John Brown House Museum General Tour

Travel through time at the John Brown House Museum with a guided discussion and tour through our historic space.

Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Connections

This program illustrates these connections through a hands-on activity called the “Web of Complicity” that shows the relationships that stretched from the city to the sea in the global enterprise of the slave trade.

Interactions with the Colonial Period

Step through time into the colonial period at the John Brown House Museum and learn about life in 18th-century Providence. This program uses stations inside the house to offer interactive and experiential learning with sensory objects, discussion, and object analysis.

Avi’s Something Upstairs Walking Tour 

Step back in time and explore the streets of Providence through the lens of Avi’s Something Upstairs.

Young Historians 

We create hands-on opportunities throughout the museum for young learners through colonial toys and games, clothing, sensory objects, and story time opportunities. Contact us to customize this program for your classes.

Rhode Island and Slavery Classroom Program

An in-person classroom experience where RIHS educators will lead students in a close-looking activity with historic object reproductions and a close reading of narratives from individuals who experienced enslavement and its legacies.

Museum Docent Guided Tour

Students are led through the museum by one of our trained docents. Docent guided tours are also available in French and Spanish upon request.

Immigration Focused Tour

This offshoot of our traditional tour narrows the focus of the visit to the history of immigration in Rhode Island. Students will learn about push and pull factors, discover which immigrant groups came to this area and why, and about the changes and difficulties they faced. Our trained docents engage students’ imaginations with stories & anecdotes while encouraging critical thinking skills by asking leading questions that connect information learned on the tour & in the classroom.

Labor History Focused Tour

This offshoot of our traditional tour narrows the focus of the visit to the history and impacts of labor, unions, and the labor movement in the Blackstone Valley. Our trained docents engage students’ imaginations with stories & anecdotes while encouraging critical thinking skills by asking leading questions that connect information learned on the tour & in the classroom.

Assembly Line Activity

Students will get a hands-on understanding of history by participating as competing companies in an assembly line.

Suitcase Activity

Students will take on the role of a historian as they sort through the belongings of immigrant families.

Labor Dispute Simulation

Outdoor Walking Tour

Guides bring the classroom outdoors, tracing the history of the Blackstone River, water power, and ecology.

Lunch Space Rental in Museum's ITU Hall

Students may bring bagged lunches to enjoy in the Museum’s ITU Hall.