Animals in history moved through landscapes, cultures, and systems of power. Our adaptable teaching modules bring the dynamic lives of animals into classroom conversations. Primary visual sources encourage students to think critically about animal agency and knowledge production.
Observing the Camel constellation as a celestial guide in al-Ṣūfī’s Book of Fixed Stars, this module challenges dominant narratives of astronomy as a universal science and reveals how environment and local knowledge shape alternative ways of mapping the night sky.
Hundreds of oxen traveled over a thousand kilometers to pull carts through the shogun’s capital. This module asks how working cattle shaped urban space, inspired iconic art, and became symbols of Edo’s prosperity.
From the grasslands of Sudan to zoos in Europe and the U.S., one rhino became a celebrity attraction. This module unpacks how capture and display turn wild animals into commodities—and how wildlife trade reshapes both their lives and the stories told about them.
Overview of all Teaching Modules.
Explore how a 1933 photo of a chimpanzee raised in the U.S. reveals the emotional ties that shaped her journey from orphan to zoo specimen. This module examines how love, care, and interspecies relationships intersect with science, colonial power, and visual culture.'
Follow the journey of an Asian elephant who moved from German circuses to a Polish zoo to explore how animal captivity and mobility shaped knowledge, labor, and spectacle in the early 20th century. This module explores the colonial trade in live animals through animal biography.
Observing the Camel constellation as a celestial guide in al-Ṣūfī’s Book of Fixed Stars, this module challenges dominant narratives of astronomy as a universal science and reveals how environment and local knowledge shape alternative ways of mapping the night sky.
Hundreds of oxen traveled over a thousand kilometers to pull carts through the shogun’s capital. This module asks how working cattle shaped urban space, inspired iconic art, and became symbols of Edo’s prosperity.
From the grasslands of Sudan to zoos in Europe and the U.S., one rhino became a celebrity attraction. This module unpacks how capture and display turn wild animals into commodities—and how wildlife trade reshapes both their lives and the stories told about them.