USA: Train the Trainer programmes about Dutch Colonial History in New York

This November, the CGNY supported teacher trainings at the Museum of the City of New York and at the Brooklyn Historical Society. The trainings help teachers to deepen their connection to New York City’s Colonial era and to be better equipped to pass on this knowledge to their students.

Guided by professional museum educators, the participants engaged in primary source explorations, object inquiries and historical walking tours of the city. They created lesson plans for their classrooms that focused on the use of textual, visual, and ecological primary resources. With the aid of these resources, students can explore the early history of their own city. The trainees also attended lectures by experts in the field of New Netherland.

Educational programmes
The Consulate in New York believes that education is one of the more powerful tools to increase knowledge about the Shared Cultural Heritage between the Netherlands and the United States. It trusts that education is a suitable instrument to further the exchange of knowledge, raise awareness and make heritage accessible to the public.

The Consulate has therefore collaborated with, for instance, the Brooklyn Historical Society and the Museum of the City of New York on educational programmes that explore the Dutch colonial period and examine the Dutch contribution to New York’s character. Some examples of programmes that have been developed are 'Dutch Breukelen: Where Brooklyn Began' and New World – New Netherland – New York