Teacher Resources
 The Illinois State Museum offers a variety of resources for preK-12 teachers and students including exhibit-based school programs, self-guided tours, professional development opportunities for teachers, and online lesson plans.
The ISM is an exciting and educational field trip destination.
Your group's Museum visit may be a self-guided tour,
or include an exhibit-based school program taught by a Museum
educator. For older students, behind-the-scenes tours are
available of the Museum's Research and Collections Center.
Learn about the Archaic, Woodland, Late Prehistoric and historic eras of Native American lifeways in Illinois. Lesson plans include the topics of foodways, architecture, clothing, rituals, symbols, and games. This is the most thorough exhibit on the Web of Illinois-related Native American information. Activities are also provided for the Cub Scout and Boy Scout badges.
MuseumLink Native American Module
Programs are offered as independent activities or guided programs. Independent activities are led by the classroom teacher and all materials are provided by the Museum. Guided programs are led by a Museum educator and subject to staff availability. The Museum’s school programs are correlated with the Illinois Learning Standards. All school programs are available to students with special needs.
For more information about independent activities and guided programs, please contact the Education Section at walthall@museum.state.il.us or (217) 782-0061.
Cultural History
Peoples of the Past
Grades: PreK–12
30 minutes for Grades PreK-2
45 minutes for Grades 3-12
Guided & Independent Activity
Pre & Post Visit Materials
This program is offered in the Peoples of the Past exhibition, four life-sized dioramas that depict Native American lifeways in Illinois from 2500 B.C. to the 19th century. Activities are tailored to grade level. Students examine real and reproduction artifacts, explore lifestyle changes over time, and gain an appreciation for other cultures.
Peoples of the Past—Pottery
Grades: 3–6
45 minutes
Guided
Material fee: 50¢ per student
In this hands-on program, students use tools from nature to create and decorate their own pinch pot, and gain an understanding of the significance of pottery to Native American life. This is an optional extension of the Peoples of the Past program.
At Home in the Heartland
Grades: 4–5
30 minutes
Independent Activity
Students explore the history of domestic life in Illinois through an independent activity in the At Home in the Heartland exhibition. Students focus on specific artifacts as they walk through six time periods from 1700 to the 1990s, and gain a broader understanding of Illinois’ rich history through the eyes of people who lived here.
Natural History
Animal Habitats
Grades: PreK-2
30 minutes
Guided & Independent Activity
Pre and Post Visit Materials
Students are introduced to a variety of Illinois animals and their habitats. Prairie, cave, forest, and river habitats are explored, along with animals that live in each habitat and their adaptations. Students will examine specimens representing the animals and their lifeways.
Rocks and Minerals
Grades: 2–5
30 minutes
Guided & Independent Activity
Pre and Post Visit Materials
This program gives a broad overview of rocks and minerals including: the three rock groups and their formation; the definition of a mineral; basic mineral properties; and practical uses of rocks and minerals. Illinois examples and connections to the Changes exhibition are emphasized.
Focus on Fossils
Grades: 2–5
30 minutes
Guided & Independent Activity
Pre and Post Visit Materials
Focus on Fossils uses the Changes exhibition to teach students about fossils, their formation and importance, and how scientists use fossils to learn about extinct organisms and past environments. Students discover how fossils are collected, and how scientists determine fossil age.
Exploring the Illinois Prairies
Grades: 6-8
45 minutes
Guided & Independent Activity
Pre and Post Visit Materials
This program features the prairie diorama in the Changes exhibition. The program covers the formation of Illinois’ prairies, why prairie soil is so rich, why fire is essential for prairies, plants and animals in the prairie, and how the prairie disappeared.
Exploring the Illinois River
Grades: 6-8
45 minutes
Guided & Independent Activity
Pre and Post Visit Materials
This program features the Illinois River gallery in the Changes exhibition. It covers the formation of the Illinois River, the three parts of the river system (channel, levee, and backwater lake), the importance of the river as plant and animal habitat, adaptations of plants and animals to the river environment, and the importance of the river to people from 12,000 years ago to today.
Exploring Changes: Evolution, Geology and Ecology
Grades: 9-12
45 or 60 minutes
Guided & Independent Activity
Pre and Post Visit Materials
This program uses a variety of Changes dioramas to show how evolution, geology, and ecology have impacted Illinois’s environmental history over the last 500 million years. Students will examine dioramas for evidence relating to evolution, geology, and ecology. Students will discover how concepts from the three disciplines created the diverse ecosystems shown in Changes.
Self-guided Tours
Most school groups visit the Museum for a self-guided tour of the exhibits. Recommended visit time for school groups is 45 minutes. Self-guided tours are scheduled through the Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau (SCVB) by calling 800-545-7300 or 217-789-2360. You can also download a SCVB reservation form at https://www.visit-springfieldillinois.com/Tours/Youth/
- Lesson Plans
- We have developed 196 lesson plans in art, history, anthropology, archaeology and the natural sciences for grades K-12.
Lessons are correlated to the Illinois Learning Standards.
- Web Exhibits
- Come visit our 23 world famous web "exhibits" such as At Home in Heartland, Geology Online, and Ice Ages. Most of the lesson plans and activities were developed to be used with these exhibits.
- Access to the ISM Collections
- The Museum has over 10 million objects in its collections, but only a small percent are on display in our exhibits. Gain access here to some of our prize objects, specimens, and works of art.
- Online Activities and Games
- We have developed 8 online activities or games that cover a wide range of topics.
The Illinois State Museum inspires discovery and caring about Illinois' cultural and natural resources and heritage. The Museum’s extensive collections and research activities provide the foundation for exhibitions and public programs that tell the story of the land, life, people, and art of Illinois. The Illinois State Museum is headquartered in Springfield with branch facilities throughout the state. Use the links to the side to find information about current and upcoming exhibits, public programs, and other events at all of the Museum’s sites.
Come to the Mary Ann MacLean Play Museum!
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 The Play Museum is a free children's area at the Illinois State Museum-Springfield. Load a jeep; crawl through a cave; dig for fossils; put together a baby mastodont puzzle; frame art; explore collections of fossils, insects, artifacts; and toys; and play museum! The Play Museum is designed for children ages 3-10 and their families. Hours are Tuesday-Saturday (10:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m.) and Sunday (1:00 to 4:30 p.m.). The Play Museum is closed on Mondays.
Play Museum Teacher Kits
ANNOUNCING: A new, exciting resource for teachers from the Illinois State Museum!
Thanks to a grant from the Susan Cook House Educational Trust, teachers of grades preK-4 may borrow a Play Museum Outreach Kit free of charge. The easy-to-use, light weight kits were created to help educators and their students get the most out of a field trip visit to the Mary Ann MacLean Play Museum.
CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE
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