Hamilton Cast Read Alongs
In “Hamilton Cast Read Alongs,” a program that features Hamilton cast members reading award-winning children’s books followed by a discussion of the history behind the story, two sessions in summer 2021 covered books about the Black experience in the founding era. There were two additional sessions on this topic in spring 2021. Recordings of these sessions can be viewed below. For more information and additional sessions of Read Alongs, click here.
Bread for Words: A Frederick Douglass Story
by Shana Keller (Author) and Kayla Stark (Illustrator)
Read by Hamilton cast member Simon Longnight
Brick by Brick
by Charles R. Smith, Jr. (Author) and Floyd Cooper (Illustrator)
Read by Hamilton cast member Vincent Hooper
Mumbet’s Declaration of Independence
by Gretchen Woelfle (Author) and Alix Delinois (Illustrator)
Read by Hamilton cast member Meecah
A Spy Called James: The True Story of James Lafayette, Revolutionary War Double Agent
by Anne Rockwell (Author) and Floyd Cooper (Illustrator)
Read by Hamilton cast member Bryson Bruce
Ona Judge Outwits the Washingtons
by Gwendolyn Hooks (Author) and Simone Agoussoye (Illustrator)
Read by Hamilton cast member Tiffany Mellard
Ticktock Banneker’s Clock
by Shana Keller (Author) and David C. Gardner (Illustrator)
Read by Hamilton cast member Ashley Brooks Monroe
History School
The Gilder Lehrman History School provides free online classes for K–12 students in a variety of topics. Master Teachers present lessons anchored in primary source documents, many from the Gilder Lehrman Institute’s collection of more than 75,000 American history artifacts, in an effort to engage students and excite them about history so that they leave each lesson more knowledgeable about a new idea, theme, document, or pivotal moment in history.
In spring 2021, the Gilder Lehrman History School featured “Black Lives in the Founding Era,” geared toward students in grades 3–8. Each class looked at a different historical figure—some famous and some little known—and their life, legacy, and accomplishments. A cast member from the musical Hamilton was featured in class each week to give students an educational experience that included members of the theater community. Each of the eight classes was a standalone lesson, and recordings are available below.