Education Program - Audience Group

Lesson Plan: 250 Years of Defending American Ideals

Fri, 13 Mar 2026 17:43:00 GMT

Students will review American ideals in the Declaration of Independence and examine how those ideals have been defended by individuals buried at ANC. They will analyze primary sources, create a poster exhibit, and reflect on how such ideals shape their own lives.

Materials

Lesson Plan (High School)
Teacher PowerPoint (High School)
Student Materials (High School)

Walking Tour: African American Military Heroes

Mon, 21 Apr 2025 18:15:28 GMT

Learn about the lives of Tuskegee Airmen, members of the 369th Infantry Infantry Regiment (the “Harlem Hellfighters”), Medal of Honor recipients and more.

Throughout U.S. history, African Americans have fought bravely for the United States and distinguished themselves in combat. This walking tour includes gravesites and memorials that honor the service of these heroic individuals.

Length: 5 miles
Starting point: Section 40 (0.4 miles from Welcome Center)
Because this walking tour is quite long, we recommend completing it in smaller sections.

Materials

Walking Tour

Lifelong Learners: Personal Accounts of the Spanish-American War

Mon, 21 Apr 2025 18:13:09 GMT

Explore photographs and personal accounts that tell firsthand stories about the Spanish-American War. Learners of all ages can use these primary sources in order to understand how Americans experienced the war in different ways.

Materials

Personal Accounts of the Spanish-American War (PDF)

Walking Tour: Segregation and Civil Rights

Mon, 21 Apr 2025 18:12:40 GMT

Explore Arlington’s past as a plantation, learn about the Freedman's Village built on this property during the Civil War, and meet some trailblazers of the civil rights movement.

The history of African Americans at Arlington National Cemetery parallels and reflects the history of African Americans in the United States. This walking tour includes sites related to slavery, Reconstruction, segregation, the civil rights movement, and the continuing contributions of African Americans to the U.S. military and society.

Length: 5 miles
Starting point: Section 36 (0.2 miles from Welcome Center)
Because this walking tour is quite long, we recommend completing it in smaller sections.

Materials

Walking Tour

Walking Tour: Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Thu, 27 Mar 2025 19:01:00 GMT

Visit the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the gravesites of individuals related to the Tomb's history.

On November 11, 1921, an unknown American soldier who died in World War I was laid to rest at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. On this walking tour, you will visit the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the gravesites of several individuals who took part in the Unknown’s 1921 burial ceremony. You will also explore other sites in the cemetery that invite reflection on the sacrifices of those who gave not only their lives, but also their names and identities in the service of the United States.

Length: 2 miles
Starting point: Section 5 (.3 miles from Welcome Center)

Materials

Walking Tour: Memorial Arboretum

Thu, 27 Mar 2025 18:52:26 GMT

Arlington National Cemetery's 639 acres of rolling green hills, with nearly 9,000 trees, serve as a living tribute to the veterans and their family members laid to rest here. Our walking tours explore highlights of Memorial Arboretum.

In 2014, to commemorate its 150th anniversary, Arlington National Cemetery established this historic landscape as Memorial Arboretum. In 2018, Memorial Arboretum was accredited as a Level III Arboretum--one of only 24 institutions worldwide to maintain this prestigious accreditation. While strolling through these hallowed grounds, consider how the landscape contributes to Arlington's mission to honor and remember the service and sacrifice of individuals buried here.

Distance: 2.5 miles for regular walking tour; 2 miles for school group walking tour
Exertion Level: Moderate
Starting point: Section 31 (.2 miles from Welcome Center)

Materials

Walking Tour: Freedman's Village

Thu, 27 Mar 2025 18:50:47 GMT

The southern sections of Arlington National Cemetery contain the former site of Freedman’s Village — a community of formerly enslaved African Americans, established in 1863. Freedman’s Village evolved into a unique and thriving community, and it had a lasting legacy. Learn more and explore other nearby Civil War gravesites.

Distance: ~.6 miles
Exertion Level: Moderate
Starting point: Section 3 (1.5 miles from Welcome Center)

Materials

Walking Tour

Walking Tour: Arts and Culture

Thu, 27 Mar 2025 18:50:21 GMT

This walking tour honors a selection of artists buried at Arlington: writers, actors, photographers, musicians, and more. They created for different reasons, at different times, and with different backgrounds, but they all shared a need to create and express who they were and how they saw the world through their work.

Distance: ~3 miles
Exertion Level: Moderate
Starting point: Section 2 (.4 miles from Welcome Center)

Materials

Walking Tour

Walking Tour: The Spanish-American War

Thu, 27 Mar 2025 18:49:23 GMT

Arlington National Cemetery contains more monuments and burial sites related to the Spanish-American War than any other location in the continental United States.

Learn about the historical significance of the Spanish-American War by visiting the gravesites of individuals who played prominent roles in it, as well as the USS Maine Memorial, the Spanish-American War Memorial and other monuments.

Length: 1.2 miles
Starting point: Section 24 (1 mile from Welcome Center)

Materials

Walking Tours: World War II

Thu, 27 Mar 2025 18:45:00 GMT

These six walking tours share some of the diverse experiences and individual stories of those who fought abroad or worked on the home front during World War II. The main walking tour includes stops across the entire cemetery, while the four cluster tours only include stops in one of the four main sections of the cemetery. The school tour is an abridged version of the main tour.

Materials

Walking Tours: The Civil War

Thu, 27 Mar 2025 18:44:00 GMT

Thousands of Civil War service members are buried at Arlington National Cemetery — which itself originated during the Civil War. On this tour, you will explore some of their stories; learn why the U.S. Army first occupied the property in 1861; and discover the histories of enslavement and emancipation that this land also embodies.

Distance: ~5 miles (full tour); ~2.5 miles (student tour)
Exertion Level: High
Starting point: Section 27 (.5 miles from Welcome Center)

Materials

Walking Tour: Explorers

Thu, 27 Mar 2025 18:43:00 GMT

Throughout its history, the U.S. military has explored — first over the earth via land and sea, then into the skies, and finally into space. This legacy of exploration can be seen here at Arlington National Cemetery, the final resting place of many people who expanded our understanding of the earth, air, and space.

Length: 3.5 miles
Starting point: Section 2 (0.4 miles from Welcome Center)
Exertion Level: High

Materials

Walking Tour: Explorers—Earth, Air, and Space

Walking Tour: Military Medicine

Thu, 27 Mar 2025 18:36:00 GMT

Explore the history of military medicine — from the Civil War to the present — through the stories of pioneering individuals buried at Arlington National Cemetery: physicians, nurses, inventors, and organizational leaders. The tour also examines the historical relationship between wars and medical innovations that advanced capabilities to save lives, both military and civilian.

Distance: ~4 miles. This tour is long. Consider completing it across two visits (Stops 1-7 and Stops 8-18) and/or taking the tram: click here for information.
Exertion level: High
Starting point: Section 2 (.5 miles from Welcome Center)

Materials

Walking Tour

Walking Tour: Women's Military Service

Wed, 26 Mar 2025 18:54:00 GMT

Women have played key roles in supporting the U.S. military, formally or informally, since the Revolutionary War. At ANC, gravesites and memorials mark numerous milestones in the history of women’s military service. As you explore the cemetery, consider how the stories of women in the military can deepen your understanding of well-known conflicts and societal progress, and think about how many more stories could still be told.

Distance: ~4 miles. Shorten your walk by taking the tram: click here for information.
Exertion level: High
Starting point: Section 35 (.7 miles from Welcome Center)

Materials

Lesson Plan: Fighting for the Vote

Tue, 25 Mar 2025 16:47:11 GMT

World War I marked the first time American women were allowed to enlist in the military and serve in roles outside of nursing. It also marked a turning point in the fight for women’s suffrage in the United States. In this lesson, high school students will learn about women’s military contributions in World War I and practice for the AP U.S. History exam Document-Based Question as they review primary-source documents.

Materials

Lesson Plan: Nurses in the Spanish-American War

Fri, 21 Mar 2025 14:40:55 GMT

Students use primary source documents and other resources to learn about the role of female nurses during the Spanish-American War.

The lesson also explores the expansion of career opportunities for women in military medicine before and after the war, and it addresses the different experiences of white women and women of color. Resources include quotes, images and cards with profiles of individual nurses. Students complete a gallery walk or work in groups on a jigsaw of teacher-curated resources.

Elementary: One class period, 45-60 minutes total
Middle: 1-2 class periods, 60-75 minutes total
High: 1-2 class periods, 60-75 minutes total

Teacher Materials

Student Materials

Elementary School Student Materials (PDF)
Middle School Student Materials (PDF)
High School Student Materials (PPT)

Lifelong Learners: Freedman’s Village at Arlington

Fri, 21 Mar 2025 14:39:20 GMT

Freedman’s Village was a community of formerly enslaved African Americans established on the former Arlington estate in 1863.

Through historical photos and personal accounts, learn about life in the village and the circumstances surrounding its eventual closure.

Materials

Freedman’s Village at Arlington (PDF)

Lesson Plan: Freedman’s Village at Arlington

Fri, 21 Mar 2025 14:38:06 GMT

Freedman’s Village was a federally administered temporary community of formerly enslaved African Americans established on the former Arlington estate in 1863.

In 1887, the government decided to close Freedman’s Village and evict the residents. After analyzing documents and summarizing the arguments on both sides of the issue—should Freedman’s Village be closed or remain open?—students choose their own stance and respond to a reflection question. For an extension opportunity, students can write a letter to the secretary of war explaining what they think should be done.

Elementary School: 1-3 class periods, 45-120 minutes total
Middle School: 1-2 class periods, 60-90 minutes total
High School: 1-2 class periods, 60-90 minutes total

Teacher Materials

Student Materials

Elementary School Student Materials (PDF)
Middle School Student Materials (PDF)
High School Student Materials (PDF)

Lesson Plan: The Freedpeople of Section 27

Fri, 21 Mar 2025 14:34:18 GMT

Although Arlington National Cemetery is a military cemetery, it contains a section where thousands of African American civilians were buried between 1864 and 1867.

Through a class lecture and exploration of a Section 27 burial record, students explore what life may have been like for free African Americans during the years surrounding the Civil War. Students will write a short obituary for one of the African American civilians on the burial record.

Elementary School: 1 class period, 45-60 minutes total
Middle School: 1-2 class periods, 70-90 minutes total
High School: 1-2 class periods, 70-90 minutes total

Teacher Materials

Student Materials

Elementary School Student Materials (PDF)
Middle and High School Burial Record Spreadsheet (Excel)

Lesson Plan: Reconstruction Timeline

Fri, 21 Mar 2025 14:29:00 GMT

This timeline activity about the history of Reconstruction (1865-1877) can be used as an introduction, a review or at any time throughout a Reconstruction unit.

Timeline cards can be printed and ordered to give students an overview of important events during the Reconstruction era. For students who will be visiting Arlington National Cemetery, an optional set of Freedman’s Village timeline cards can also be printed and used.

One class period, 15-30 minutes

Teacher Materials

Student Materials

Elementary School Reconstruction Timeline (PDF)
Elementary School Freedman's Village Timeline (PDF)
Middle School Reconstruction Timeline (PDF)
Middle School Freedman's Village Timeline (PDF)
High School Reconstruction Timeline (PDF)
High School Freedman's Village Timeline (PDF)