Freedom Trail Scholars

In-School and Out-Of-School American History Education Program
for Third and Fifth Grade Students

The Freedom Trail Foundation supplements the history and social studies curricula for third and fifth grade students with a robust in-school history program. The program is designed for all schools, with scholarships available for qualified schools.

What is the Freedom Trail Scholars Program?
The Freedom Trail Scholars program is a one hour in-school interactive performance by professional actors. It incorporates the events and characters of the Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party and Paul Revere’s ride in a dramatic re-telling of the principles and facts of the American Revolution. This is an engaging and time-efficient way to teach history, where costumed characters take on the role of real people of the times and retell the story of the heroic challenge to the world mightiest power.

The Freedom Trail Scholars program creates an intimate partnership with schools to meet their curriculum goals and complement teacher lessons. Since its inception, the Foundation has presented the program to over 4,000 school children. Many schools book for repeat performances.

The program also includes curriculum guides for teachers, bibliography, and teaching materials.

Case for the Program:
According to a study by the Center on Education Policy, since the 2001 implementation of No Child Left Behind’s curriculum realignment and testing requirements, approximately 71% of the nation’s 15,000 school districts had reduced the hours of instructional time spent on history. The schools have done this to open up more time for reading and math, the two subject areas in which schools’ performance is measured. This trend is called narrowing the curriculum, where schools that once offered a richer curriculum now systematically trim courses such as social studies and history. In 2007, Massachusetts began standardized tests for history for all fifth grade students. Based on the prior curriculum changes noted above, students and teachers need tools to reintroduce history back into the school schedule or students will risk failing the standardized tests when they are fully implemented.

To bring a rich history-based curriculum back to schools, the Freedom Trail Foundation offers the Freedom Trail Scholars program with a goal to teach and supplement the required American history curriculum in third and fifth grades primarily in Boston but also in other districts in the Metro-Boston area. The program incorporates in-school and out-of-school programs for children and training for teachers.

Under-performing School Scholarship
Your school may qualify for a full scholarship. Criteria is based on MCAS test results and/or the number of children who receive free breakfast or lunch at school. Please contact the Freedom Trail Foundation office to see if your school qualifies to receive the program for free.

How To Book the Scholars Program
Contact the Freedom Trail Foundation, angie@thefreedomtrail.org or 617.357.8300 for more details about Corporate and Foundation Underwriting or to register your school to participate in the Freedom Trail Scholars Program.
99 Chauncy Street, Suite 401, Boston, MA 02111 www.TheFreedomTrail.org.

Teacher Quotes – about the FT Scholars program