Theme
The annual National History Day® contest theme is designed to help you think of a topic from any aspect of local, regional, national, or world history. With this focus, you can begin to ask questions that your research will help you answer, including how your topic is significant in history.
2027 Contest Theme
Innovation in History: Impact, Influence, Change
The theme for National History Day® (NHD) 2027 is Innovation in History: Impact, Influence, Change. Innovation goes beyond creating new tools or devices to finding new ways of thinking, organizing, and influencing society. To put it simply, innovation, at its core, is about change and the impact of that change.
To fully explore innovation in a historical context, we must look beyond the idea itself and examine its effects. How did people, over time, imagine, develop, and implement new ideas, technologies, or methods? And in what ways did those innovations influence societies?
The following resources are available to start defining your topic and begin your research.
Theme Overview Video
Theme Book
SPARK Test Worksheet
Are you trying to come up with a topic? Use the SPARK Test worksheet with the theme video to get you started!
Ready to Start Your Project?
Step-by-step guide and resources for creating your National History Day project
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