Ignite the Spark of America's Founding – Join FIREWORKS250!
Celebrate the 250th anniversary of our nation with evidence-based lessons, professional development, and student activities that foster independence, reflection, and engagement in civics and literacy. Get stipends, free resources, and join the celebration!
We are inviting public school grade 5 teachers to participate in the spring 2026 rollout. While all teachers who register will have access to the materials, the first 180 grade 5 teachers to register will receive participation stipends after completing all the training activities. Teachers will receive a stipend of $1,000 each, and schools with at least 2 teachers who complete participation activities will receive a gift card of $XXX. In addition, participating teachers will have the chance to earn an additional $500 stipend by attending all three days of the 2026 summer symposium. All resources will be made available to all registrants for free. New teachers will be selected each year for participation stipends.
America’s 250th anniversary is a special moment in our nation’s history. It calls for a celebration, a deepening of our knowledge of the nation’s founding, and a recommitment to the founding principles articulated in the founding documents. To that end, the Florida Center for Reading Research (FCRR) and the Institute for Governance and Civics (IGC) at Florida State University have developed the FIREWORKS250 initiative (Fostering Independence, Reflection, and Engagement through Wide-Reaching Outreach, Revolutionary Knowledge, and Student-Led Scholarship for America’s 250th Anniversary). Together, we have developed a program to deliver high-quality professional development that will increase historical content knowledge and enhance teaching strategies. Through these efforts, we will commemorate the nation’s founding and enhance civics and literacy instruction throughout the state of Florida.
FIREWORKS250 will include 22 evidence-based lessons over three years, virtual professional development seminars to introduce these lessons, an essay contest with supporting podcasts for students in years 2 and 3, and an annual summer symposium for interested teachers.
