Curricula

Curricula

Contact Information
Renton History Museum
235 Mill Avenue South
Renton, WA 98057
425-4300-6440

Paper puppets activityHere are some educational resources for students to do at home and at school. Below you'll find arts and crafts activities for all ages as well as reading materials, lesson plans, and comprehension questions for students in grade 7 and up.

Museum staff aims to keep updating this page with more lesson plans and craft activities. Follow our Facebook for updates!

Get to know nature with Sun Photography!

While you’re thinking about how to keep a healthy environment, volunteer Kate Dugdale shows you how to try sun photography in your backyard. You’ll need: a sun photography kit (available at sunprints.org or other retailers); natural objects to cast a shadow (leaves, flowers, rocks, shells); a tray of water or a sink; and your imagination.  

Bentwood Box activity

The Coast Salish are a group of ethnically and linguistically related indigenous people from the Pacific Northwest area. Coast Salish people have lived in Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia since time immemorial. This activity teaches about bentwood boxes, a traditional Coast Salish box made from cedar. (Recommended K through 5)

Lesson outline
Bentwood Box template

Big Picture: Coast Salish Culture

By analyzing and comparing maps and photographs from the Renton History Museum’s collection and other sources, students will gain a better understanding of Coast Salish daily life through mini lessons. These activities will include information on both life during the time of first contact with White explorers and settlers and current cultural traditions. (Recommended K through 5)

Lesson outline
Photographs & maps

Coloring Postcards

Renton History Museum's collection holds almost 20,000 photographs! We've taken a few and turned them into coloring postcards. Enjoy some creative time and learn a bit about your town's history. (Recommended Pre-K through 5)

Coloring postcards

Historic Paper Puppets

Paper puppets were popular in the past because they used fewer materials than fabric-based rag dolls, or the even more expensive china or porcelain dolls. Paper puppets could be “dressed” with different outfits by coloring the design on a new paper template. Shadow puppets were an easy way to tell stories with shadow illustrations.  (Recommended Pre-K through 5)

Paper puppets

*These puppets are meant to be connected with brads but you can also glue them together, they just won't have movable joints.

“People of the Inside” Study Guide Questions

“People of the Inside” explores the history of the Duwamish people in Renton, a key aspect of Renton’s history, with a special focus on the Moses family, the most prominent Duwamish family in Renton at the time that White people began to move here in greater numbers.

This activity is designed for readers in 7th grade and above. Questions can be used for discussion or as writing prompts. 

“People of the Inside” study guide questions

"People of the Inside" article

"Pandemic 1918" Study Guide Questions

“Pandemic 1918!” is an article about the experiences of King County residents during the influenza pandemic of 1918-1919. The virus, nicknamed the Spanish Flu, arrived just as the First World War was ending. It is thought to have infected over 500 million people worldwide.

This activity is designed for readers in 7th grade and above. Questions can be used for discussion or as writing prompts.

"Pandemic 1918" study guide questions

"Pandemic 1918" article

"Renton's Lady Voters" Study Guide Questions

“Renton’s Lady Voters” is an article about women who contributed to civic life in Renton around the time that Washington passed House Bill 59 in 1910, granting women the right to vote.

This activity is designed for readers in 7th grade and above. Questions can be used for discussion or as writing prompts.

"Renton Lady Voters" study guide questions
"Renton Lady Voters" article

"From Horses to Cars" Study Guide Questions

“From Horses to Cars” is an article about the introduction of the automobile to Renton around the turn of the 20th century, which rapidly affected the layout of the city and the ways in which local people traveled.

This activity is designed for readers in 7th grade and above. Questions can be used for discussion or as writing prompts.

"From Horses to Cars" study guide questions
"From Horses to Cars" article

"Unwilling Expatriates" Study Guide Questions

“Unwilling Expatriates” is an article about how women in Renton were affected by the 1907 Expatriation Act, which tied the citizenship status of women in the U.S. to their husbands’ citizenship status after marriage. As a result, American-born women who married non-citizens between 1907 and 1922 lost their American citizenship.

This activity is designed for readers in 7th grade and above. Questions can be used for discussion or as writing prompts.

"Unwilling Expatriates" study guide questions
"Unwilling Expatriates" article

"Here for the Duration: Part 1" Study Guide Questions

“Here for the Duration: Part 1” gives an overview of the development of Renton’s Highlands neighborhood during World War II, when thousands of war workers moved to Renton from across the nation to work at Boeing and the Pacific Car and Foundry.  The result was a rapid increase in population and the need for housing. 

This activity is designed for readers in 7th grade and above. Questions can be used for discussion or as writing prompts.

"Here for the Duration: Part 1" study guide questions
"Here for the Duration: Part 1" article

"Here for the Duration: Part 2" Study Guide Questions

“Here for the Duration: Part 2” gives an overview of the development of Renton’s Highlands neighborhood during World War II, when thousands of war workers moved to Renton from across the nation to work at Boeing and Pacific Car & Foundry. The result was a rapid increase in population and the need for housing.

This activity is designed for readers in 7th grade and above. Questions can be used for discussion or as writing prompts. You may also wish to combine this activity with the study guide for “Here for the Duration: Part 1.”

"Here for the Duration: Part 2" study guide questions
"Here for the Duration: Part 2" article

"Renton in 1955" Study Guide Questions

“Renton in 1955” describes the changes to Renton’s economy and physical landscape that occurred in 1955. In addition to an expansion of downtown businesses, the City built more schools to accommodate its growing population and planned roadwork that would shape the future of local transportation. Like people in many other cities across the U.S., Rentonites also created organized plans to evacuate in the event of a nuclear attack.

This activity is designed for readers in 7th grade and above. Questions can be used for discussion or as writing prompts.

"Renton in 1955" study guide questions
"Renton in 1955" article
Supplemental photos

"Feathers, Felt & Fancy" Study Guide Questions

“Felt, Feathers, & Fancy” is an article about the millinery trade in Renton during the 1910s. Millinery was an important trade in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when hats were considered a necessary part of women's attire. This article discusses the careers of several Renton women who made and sold hats for a living, and how changing times and changing trends affected their profession.

This activity is designed for readers in 7th grade and above. Questions can be used for discussion or as writing prompts.

"Feathers, Felt & Fancy" study guide questions
"Feathers, Felt & Fancy" article

"Can I Play Too?" Study Guide Questions

“Can I Play Too?” is an article about the history of youth athletics in Renton. It focuses specifically on what barriers and opportunities existed for both girls and Black players from 1909 through the 1960s, and highlights the careers of several of Renton’s most accomplished Black and female athletes.

This activity is designed for readers in 7th grade and above. Questions can be used for discussion or as writing prompts. 

"Can I Play Too?" study guide questions
"Can I Play Too?" article

“Renton’s Hilltop Community” Study Guide Questions

“Renton’s Hilltop Community” tells the story of the Renton Hilltop, a historically Black community in the Renton Highlands.  The article discusses the neighborhood’s ties to mining, agriculture, and war industries while highlighting community culture and the lives and livelihoods of well-known Hilltop residents.

The corresponding Hilltop Community mapping activity invites students to compare and contrast historic and modern maps of the area that show the development of the neighborhood over time. It also includes biographical data about Hilltop residents who came to Renton during the Great Migration.

Activity Sheets:
"Renton's Hilltop Community" study guide
"Renton's Hilltop Community" article
Hilltop Community Mapping Activity

Maps:
Renton 1936 Metsker Map
Renton 1956 U.S. Geological Survey Map 

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