K-12 Classroom Resources

K-12 Classroom Resources

Design has the power to change the world. Explore lesson plans and activities to help you empower your students to view the world with optimism and apply design literacy in their daily lives. Also visit Professional Development Resources for strategies and approaches on how to integrate design in your classroom. For information on Design Field Trips, visit School Programs.

Design Spotlight: WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH

Learn about women who have shaped our world through design, explore more on Design Topics: Women in Design.

Video: Madeleine Moore-Burrell

Grades: 1-4

Discover how Madeleine Moore-Burrell influenced symbol design and used her dyslexia experience to advise Henry Dreyfuss on readability.

Susie Zuzek

Grades: 2-5

Learn how Susie Zuzek’s textile designs were inspired by her home and local environment then create a textile pattern of your own.

Faith Ringgold: Posters & Protest

Grades: 9-12, Subjects: History, Civil Rights Movement

Analyze political posters designed by artist, author, and activist Faith Ringgold, and design your own protest poster about a civil rights issue today.

Design Strategies

Learn and practice design skills and strategies by collaborating with your peers, flexing your creative muscles, exploring your community, and getting your hands dirty with prototyping challenges.

Design Terms & Strategies

Grades: 5-12

A simple one-page reference sheet of design terms and strategies.

Observational Collage Map

Grades: 9-12, Subjects: Geography, Science

In this activity you will work on design skills such as observing, building curiosity, collaborating, and analyzing through exploring the architectural and geographic features in your community and collect visual clues that will help you create a collage map.

Design it Yourself: Design A Prototype for a user

Grades: 2-5

Learn to think like a designer by prototyping a solution engineered for a specific user.

Design it Yourself: Practice Design Observation

Grades: 2-5

Follow along to practice observation, used in design, art, and science.

The Design Process

Grades: 2-12

A simple step-by-step outline of the design process.

Related to Making Home—Smithsonian Design Triennial

Check out resources related to Making Home—Smithsonian Design Triennial. Visit often to find out what’s new.

Video: What is Home?

Grades: 2-12

East Jordan Middle/High School students, faculty, school leadership and community members answer the question what is home?

Video: Comidad, Conversación Y Comunidad

Grades: 6-12

Learn how the East Jordan, Middle/High School students engaged with community members through culinary and linguistic exchanges.

Youth Designing for Communities

Grades: 6-12

Explore how students from East Jordan Middle/High School in Michigan used the design process to collaborate with Spanish-speaking families and strengthened community connections.

Related to recent exhibitions

Check out resources related to recent exhibitions, including Acquired! Shaping the National Design Museum, An Atlas of Es Devlin, and Give Me A Sign: The Language of Symbols. Visit often to find out what’s new.

The Language of Symbols: Video Series

Grades: 1-5

These videos explore symbols as vital communication tools in our daily lives, constantly evolving to meet new needs and users.

Althea McNish

Grades: 7-12

Explore bright and tropical printed textiles designed by Althea McNish, inspired by the colors and landscape of her native Trinidad.

An Atlas of Es Devlin: A Creative Curriculum

Grades: 8-12, Subjects: ELA, Art

Inspired by the ways Devlin sustains and adapts her artistic process, this 8-part curriculum is designed to foster creative thinking.

Explore more on Smithsonian learning lab

Discover more activities to try in your classroom on the Smithsonian Learning Lab. This digital platform inspires creativity and exploration with enriching materials. Access over 2 million images, recordings, and texts from the Smithsonian’s 19 museums, 9 major research centers, the National Zoo, and more.

Designing for Identity and Inclusion in Your Community

Grades: 2-6

Explore icons, symbols, and logos to create a design of your own to represent a community you belong to.

Design a Zine: Family Cornerstones

Grades: 6-8

Inspired by the way zines have amplified diverse voices, this activity explores how to craft a zine in celebration of our communities and identities.

Cas Holman: Good Toys Make Good People

Grades: 6-8

Explore how Cas Holman designs tools for imagination and empowers children through play.