The National Cryptologic Museum has fun, educational field trip programs for grades 4-12. Contact the Director of Education to schedule your class by using the form below, or call 301-688-5849, or email
crypto_museum@nsa.gov.
- Scavenger Hunt – working in small groups, students hunt the museum for matching artifacts and answer history or cryptologic questions. In the classroom, the Education staff go over the answers awarding small prizes for correct responses and teaching more about cryptographic methods and history. Different, age-appropriate hunts are provided for elementary, middle, and high school students. (Levels cannot be mixed.) – Total time for hunt and answers: 2 hours - Class sizes 6-60. One chaperone per ten students is required, more are welcome.
- Guided Tours – although generally not recommended for younger audiences, small groups up to 15 students can receive a guided tour of the museum from the Education Director. High school classes (up to 40 students) can select a tour from the adult tour listings. – Time: 60 minutes
- Add On Programs:
- STEM and Language Talk – in addition to a hunt or tour, teachers can also elect to have a speaker from NSA’s K-12 Outreach Office. They provide fun, interactive presentations on math, computers, cybersecurity, language, and/or careers. The museum Education Director can schedule it to coincide with your museum field trip. View the K-12 program offerings.
- Presentations for Social Studies Classes – although normally provided in-person at the host school or virtually, these programs are available for museum field trips as well. They are designed to meet Maryland Dept. of Education Social Studies Standards for grades 4-8 and cover appropriate portions of cryptologic history for each grade.
- Revolutionary Secrets – different interactive talks for grades 4/5 and 8 cover cryptologic techniques and their role in the American Revolution – 30 minutes
- Civil War – different talks for grades 5 and 8 cover the cryptology, communications, and the role of enslaved and free blacks during the American Civil War – 30-45 minutes
- Writing Made Secret – for 6th grade presents the history of writing and early methods of encryption from Roman times through the Renaissance – 30 minutes
- Battle of Codes – for 7th grade this talk discusses the role and results of cryptology, both making and breaking, in WWII – 45 minutes
- Cold War – for 7th grade this talk looks at the U.S. response to the tensions of the Cold War – 30 minutes