Distance Learning
History Around Every Corner
Keep an eye on this page for new learning resources! You can find additional digital resources and virtual tours for NSCDA properties around the country, including Dumbarton House, at https://nscda.org/digitalmuseums/.
Are you a teacher hoping to plan a virtual field trip for the fall? Are you a parent looking for virtual Girl Scout activities to keep your daughters occupied? Check out our Girl Scout and School programs on offer and reach out with questions, concerns, and desires!
Distance Learning Resources
Virtual Programs and Activities
Learn about Joseph Nourse, the man who lived at Dumbarton House from 1804 to 1813, and have fun coloring in the pages of our downloadable coloring book!
- Joseph was the first Register of the Treasury! Learn about the Treasury Department and counting money with our Treasury Activity.
Explore life in the Federal Period with a virtual tour of Dumbarton House, keeping your eyes peeled for “I-Spys” along the way! You can use our interactive tour or download one of the files below.
- Virtual Capital Quest PDF (All I-Spys listed at the end of the document.)
- Virtual Capital Quest PowerPoint
- Once you’ve completed our virtual Capital Quest program, test out your knowledge with this short Capital Quest Quiz!
- Pair our Tricorn Hat Craft and Mapping Activity with completion of the Virtual Capital Quest program
Find out how Classical Greek architecture and style influenced the society and culture of Federal Period America!
- Virtual Parthenon to Portico PDF
- Virtual Parthenon to Portico PowerPoint
- Once you’ve completed our virtual Parthenon to Portico program, test out your knowledge with this short Parthenon to Portico Quiz!
Family Book Club
Use our guiding questions to explore three books – one for adults, one for teens, and one for children – in these multigenerational family book clubs.
Everyone knows our Founding Fathers George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Alexander Hamilton. How did women contribute to the Revolutionary War? Find out in our Dumbarton House Family Book Club:_Founding Mothers.
- Make your own Book Artist Craft using paper bags! Pair this craft with our Founding Mothers book club for further learning.
- Decorate your handmade book with your own marbled paper! (For extra help, view our tutorial.)
In 1796, an enslaved woman named Ona Judge escaped from the most powerful man in America – President George Washington. Learn more in our Dumbarton House Family Book Club: Ona Judge.
In 1776, the Declaration of Independence stated that “all men are created equal,” and yet the new United States enslaved people for life. Learn more about this contradiction in American history and the contributions of enslaved people through our Dumbarton House Family Book Club: In the Shadow of Liberty.
Online Puzzles
Museum 101 Videos
- Museums 101: Archives – learn what archives are and how to care for fragile primary source documents!
- Museums 101: Federal Period Art and Architecture – learn how to spot the Federal style in architectural features and furniture design and how these style choices were influenced by Classical Greece and Rome!
- Museums 101: Textiles and Wallpaper – learn about how we decorated our period rooms using historically accurate wallpaper and carpets!
Live Virtual Programming
Dumbarton House offers a wide range of programming for children. Introducing youth to our nation’s past during hands-on programs at Dumbarton House, students “travel back in time” 200 years and explore early Washington, D.C., history. Find out more about our youth programs below!
