Attention Educators! National History Day® (NHD) is proud to announce the latest iteration of its Historical Argumentation: Using Library of Congress Resources to Build a Historical Argument, Exploring Innovation: Impact, Influence, Change in History webinar series. Sponsored by the Library of Congress, this professional development series is designed to deepen participants’ understanding of historical argumentation and to provide educators with resources and strategies for their classrooms. The webinar series will run from late July 2026 to November 2026.
Throughout this series, educators will build their knowledge of teaching with online Library of Congress resources, complete assignments, and join monthly webinars led by Dr. Christopher Hamner, Associate Professor of History at George Mason University. Once complete, educators will have demonstrated the ability to share key strategies for researching, supporting, and presenting historical arguments bolstered by primary sources held by the Library of Congress. Scheduled presentations and topics include:
- July/August 2026: Historical Thinking Skills for Argumentation
- August/September 2026: Tools of Historical Analysis: Perspective, Hindsight, and Agency
- September/October 2026: Argumentation and Evidence
- October/November 2026: Outlining an Argument and Drawing Conclusions
Open to: Teachers or librarians in grades 4-12. 60 spots are available.
Credit: Educators may earn 90 professional development hours OR three graduate extension credits at no cost.
Dates: July 27 to November 20, 2026
Deadline and Notification: Applications will be accepted through 11:59 p.m. HT on Friday, June 12. All candidates will be notified about acceptance to the program on or before June 29, 2026, and the course will begin on July 27, 2026.
