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Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
Three students at a microscope in Q?rius. They are looking at an enlarged display on a monitor.
Department of

Education

Education
We are dedicated to inspiring people of all ages to better understand the natural world and our place in it, by instilling a sense of wonder and responsibility through exhibitions, programs, and online resources.
Featured Content

School Field Trip Programs

Learn about our free, onsite school programs led by museum educators for students in grades K-12.
A museum educator holds up two models of human skulls during a school program in Q?rius.
Fossil preparator Michelle Pinsdorf points to a fossil in her lab, as Smithsonian Science How host Maggy Benson looks on.

Live Webcasts

Bring a Smithsonian Scientist into your classroom with Smithsonian Science How! These TV-style video webcasts take questions from your students.

Students examine Museum collection objects as part of a Q?rius school program. Photo by Jennifer Renteria, Smithsonian.

Get Q?rius

Created for teens and tweens, Q?rius is a science education center that brings the museum’s science, researchers, and collections out from behind the scenes. 

Two young girls in white lab coats use a hand lens to examine models of fossils at a table in Q?rius jr. – a discovery room.

Q?rius jr.

Children in grades K-5 get a chance to practice their scientific inquiry skills as they interact with items from the museum's collections.

Resources for Educators

Looking down at a beige skeleton of a boy that is partially excavated in a pit in the ground.
Forensic Anthropology
Volcano erupting with lava streaming down the side. A forest is at its foot and the eruption is reflected in a dark lake.
When Volcanoes Erupt
Geologist Ben Andrews and Maggy Benson doing a demonstration with dry ice
Webcast Archives
Geologist Elizabeth Cottrell gestures with her hands while sitting at a table talking to two students.
Teaching Resources
Smithsonian forensic anthropologist points out area of interest in a piece of bone to students.
Written in Bone
A green plastic frame in the shape of a cube sitting in the woods on top of some leaves and a log.
Biocubes: Exploring Biodiversity