Educator Portal
Programs for Middle & High School Students
The Rosenbach is pleased to offer a menu of carefully-crafted virtual and in-person experiences for middle and high school students. These hands-on programs will give students the chance to page through rare editions and pore over personal letters and participate in discussions that reveal the ways that an author’s life experience shapes their writing.
Adventures in the Archives programs have been developed with AP and honors English curriculum in mind. However, each of the following experiences can easily be tailored to fit the needs of your group. In addition to high school English students, we welcome book clubs and homeschool groups.
Lit Lives: The Story Behind the Story
This introductory program gives students the opportunity to explore the lives of a wide variety of authors. Your experience can include any of the following: Joseph Conrad, Charles Dickens, Emily Dickinson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Zora Neale Hurston, Langston Hughes, James Joyce, Herman Melville, Toni Morrison, Edgar Allan Poe, William Shakespeare, and Oscar Wilde.
The Literary Circle: Bonds and Breaks Among Writers
This experience helps students to discover the ways in which authors draw upon or respond to the works of earlier writers, tracing the evolution of themes and styles across generations. By exploring the Rosenbach’s extraordinary collection of primary resource material, we will explore the ways that authors within a specific movement (e.g., Romanticism, Modernism) share characteristics and respond to similar social and cultural concerns.
Oscar Wilde: Creativity and Controversy
During this experience, we will explore personal letters, photographs and rare first editions to learn how Oscar Wilde navigated a world in which his character was both celebrated and attacked. We will compare his life with those of contemporary influencers and celebrities whose careers often rise as quickly as they fall in the court of public opinion.
Shakespeare: Power and Prejudice
We’ll take a focused look at 17th, 18th, 19th & 20th century editions of King Lear, Merchant of Venice, Othello, The Taming of the Shrew, The Tempest, and Romeo and Juliet to discover the ways that they adapt to shifts in society. We will also learn that, while the plays do change over time, there are threads that endure. Shakespeare’s work has remained relevant throughout the centuries because he shows us a human struggle which resonates with us no matter what era we inhabit.
Onsite Experience Cost: $15 per student
(no charge for teachers and chaperones)
Virtual Experience Cost: $150 flat fee
(limit of 100 students per presentation)
Register: complete this form to choose an experience and our educators will be in touch within three business days. Together, we will curate a visit that meets the unique needs of your students.
To arrange a visit for a group of college students, please contact our Director of Education
Programs for Middle and High School Educators
The Rosenbach’s educator programs help teachers to incorporate primary source material into their curriculum to both support and extend learning. Programs always include practical takeaways so educators can simply “plug and play” when they return to the classroom.
In Person Teacher Workshop: Art, Storytelling, & Identity
Explore three different Philadelphia gems of the arts in three different parts of the city:
Rosenbach Museum & Library,
Brandywine Workshop &
Archives, and The Clay Studio.
We are offering a three-part workshop designed for educators that explores the themes of identity, personal journeys, and storytelling through primary literature sources, original prints, and works of clay. With an artist, participants will create and take home a personal narrative, their own prints, and a clay tile that all express stories of identity and journeying. Participants will also do activities about identity and storytelling rooted in The National SEED Project’s principles that they can bring back to their classrooms.
July 22: Rosenbach Museum & Library
Start by examining primary sources from the Rosenbach’s collection framed by and with the theme of identity, hero/ heroine’s journey, personal quests and paths
July 23: Brandwine Workshop & Archives
Create prints inspired by original works from Brandywine’s collection from artists who explore and express their stories and identities in their art.
July 24: The Clay Studio
Led by clay artist, participants will take their prints from the Brandywine and learn different techniques to transfer their print to clay with additional designs and patterns.
Date: July 22, 23, & 24 2025
Time: 9:00 a.m.–12: 00 p.m.
Cost: $200
PA Act 48 Credit is Available
Lit Lives Part I-What’s in a Name?
This workshop is part of our Lit Lives series, where you will dive into the Rosenbach’s collection of rare editions and personal letters and discover how to bring them to life for your students.
In this session, we will learn how authors like Oscar Wilde, Herman Melville, Edgar Allan Poe, and Toni Morrison navigated a world in which their work and their character was both celebrated and attacked. We will compare their lives with those of contemporary influencers and celebrities whose careers often rise as quickly as they fall in the court of public opinion.
This program is co-sponsored by the The Philadelphia Area Consortium of Special Collection Libraries (PACSCL)
Date: October 11, 2025
Time: 9:00 a.m.–12: 00 p.m.
Cost: $75
3 Hours of PA Act 48 Credit Available
Lit Lives Part II-Whose America is It?
This workshop is part of our Lit Lives series, where you will dive into the Rosenbach’s collection of rare editions and personal letters and discover how to bring them to life for your students.
How does Paul Laurence Dunbar’s America compare to Ralph Waldo Emerson’s? In this session, we will explore the politics of storytelling and the ways in which a writer’s personal story informs the story they share with the world.
This program is co-sponsored by the The Philadelphia Area Consortium of Special Collection Libraries (PACSCL)
Date: November 8, 2025
Time: 9:00 a.m.–12: 00 p.m.
Cost: $75
3 Hours of PA Act 48 Credit Available
Lit Lives Part III-She Speaks in Verse
This workshop is part of our Lit Lives series, where you will dive into the Rosenbach’s collection of rare editions and personal letters and discover how to bring them to life for your students.
In this session, we will explore primary source material related to four groundbreaking American poets-Anne Bradstreet, Phillis Wheatley, and Emily Dickinson- to learn how they turned their heartbreak into heartsong.
This program is co-sponsored by the The Philadelphia Area Consortium of Special Collection Libraries (PACSCL)
Date: April 25, 2026
Time: 9:00 a.m.–12: 00 p.m.
Cost: $75
3 Hours of PA Act 48 Credit Available
In-Service Workshops
We can arrange an in-service workshop based on any of the above teacher or adventures in the archives programs or a topic of your choosing. In-service workshops can be held at the Rosenbach or at your school. We charge a flat fee of $250. PA Act 48 credit is available.