Planet Word

Planet World in Washington, DC, will develop and deliver five virtual field trips over the course of a year for schoolchildren in grades 3–12 celebrating the beauty, fun, and power of words and language. The museum will base all programs—developed with a team of expert content and culture advisors—on award-winning content. The field trips will reach 4,000 schoolchildren in targeted disadvantaged areas across the country, offering assistance to education systems struggling to catch up after a year of learning loss caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. In each virtual field trip, students will learn an important literacy-related concept and create a product that demonstrates their learning. Field trips will cover topics from idioms in American English to news literacy and personal identity markers. These fun and engaging virtual field trips empower students to express their own ideas, listen to ideas expressed by others, and parse the meaning and intent of others' words.