History Time

A Newsletter for Kansas Educators

October 2023

Make and Take: Beaded Corn

Corn has been grown in the Americas for thousands of years. While kids are probably most familiar with yellow sweet corn, many more varieties have been cultivated by Native Americans over the past centuries. This beaded corn craft is a great way to begin exploring the history of different crops in Kansas. Use the craft and video to introduce the topic of Indigenous foodways and farming techniques. For a STEM connection, use the activity to discuss how the environment is shaped by agricultural practices. Or, explore the scientific reasoning as to why some crops thrive in Kansas and others do not.

Kaw Mission and

Last Chance Store Now Open!

Kaw Mission and Last Chance Store State Historic Site in Council Grove are now open with free admission! Following comprehensive renovations, visitors can explore Kaw Mission’s brand new exhibits with interactive elements and short informational films to learn about the Kanza (Kaw) people, Santa Fe Trail, and westward expansion. Last Chance Store provides examples of supplies that traders would purchase before journeying west to Santa Fe.

This video features Site Administrator Mark Brooks as he explains the history, construction, and significance of Last Chance Store and its impact on Council Grove and the Santa Fe Trail.

Standards Based Activity:

American Indian Homes Nearpod

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

This dynamic lesson for primary students focuses on historic homes and natural resources used by Plains Indians. Colorful graphics, historic photos, and interactive activity pages are interspersed among video from our museum’s gallery. Students visually explore the inside of the tipi, grass lodge, and earth lodge as they learn about the people who used these houses. The importance of natural resources is enhanced by a corn grinding demonstration and discussion of the many uses of the buffalo. Students will answer the essential question: What natural resources did American Indians of long ago use to build houses in Kansas?

The Indian Homes lesson is provided free of charge on Nearpod.com. It can be teacher led or self-paced for students.

Museum Renovation:

More Than Labels on a Wall

By their very nature history exhibits are educational spaces. They share information and encourage visitors to form their own conclusions. Interactive exhibits let visitors engage with the information and artifacts on display and, by engaging, become more than passive viewers. A good interactive invites people to use critical thinking and problem-solving skills and helps them retain information.

This interactive feature in a Bleeding Kansas exhibit uses a series of questions to help visitors process information presented about John Brown. Visitors are asked to slide knobs on a ten-point scale ranging from “Hero” to “Terrorist” as they rate five true statements about John Brown. Information in the five statements include, “John Brown believed slavery was a sin. Does this make him a hero or terrorist?” and “John Brown’s men killed 5 proslavery people because of their beliefs. Does this make him a hero or terrorist?” Interactives such as this one also allows visitors to connect with each other as they observe the last user’s responses before clearing them to record their own. Keep your eyes open for ways to engage when you visit our new exhibits next school year.

Free Access to Newspapers.com

Looking for sources for student research? Nearly 12 million pages from the KSHS newspaper collection are now freely available to everyone through our Open Access Portal. Verification of Kansas residency is no longer needed. The archivists at KSHS negotiated this open access specifically to benefit teachers and students in Kansas and beyond.

The Kansas Historical Society was founded in 1875 by newspaper editors who made it a priority to collect newspapers throughout the state. The result of their efforts includes almost every paper from every city and town in Kansas between 1854 -1923. Now any teacher or student studying Kansas history has free online access to these valuable primary sources and an unprecedented opportunity to rediscover Kansas history through the local press.

Don't Forget!

Rural School Days programs are still offered at the Kansas Museum of History.

Zephyr, our newest publication, provides information on events, programs, updates on the museum renovation, and highlights a variety of state historic sites.

State Capitol Visitors Center offers guided tours. Self-guided brochures are available for those who want to explore on their own.

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

Read Kansas! 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.