TEST Young Historians, Living Histories | Students and educators explore Asian Pacific American history and culture

Through this project, participants attended a one-week series of workshops at nine Smithsonian affiliated museums across the nation and two Asian Pacific American community-based organizations, where they learned about Asian Pacific American history and culture as well as the basics of digital storytelling. Students learned about the experiences of their families and other people from their communities before and after they immigrated to America and how these experiences shaped their lives. Young participants used a curriculum based on the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center’s exhibition I Want the Wide American Earth: An Asian Pacific American Story to learn about the APA experience.

Participants also learned elements of conducting research and oral histories, and using digital technology to produce short films. These films were first screened during the CAAMFest, the biggest Asian Pacific American Film Festival, held on March 15, 2014, in San Francisco.

Participating Museums and Organizations to the Young Historian, Living Histories Project

Pacific Aviation Museum
Honolulu, HI
Greensboro Historical Museum
Greensboro, NC
Riverside Metropolitan Museum
Riverside, CA
Wing Luke Museum of the Asian American Experience
Seattle, WA
Western Reserve Historical Society
Cleveland, OH
Oklahoma History Center
Oklahoma City, OK
Institute of Texan Cultures
San Antonio, TX
Historic Arkansas Museum
Little Rock, AR
Sonoma County Museum
Santa Rosa, CA
Asian American LEAD
Washington, DC
Asian Arts Initiative
Philadelphia, PA
 

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Young Historians, Living Histories is a collaboration between the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center, Smithsonian Affiliations, and the Center for Asian American Media.

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Funding is provided by the Smithsonian Youth Access Grant Program administered by the Office of the Smithsonian Assistant Secretary for Education and Access. Flights for the participants to the CAAM premiere were provided by Southwest Airlines.