For Educators

Bring early American Jewish history into your classroom

Free, ready-to-use teaching resources built from the Arnold & Deanne Kaplan Collection of Early American Judaica — printable posters, exhibits, lesson plans, curated item sets, primary source guides, and media.

Print & Display

Posters

Download and print these posters for your classroom, library, or hallway. Each is designed to spark curiosity about the people, objects, and stories in the collection.

Refuge poster

Refuge

How the Americas became a haven for Jews fleeing persecution and seeking a new home.

Liberty poster

Liberty

Religious freedom and the promise of liberty in early American Jewish life.

American Judaism poster

American Judaism

The shaping of Jewish religious practice and community across the Americas.

Trade & Commerce poster

Trade & Commerce

Jewish merchants, peddlers, and firms in the commercial life of the Atlantic world.

Civic Participation poster

Civic Participation

Jews as citizens, voters, and public servants in a new democracy.

Intolerance poster

Intolerance

Confronting prejudice and antisemitism in American history.

Labor & Social Justice poster

Labor & Social Justice

Jewish involvement in labor movements and the pursuit of social justice.

Tzedakah poster

Tzedakah

Charity, mutual aid, and the tradition of philanthropy in Jewish communities.

Language poster

Language

Hebrew, Yiddish, Ladino, and the many languages of Jewish life.

Learning poster

Learning

Education, scholarship, and the value placed on study.

Creativity poster

Creativity

Art, music, and cultural expression in Jewish American life.

Zion poster

Zion

The enduring connection to Zion and the story of Jewish peoplehood.

Explore

Exhibits

Coming Soon

Online exhibits that weave collection items into narratives you can walk students through are on the way. Check back soon.

Teach

Lesson Plans & Activities

Coming Soon

Downloadable lesson plans, worksheets, and classroom activities built around the collection are in development.

Browse

Curated Item Sets

Themed groupings of collection items, ready to explore or assign.

Immigration & Migration

Passports, ship manifests, and letters tracing Jewish migration across the Atlantic world.

Jewish Business Life

Ledgers, trade cards, and correspondence documenting merchants, peddlers, and firms.

Community & Religious Life

Synagogue records, ceremonial objects, and communal ephemera.

Skills

Primary Source Guides

Practical guides for helping students read and interpret the collection's primary sources.

Reading a Primary Source

A step-by-step framework for analyzing manuscripts, prints, and ephemera with students.

From Object to Argument

Helping students build historical claims from collection materials.

Watch & Listen

Videos & Podcast

Media that brings the collection's stories to life — great for sparking discussion or assigning as background.

Podcast

Conversations and stories drawn from the collection.

Coming Soon

Educational videos are on the way.