This collection is a digital companion to a Cultivating Learning professional development session with Candra Flanagan, Lead for Teaching and Learning at the National Museum of African American History and Culture. The session explores an expanding set of free digital materials on African American history, “North Star: A Digital Journey.” 

Designed for grades 6–12, the set features stories and throughlines from the museum’s permanent exhibitions. Using images, documents, videos, and checks for understanding, students and their adults can investigate and think critically about history. 

The session focuses on individual and community resistance. Participants will gain content knowledge applicable to teaching about slavery in the U.S. context as well as familiarity with the free online resources of “North Star: A Digital Journey.”

This interactive webinar is part of “Cultivating Learning,” a professional development webinar series focusing on techniques to use digital museum resources for learning. Check out “Cultivating Learning” and other Smithsonian Learning Lab webinars: https://learninglab.si.edu/help.