 focuses on the connection between American Indians in Kansas and the environment. Students will learn about the traditional homes of the Wichita, Pawnee, Kaw, and Cheyenne. The material can be covered in six short sessions spread out over six days or can be combined and completed in fewer days.

Family History Month

October is Family History Month and the perfect time to have students explore their roots or start a family research project. Here are a few tools to help get your students started:

Military Records: Discover the service histories of your ancestors and their contributions.

People & Places: Trace where your family lived in Kansas over the years by searching biographical records, marriage indexes, property maps, land records, and more.

Newspapers: Explore our digital newspaper database - primarily from 1852-1922 - to find everyday stories and announcements that provide a comprehensive glimpse of the past.

Online Collections: Browse digitized photos, documents, and records from across the state.

A bonus for Kansas residents: Enjoy free access to Ancestry.com through our website.

Tour Fees

Tour rates for the new Kansas Museum of History have been finalized! Schedule a tour for your class today!

Self-guided tours - $4 per student

Guided tours - $6 per student

Rural School Days 1 hr - $6 per student

Rural School Days 4 hr - $10 per student

Gallery Sneak Peek

We are thrilled to share a special preview of some exciting updates underway at the Kansas Museum of History! In our renovated gallery space, you can look forward to:



• Entirely new exhibits
• Another striking new mural by Stan Herd
• Interactive displays for all ages
• Never before seen artifacts
• Thematic galleries that make history relevant

Don't Forget!

State Historic Sites now have free admission! Look for one in your area. Call ahead as some are only open seasonally.

Read Kansas! lessons are available free of charge for primary, intermediate, middle, and high school students while supplies last.

A variety of virtual tours, videos, and Nearpod lessons are available to use in your classroom. 

Traveling resource trunks are available to borrow. Reserve one now for the school year.

The Kansas Museum of History is closed for renovations. Although the museum is not available for field trips, our staff is here for you.