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Connect with the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame to enrich your students’ study of history, language arts, science, math, and fine arts.

The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame is the only museum in the world dedicated to honoring women of the American West who have displayed extraordinary courage and pioneer spirit in their trail blazing efforts. Since it was established in 1975, the Museum has become an invaluable educational resource nationally known for its exhibits, research library, rare photography collection, and the honorees in its Hall of Fame.

Discover the Wild West Scholarship

In an effort to fully realize our mission of celebrating women, past and present, whose lives exemplify the courage, resilience, and independence that helped shape the American West, the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame is pleased to offer scholarships to reach students and schools who would not ordinarily be able to participate, at any level, in our education programs. It is underwritten by generous grants, specifically targeting low-income and/or under-performing schools, K-12. To apply, please complete the attached Roven Scholarship Video Conference 2015 application.

Any program may be requested at your preferred date/time by contacting kschenk@cowgirl.net.

Celebrate women’s history with the National Cowgirl Museum as we highlight the pioneers and trailblazers who endured challenges and unknown obstacles to help set the tone and spirit of the West.

Discover Laura Ingalls Wilder’s stories during the holiday season as told through her remarkable Little House on the Prairie books. The author shares how gifts and decorations were made from the items they could find to make each holiday a time of wonder. Join us as we explore the holiday as a pioneer to discover these wonderful traditions. Only available in November and December.

Join the National Cowgirl Museum to learn about an era in history known as The Great Depression. Women such as Dale Evans, Georgia O’Keeffe, and Patsy Montana are just a few Cowgirl Honorees that lived through this time of great turmoil in our nation, yet made history in spite of it.

Charles and Molly Goodnight were true pioneers and trailblazers. Charles Goodnight founded the Goodnight-Loving Cattle Drive Trail and invented the chuck wagon. His wife Molly Goodnight saved the bison from near extinction and was inducted into the Cowgirl Hall of Fame in 1991. Examine photographs and videos to uncover their story and how they impacted the American West.

Pioneers built the West. They developed the land, formed communities, and started businesses. Study the importance of community planning through the lives of pioneers including Cowgirl Honorees Clara Brown, Henrietta King, and Narcissa Whitman.

Many women of the West shared their experiences as entertainers and artists. Discover the world of these women as they see it, through paintings, photography, pottery, music, and performances. Explore the talents and works of Cowgirl Honorees such as Annie Oakley, Dale Evans, Patsy Cline, and Georgia O’Keeffe.

A horse is a horse, of course, of course. With a keen eye, students distinguish what makes a horse unique as well as some of the other furred and feathered friends found on a ranch. Whether searching for tails and details or graphing the obvious, participants will enjoy their science quest at the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame.

Rain or sun, spring or fall, ranch life has a certain pattern and rhythm. Participants distinguish the basics of patterns while observing the connection between animals, weather, and their general environment. See how wagons, weather, water, and the ways of the ranch all tie into Museum science.

Food, in the form of hay or hamburgers; water, from a pond or bottle; shelter, in a house or a barn – all intertwine and affect the lives of creatures large and small. By adding an eye for patterns (such as the water cycle) and learning to distinguish the parts from the whole big picture, students will find themselves in the middle of an adventure as they get down to eye-opening basics of life essentials.

The term “cowgirl” serves as an attitude, an idea, and a description. Discover women of the American West during the late 19th and early 20th centuries who displayed extraordinary courage and a pioneer spirit in their trail blazing efforts.

Have you ever heard a story that seemed so amazing you thought it might be fiction? The courageous women honored in the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame led amazing lives. Explore the stories told about these remarkable women and help separate the facts from fiction.

Photographers such as Ansel Adams and Elliot Porter shared Georgia O’Keeffe’s appreciation of nature as they captured unique scenery through the camera lens instead of paint and palette. Join us as we explore how O’Keeffe and other artists found ways to share their work and inspiration through various art mediums.

Join the National Cowgirl Museum as we explore Sarah, Plain and Tall, the well-known story by Patricia MacLachlan, of a woman who ventured West to find adventure. This pioneer’s decision to leave her home brings surprises as we compare and contrast the place she left behind with her new home on the prairie. Since the setting is never specifically stated, we will look at clues to determine the location and time period. We recommend the class is reading (or has read) the book Sarah, Plain and Tall before scheduling this program.

Maria Martinez, one of the most famous Pueblo Indian potters, revived the ancient Pueblo craft of pottery making after discovering the process of crafting San Ildefonso prehistoric pottery. Cowgirl Honoree Martinez reintroduced the world to these highly polished black vessels. Join us as we discover the art of pottery and its role in our past, present, and future.

As one of the first female superstars of her era, Annie Oakley excelled in sharpshooting. Few performers or athletes come to mind more quickly than she when talking about Wild West Shows or cowgirls. Through photographs, film clips, and discussion, learn how she overcame her early life of hardship to become one of the nation’s most respected and beloved Western icons.

The National Cowgirl Museum takes on a whole different meaning when viewed through the eyes of a mathematician. For instance, the bandana — which serves as an accessory and useful tool for a cowgirl or cowboy — can also be turned into a square, a rectangle, or a triangle. Discover how this simple Museum artifact relates to geometric shapes and their distinguishing attributes as well as assemble a few shapes of your own.

What do math and cowgirls have in common? Plenty! See how the National Cowgirl Museum makes the connection with a few tools of the trade and a little know-how. Students will work with the geometric shapes, divide them into parts of a whole, and create families of facts. Explore these math concepts and other ideas using materials from our exhibits.

Take a few important events, place them into sequence, round off a few numbers, and angle in a little measurement. What do you get? A great combination of math and history rolled into one! Come experience math the cowgirl way by using artifacts from the National Cowgirl Museum to help you graph, round numbers, and identify geometric figures. This program has been aligned with 3rd Grade Math TEKS and STAAR questions.

Reflections, rotations, symmetry, and congruency all make a special appearance at the National Cowgirl Museum. Although some lines are straight and narrow and others are crossways, they all lead to the same point – the opportunity for your students to have fun practicing with shapes, lines, and graphs.

A more advanced version of Museum Math Grade 4, this program also examines the transformations using a common theme of the National Cowgirl Museum and an icon of the old west, the decagon star! After reviewing reflections, rotations, symmetry, and congruency, students use these same concepts and slide right into ordered pairs.

Georgia O’Keefe captured the mystery of the West through her art. Participants will be introduced to basic art concepts while also discovering O’Keeffe’s connection to the land and the West. This program allows participants to view and examine the works and techniques of one of America’s best known Modernists.

Prior to Sandra Day O’Connor, no other female in the United States had the opportunity to represent women and the West as a Supreme Court Justice for the United States of America. Join the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame as we proudly celebrate Cowgirl Honoree Sandra Day O’Connor and discover this cowgirl’s transition from life on the ranch to life on the bench.

During the 1800s, many immigrants traveled to the United States. Their reasons for coming varied, but most of them were searching for a fresh start. This program explores what it was like to enter the U.S. through Ellis Island, and examines some of the stories of the Cowgirl Honorees focusing on why they came to America and the adventures they experienced after they arrived.

The idea of branding cattle goes hand in hand with our idea of the Western cowboy. However, the history of branding is unique on its own. Beginning with the elaborate brands of the early Spanish cowmen to the brands we use today, this program explores all facets of branding and makes connections to today’s “current branding.” Participants will have the opportunity to design their own brand. This program is a collaborative educational effort with the Texas A & M Animal Science Department.

Take a “tour” of the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame without leaving your classroom. Using our portable video conferencing equipment, participants learn about many of the artifacts and stories of women who helped shape the West.

The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame honors many women in the literary world. Use your five senses to learn how Cowgirl Honorees Laura Ingalls Wilder, Eulalia “Sister” Bourne, and Sallie Reynolds Matthews demonstrated writing styles and techniques in many different forms such as stories, newspapers, and journals.

Expand your literary horizons with the works of a few Cowgirl Honorees including Willa Cather, Nellie Snyder Yost, and Evelyn Cameron. From descriptive language in a tale of cowboys to a picture worth a thousand words, students will explore various examples of writing while learning about the history of West.

Content Disclamer

The views and opinions expressed are those of the contributing members of Connect2Texas and do not necessarily represent the views of the Education Service Center Region 11. While some content is deemed appropriate for various curriculum standards used by viewers nationwide, most content providers make an effort to tie their content to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS).

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Location: Fort Worth, TX, United States
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