Core Knowledge Foundation

"Federico was spying for the Union army. But he wasn't perched on a tree limb or lying flat on a hilltop. He was balancing inside a wicker basket hundreds of feet in the air."

Meet Federico Fernández Cavada, a true testament to Caribbean American Heritage Month. Born in Cuba and raised in Philadelphia, Federico's artistic talents led to his assignment to the Hot Air Balloon Unit of the Union Army to sketch enemy movements.

But his fight for freedom didn't end there. Federico later returned to Cuba as a general in the fight for independence from Spain.

One incredible life. A whole world of history packed into one unforgettable story: "Federico Fernández Cavada: The Spy in the Hot-Air Balloon," a Voices in History biography.

📌 Save this read-aloud for your next history lesson. Grab the link in the comments below.

Colorado teachers and homeschool parents, the new free Grade 4 unit is here. ⛰️

The Story of Colorado is a brand-new free unit from CK In Your State History, and it gives 4th graders the full sweep of the state's story from the first peoples in the region all the way to today.

Across 9 lessons, students explore:

🔹 The land itself, mountains, plains, rivers, and how geography shaped Colorado life
🔹 Exploration, settlement, and the path to statehood
🔹 How Colorado shaped (and was shaped by) the Great Depression, two World Wars, and the Cold War
🔹 How the state government works today

Includes a Student Reader, Teacher Guide, Timeline Cards, and Online Resources. Pacing is flexible (30 to 130 days), and like everything we make, it's completely free.

Download The Story of Colorado today: https://www.coreknowledge.org/free-resource/ck-in-your-state-history-colorado-grade-4-the-story-of-colorado/

The school year is winding down... which means it's the perfect time to reflect on what worked and start planning for next year.

For the latest product releases, free classroom enrichment resources, and updates from Core Knowledge Foundation delivered straight to your inbox! Sign up for our newsletter.

Be the first to know what's new, what's free, and what inspiring ideas you can build into next year's plans.

📨 https://www.coreknowledge.org/stay-in-the-know/

Spring is the season of growth for gardens, for students, and for classrooms. 🌱

As you look ahead to the end of the school year, CKF's curriculum sets for Science and History & Civics are designed to keep students engaged, building knowledge, and excited to learn.

The Core Knowledge Curriculum Series™ includes student readers, teacher guides, activity books, and more. Everything you need to finish the year strong without starting from scratch.

Cross-curricular connections across science, history, civics, biographies, and more.

Explore what's available for your grade level today.

🔗 coreknowledge.org/science/ | coreknowledge.org/history-geography/

Arizona teachers and homeschool parents, this one is for you. 🌵

The Story of Arizona is a brand new free Grade 3 unit from CK In Your State History, and it gives kids the full sweep of the state's story from the first peoples who lived here all the way to today.

Across 8 lessons, students explore:

🔹 The land itself, deserts, mountains, rivers, and how it shaped life
🔹 Arizona's colonial history and path to statehood
🔹 How Arizona shaped (and was shaped by) the Great Depression, two World Wars, and the Cold War
🔹 How the state government works today

Includes a Student Reader, Teacher Guide, Timeline Cards, and Online Resources. Pacing is flexible (30 to 130 days), and like everything we make, it's completely free.

Download The Story of Arizona today: https://www.coreknowledge.org/free-resource/ck-in-your-state-history-arizona-grade-3-the-story-of-arizona/

What if your students could explore van Gogh, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Frida Kahlo... all before lunch?

The new Core Knowledge Visual Arts curriculum makes it possible, and it's completely free

CKVA is a free, K–8 arts curriculum designed to fit seamlessly into what your teachers are already doing. No art degree required, no separate prep period needed.

Here's what's inside:

🎨 Classic & Contemporary Art: Students study works from across cultures and centuries, from ancient architecture to modern design, building the cultural literacy that supports comprehension across every subject.

✏️ Active Creation: Students don't just study art — they make it. Every unit includes opportunities for students to create their own work, applying what they've observed and discussed.

🏛️ Architecture & Design: Students explore iconic structures from around the world, connecting visual arts to history, geography, and civic knowledge.

📋 Ready-to-Use for Teachers: Structured lessons, discussion prompts, and student activities all in one place, with zero prep required.

Download the free CKVA curriculum and share it with a colleague who needs this in their classroom 👉 coreknowledge.org/visual-arts/

July 4th, 2026 is no ordinary Independence Day. It's the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. 🇺🇸

And we have free, ready-to-use activities to help your students connect to this historic moment.

These aren't worksheets. They're:

✍️ Hands-on activities that bring primary sources to life.
📜 Engaging civics content for classroom or homeschool use.
🎯 Flexible! Use one activity or a full unit.
🆓 Completely free.

Save this post for your next lesson!

📥 https://www.coreknowledge.org/declaration-of-independence-activities/

School Spotlight 🌟 LHUSD #1 (Lake Havasu Unified School District, AZ)

The best teaching ideas come from other teachers. And this community has some of the best!

This month, Core Knowledge CEO Beth Anderson visited Nautilus Elementary School as part of the Knowledge Matters School Tour. Lake Havasu Unified adopted the Core Knowledge curriculum in 2020, and since then, students, teachers, and administrators have seen results worth talking about.

A+ School of Excellence designations. ACT scores rising year over year. And first graders expanding the vocabulary of their older siblings.

That's what knowledge-rich education looks like in practice.

Today is Biographer's Day, the perfect reminder of why reading real lives matters. 📖

Which superhero of history will your students discover next?

The Core Knowledge Free Library is packed with biography content through the Voices in History series - knowledge-rich stories designed to build empathy, expand vocabulary, and ignite curiosity about the world.

The best part? All of it is free. Ready to use in your classroom today.

Start reading a biography read-aloud now 👇
coreknowledgefreelibrary.org

Music education shouldn't be a line item that gets cut. It should be a foundation every student builds on starting in kindergarten.

That's why Core Knowledge Foundation has launched CKMusic: a free, K–8 music curriculum designed to make rigorous, joyful music education accessible to every classroom, in every district, regardless of budget.

CKMusic gives teachers a structured, no-prep framework for building genuine musical knowledge not just exposure, but deep understanding that compounds year over year.

What teachers love about CKMusic:

🔹 Grade-Level Spotify Playlists: Carefully curated playlists for each grade level — Just add to your classroom queue.

🔹 Listening Prompts That Build Knowledge: Structured discussion prompts guide students from noticing instruments to identifying composers, recognizing musical forms, and connecting music to history and culture.

🔹 Cross-Curricular Connections: CKMusic is designed to reinforce what students are learning in history, literacy, and social studies because great music education doesn't happen in isolation.

🔹 All-In-One Lesson Support: Everything teachers need is included. Structured, sequenced, and ready to use from day one.

Students who study music build stronger listening skills, richer vocabulary, and deeper cultural knowledge, and CKMusic makes it easy for every teacher to deliver that, every day.

Download the free CKMusic curriculum today: coreknowledge.org/music/