Programs and Activities

Below is a description of the different programs offered at the North Dakota Heritage Center & State Museum. Included are approximate lengths, appropriate ages of the audience, and a description of the experience and learning.

PLEASE NOTE: Most programs can be modified to fit different age ranges and time frames.

 

Guided Tours and Talks: Learn from an expert. Programs in this section will be led by a gallery guide and provide additional information about galleries or themes beyond what is written in exhibit text.

Hands-on Activity: Bring history out from behind a museum case. Programs in this section will include using objects or artifacts to learn about a particular theme or historical event. These programs vary with group size and content and may take place in either a gallery or classroom setting.

Self-Guided Worksheet: Pace yourself and place yourself at the center of learning. Programs in this section are intended to be used by individuals or small groups to allow for more introspection and connection with the gallery.

Games and Play: Both children and adults alike enjoy playing. Programs in this section will include a brief history of the game’s relevance to North Dakota and the instructions on how to play. The rest of the time will be spent playing with the toy/game.

Ethnic Traditions

This program takes place in the Inspiration Gallery: Yesterday and Today. Handle various artifacts related to a variety of cultures in North Dakota. There are clothing pieces, games, and holiday mementos. Interact with the items and ask questions.

Length: 30 minutesAge: 8 and upCategory: Hands-on ActivityTheme: Turn of the Century (1900s)
Faro

This program can be completed at any location. Learn the rules of the card game Faro. Bet your chips and gamble away. Play a few rounds of this game that was popularized during the 17th century.

Length: 30 minutesAge: 10 and upCategory: Games and PlayTheme: Entertainment
French Gratitude Train

This program takes place in the Hall of Honors located in the lower level. Hear the origins of the train car and the history of how it came to North Dakota. Learn about some pieces that were sent in the car.

Length: 15 minutesAge: 14 and upCategory: Guided Tours and TalksTheme: Military in North Dakota
Full Guided Tour

This program takes place in three State Museum galleries. Enjoy highlights with a tour guide in the Adaptation, Inspiration, and Innovation galleries. Learn in-depth about the progression of North Dakota through time from its prehistoric record to today. Ask the guide questions and satisfy your curiosity.

Length: 2 hoursAge: 4 and upCategory: Guided Tours and TalksTheme: Multiple Galleries (Covers Many Times and/or Events)
German-Russian Immigration

Learn about the migration of German-Russian people to North Dakota. Be assigned a role card and understand the daily life associated with homesteading. Understand the cultural ties related to food and music that still exist in the state today because of their immigration.

Length: 30 minutesAge: 12 and upCategory: Hands-on ActivityTheme: Turn of the Century (1900s)
Graces

This game must be played outdoors or in a large indoor space. Experience a game that was intended for young settler children. Use sticks to toss a hoop back and forth with a partner.

Length: 15 minutesAge: 6 and upCategory: Games and PlayTheme: Entertainment
Highlights of History

This program takes place in three State Museum galleries. Enjoy highlights with a tour guide the Adaptation, Innovation, and Inspiration galleries. Learn a brief overview of the progression of North Dakota through time from its prehistoric record to today. Ask the guide questions and satisfy your curiosity.

Length: 1 hourAge: 4 and upCategory: Guided Tours and TalksTheme: Multiple Galleries (Covers Many Times and/or Events)
Holland Automobile

This program takes place in the Corridor of History next to the Holland automobile. Learn about the history of cars and the connection of the car to bicycles and the railroad.

Length: 15 minutesAge: 4 and upCategory: Guided Tours and TalksTheme: Turn of the Century (1900s)
Hoop and Stick

This game must be played outdoors. Experience a game intended for young settler children. Use a stick to roll a large trundle, or hoop, along the ground.

Length: 15 minutesAge: 6 and upCategory: Games and PlayTheme: Entertainment
I Am Not a Mammoth

This program takes place in the Corridor of History next to the mastodon. Learn how to tell the difference between a mammoth and a mastodon and hear about the history of this mastodon skeleton.

Length: 15 minutesAge: 4 and upCategory: Guided Tours and TalksTheme: Fossils/Geology
Indoor Toys

This program can take place at any location. Play with tin toys and toy trains, a favorite pastime during the 1850s. Learn as you interact with these historical toys.

Length: 30 minutesAge: 6 and upCategory: Games and PlayTheme: Entertainment
Is Progress Good or Bad? (IDM)

This program takes place in Inspiration Gallery: Yesterday and Today. Contemplate the value of progress using three new developments that impacted North Dakota: fracking, the Garrison Dam, and nuclear arms. Use primary and secondary sources to debate the question “Is progress good or bad?”

Length: 2 hoursAge: 14 and upCategory: Hands-on ActivityTheme: Modern Times (1980s to Present)
Lawn Bowling

This game must be played outdoors or in a large indoor space. Learn about early nine-pin bowling games. Play a round.

Length: 15 minutesAge: 6 and upCategory: Games and PlayTheme: Entertainment
Lifeways of the Mandan People

This program takes place in the Innovation Gallery: Early Peoples utilizing the cyclorama painting of Double Ditch, a Mandan village located about 10 miles north of Bismarck. Handle artifacts that can be found in or are related to the painting. Understand how the Mandans lived prior to contact with Europeans. Discuss earthlodges, gardening, and different aspects of Mandan life. There are many objects depicted in the painting that can be discussed; extend the time of the program up to 1 hour by request.

Length: 15 minutesAge: 4 and upCategory: Hands-on ActivityTheme: Early Peoples
Living Off the Land

This program takes place in the Innovation Gallery: Early Peoples. Handle artifacts that have been used by North Dakotans to survive or make an economic living off the land. Consider the time periods of different items spanning from those used by early peoples, fur traders, and pioneers to what we use today.

Length: 15 minutesAge: 4 and upCategory: Hands-on ActivityTheme: Multiple Galleries (Covers Many Times and/or Events)
Military and Service in North Dakota

This program takes place in the Inspiration Gallery: Yesterday and Today. Handle objects U.S. military personnel have carried or worn throughout different time periods in history, starting with the Civil War era and the military serving at North Dakota forts on the frontier up to modern day. No weapons are included.

Length: 30 minutesAge: 8 and upCategory: Hands-on ActivityTheme: Military in North Dakota
Native American Games

This program takes place outdoors or in a large open space. Enjoy playing classic games of different Native American cultures. Learn the rules of hoop and stick, hand games, and ice gliders. Take a turn at playing each.

Length: 1 hourAge: 8 and upCategory: Games and PlayTheme: Early Peoples
North Dakota Crops

This program takes place in the Inspiration Gallery: Yesterday and Today. Learn about North Dakota’s most widely grown crops, including what the crops look like, how they are grown, and what they are used for. Play a dice game that identifies different crops. Time permitting, visit the State Museum’s interactive grain bin exhibit to further review and discuss crop uses.

Length: 30 minutesAge: 8 and upCategory: Hands-on ActivityTheme: Modern Times (1980s to Present)
North Dakota Landmarks

This program takes place in a classroom space. Use maps and Play-Doh to build geographic landmarks such as the rivers and the badlands onto North Dakota maps.

Length: 15 minutesAge: 4 and upCategory: Hands-on ActivityTheme: Modern Times (1980s to Present)
Pioneer Schooling

This program takes place in the Inspiration Gallery: Yesterday and Today. Experience what school was like for the average student during the early 1900s and handle artifacts from the time.

Length: 30 minutesAge: 8 and upCategory: Hands-on ActivityTheme: Turn of the Century (1900s)