The Hands On History (HOH) initiative of the Mission Inn Foundation & Museum is funded with the generous support of the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation. Hands On History offers trips to the Mission Inn, brings traveling trunks into the classroom, offers a history ambassador program for high school students, and a community outreach program for middle and high school students. Our Hands On History Community Outreach program is a 2017 recipient of the Superintendent's Award for Excellence in Museum Education, sponsored by the California Association of Museums and the Office of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Hands On History aims to engage students of all ages throughout Riverside in the history of their city and the Mission Inn Hotel & Spa with interactive, activity-based, and peer-to-peer learning opportunities that incorporate California Common Core Curriculum Standards using primary source documents. Projects are designed to foster an appreciation for local community by bringing history out of the textbook and into the classroom. 

Are you interested in bringing a field trip to the Mission Inn? Click here to see more information on bring a field trip to the Mission Inn. 

Traveling Trunks

Looking for new way to integrate local history into the classroom? Reserve a traveling trunk to bring resources into the classroom!

 

Please contact the Education Coordinator, Shardé Alexander at alexander(at)missioninnmuseum.org to discuss Hands On History program offerings

Funding for Hands On History: Community Outreach Program provided by generous support of the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation.

 

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Youth Ambassadors

Youth Ambassadors is a volunteer program for high school students. Students who complete the Youth Ambassador training program in good standing will have the opportunity to lead tours of the Mission Inn for elementary age children and families, assist with family-oriented programs, and help with behind-the-scenes opportunities.

Lesson Plans

Are you looking for ways to infuse your history, social studies, and ELA course content with locally based, primary sources? Hands on History classroom lesson plans are designed to engage your students in the history of Riverside and the Mission Inn through primary source analysis, development of academic vocabulary, individual and group assignments, discussions, and presentations.

Outreach

Hands On History Community Outreach engages local middle and high school students with the many histories of their neighborhood, allowing them to explore historical and contemporary community sites through student-directed inquiry and learning. Participants craft a historical walking tour of their neighborhood informed through oral history interviews, guided research practice, and photography lessons.