EdGuide | Eisenhower Foundation

We are delighted to present the 2023-2024 Educator’s Guide!

Our professional IKEducators are excited to work with you and your students. Find the program that best meets your learning needs and follow the easy steps to book your spot now!

Every IKEducation program is designed to utilize primary sources, meet state and national standards, and teach about the life or times of Dwight D. Eisenhower. We provide students with a hands-on experience they'll never forget!

Scroll below to see available programs or click on the Educator's Guide at the right to view.

View the Educator's Guide!

MEET IKE

These programs introduce our youngest historians to artifacts and the life of Dwight D. Eisenhower.

I is for Ike

Our lively IKEducators use the alphabet and a correlating "Go Fish" game to encourage students to begin getting to know Ike.

Many Hats

Students are introduced to artifacts and Dwight D. Eisenhower through many of the hats he wore throughout his life.

Story Time

Students will be engaged while exploring a new adventure each month while learning a lesson with an Ike connection.

ATTIC ARTIFACTS

Americans kept souvenirs of their childhood, lost loved ones, or their time in the war. Many of these artifacts were stored in boxes or trunks and then tucked away in attics, basements, and garages for decades. This series explores sets of artifact-filled boxes to make historical connections to the past.

Barefoot Boy

In this hands-on program, students explore artifacts from Ike’s home, work, play, or school days in Abilene in order to get a glimpse of what life was like for “Little Ike,” as he was then called.

WWII Kids

Students learn what qualifies as an artifact, and how important artifacts are as sources of information. Students handle and evaluate images, documents, and a variety of artifacts from World War II.

Band of Brothers

Students critically evaluate images, documents, and a variety of artifacts from the Easy Co. 101st Airborne’s journey from the D-Day invasion to the liberation of Europe.

IKE'S HOBBIES

Studies have shown that hobbies can make individuals happier and more relaxed. Ike enjoyed several hobbies that helped him balance the enormous stresses of being a world leader.

Paint

This hands-on lesson combines Eisenhower, history, and art. Students learn about the effort to minimize the damage to art during WWII, will view several of Ike's works, and will "paint like Ike" to complete one of his unfinished landscapes.

Don't Ask

An avid golfer, Ike was always asked what he scored, causing him to joke, "There ought to be a law against asking a person what he shot." Students will practice their own putting skills and apply basic geometry to create their own putt-putt holes.

Cast Away

Fishing was a hobby of Ike’s all his life. As a boy, he walked to nearby fishing holes and as an adult was able to use more sophisticated gear. Students will make their own DIY casting gear and try their hand at basic casting skills.

UNSUNG HEROES

Programs in the “Unsung Survivors” series will examine groups of individuals whose heroism in World War II was often overlooked because of their minority status and stereotypes. They witnessed, endured, and rose above the prejudices targeted at them due to their gender, race, or religion.

Rosie

When America's men left to fight with the Allies in World War II, women were recruited to work at non-traditional jobs in defense plants and factories. These “Rosie the Riveters” proved their abilities to America and have not looked back since.

Code Talker

Code Talkers were Native American men who served in the U.S. military and used their native languages to create codes that were never broken, even after the end of the war. Students will learn to cypher messages using the basics of this secret code.

Name to a Number

Students will learn about the Holocaust through the voices of survivors and will also view primary sources created by General Eisenhower to make certain those war crimes were documented so those responsible would be held accountable.

Children of Terezin

As Nazis terrorized minority groups, other brave individuals found ways to bring solace to those being persecuted. Students will paint a ceramic butterfly as part of an international initiative to honor the 1.5 million children killed in the Holocaust.

WORLD WAR II: At home and at battle

Dogs for Defense

WWII marked the establishment of a program to which families donated their dogs to serve in the U.S. military. Students hear the story of Chips, a real Hero Hound who left the family sofa, entered the battlefield, and returned home a hero.

Use it Up

During World War II everyone was asked to do their part to support the troops. In this program, students will examine primary sources and play a board game that immerses them in the rationing and recycling programs.

Omaha beach

Students are introduced to the overall objective of D-Day and how its story is preserved through primary sources. They then apply that knowledge through examination of documents and artifacts from Omaha Beach.

DDay Deception

General Eisenhower commanded a series of covert operations that played a crucial role in the victorious Allied invasion of Europe. Students will examine primary sources to gain an understanding of D-Day deception plans.

STEM

These programs engage students through innovative educational programs that combine history and STEM topics. Each offers hands-on, cross-curricular learning opportunities through historical and real applications of scientific discoveries and their lasting impact.

Flat Ike

Playing off the Flat Stanley movement, students will learn about the Great Seal of the United States, the Ike Jacket, map reading, and the features of the campus while creating photo souvenirs of their visit with their own Flat Ike.

Email

During WWII, post offices were flooded with mail and its bulk was competing with the space needed for necessary military supplies. Students will learn how American ingenuity solved this problem through the invention of V-Mail.

space race

The Soviet launch of the Sputnik satellite marked the start of the space race. Students examine primary sources, race to generate a timeline of key events, and test engineering skills as they create and launch a straw rocket.

PRESIDENTIAL DECISIONS

These programs encourage students take on the role of the President of the United States and make complex decisions based on real situations faced by Dwight D. Eisenhower.

DUCK AND COVER

The Soviet’s detonation of an atomic weapon in 1949 cast a shadow on America’s sense of security. How can President Eisenhower help promote a sense of calm and preparedness when faced with possible catastrophe?

Spy

Exhibit exploration with an escape room twist. As students explore the exhibit, they will gather intelligence, rendezvous with other undercover agents, and work together to find the clues that will unlock their lockbox.

project solarium

Eisenhower was faced with how to confront Soviet Communist expansionism. Students recreate Project Solarium to analyze primary sources, discuss & debate the merits of three options, and advise the president of their recommendations.

Spies

The Rosenbergs were convicted of passing secrets to the Soviet Union and sentenced to death, but controversy surrounded the case. Students examine primary documents from the case to decide whether to grant executive clemency to the Rosenbergs.

Little Rock

Through simulations & primary sources, this program brings to life pivotal events from the 1956-57 school year in Little Rock. Eisenhower was forced to react after the state’s governor denied entry to Central High to nine African-American students.