We’re Making Connecticut History (WMCH) is an Interdistrict School Partnership Program coordinated by the Connecticut Historical Society. The project links the study of Connecticut history at the fourth and fifth grade levels with the interaction of students from diverse backgrounds. Urban and suburban classes are partnered for multiple visits to the CHS, other museums in the region, and partner schools. WMCH consists of approximately 800 students broken into 20 urban/suburban or urban/rural partnerships. Each partnership attends 6-7 different field trips together. The trips for the fourth-grade partnerships focus on Native Americans, Colonial life, the Underground Railroad and resistance to slavery, and map skills. The trips for the fifth-grade partnerships focus on the American Revolution, the three branches of government, slavery and the Amistad incident, and immigration. Both levels also include a school visit session where students tour the partner school. WMCH takes an interdisciplinary approach to teaching Connecticut’s diverse history while reducing racial and economic isolation and helping to build meaningful relationships between students. The content of the field trips is directly tied to the objectives specified in the Connecticut Framework: K-12 Curricular Goals and Standards and Connecticut's Common Core of Learning.

Fourth- and fifth-grade teachers from public schools in the greater Hartford area (and up to 35 miles away for rural and suburban classes) who would be interested in enrolling for the 2009-2010 school year, please contact Emily Dunnack, Coordinator of Interdistrict School Programs by phone (860-236-5621 ext. 233) or email (emily_dunnack@chs.org).

Interdistrict School Programs are funded by: The Connecticut State Department of Education's Interdistrict Cooperative Grant Program through the Capitol Region Education Council, the Fisher Foundation, the Robert and Margaret Patricelli Family Foundation, the Hartford Courant Foundation, the Maximilian E. and Marion O. Hoffman Foundation, the NewAlliance Foundation, the George A. and Grace L. Long Foundation, and supported by in-kind contributions from the Connecticut Historical Society.