The Distance Learning team at The National WWII Museum is excited to relaunch Operation Footlocker! Through the generous support of Scott Petty, Operation Footlocker will be FREE for the 2023–24 school year.
Traveling Artifact Trunks
The National WWII Museum presents Operation Footlocker, a program that provides schools across the country with unique hands-on opportunities to explore the history and lessons of World War II by analyzing wartime artifacts. These traveling trunks are designed to supplement WWII education in the classroom.
WHAT WILL I GET?
Each Footlocker comes filled with real artifacts* from World War II. Your class could receive ration books, V-mail letters, dog tags, sand from the beaches of Normandy and Iwo Jima, wartime magazines, a high school yearbook from the early 1940s, and many other artifacts, both commonplace and surprising. Footlockers come complete with disposable gloves for handling the artifacts and a teacher’s manual that describes each object and contains directions for conducting artifact “reading” sessions.
*No weapons or ammunition are ever included.
WHO IS OPERATION FOOTLOCKER FOR?
Because of the fragile nature of some artifacts, we recommend the program for grades 5-12 and beyond. Turn your students into history detectives as they ponder the origins and uses of these real pieces of WWII history!
HOW CAN I RESERVE ONE?
Louisiana Local Trunk Pickup
FREE to local classrooms able to pick up and drop off at The National WWII Museum in New Orleans.
All local trunks are housed in larger footlockers to accommodate larger artifacts! These trunks span a variety of themes from WWII to fit classroom needs.
Shipped Artifact Trunks
Cost per trunk: FREE during the 2023-24 school year! Footlockers will be shipped via FedEx and will include a prepaid return shipping label.
For shipped trunks we have three themed offerings available: Home Front, War in the Pacific, and War in Europe.
Tactile Trunks
Tactile Trunks are designed for low-vision, blind, and neurodivergent groups to expand access and ways of learning through a multiplicity of senses! The artifacts in these trunks span a variety of themes from WWII to fit classroom needs. Two trunks are available under the name "Hershey" and "Cricket" when booking your reservation. Local and shipped options are available.
Virtual Footlockers
Our NEW Virtual Footlockers will debut in spring 2024!
These free Virtual Footlockers will feature rare and unique artifacts that may be too sensitive to ship.
RETURNING THE FOOTLOCKER
Footlockers may be kept at your school for up to one week. We appreciate you respecting our timetable, as we want to ensure that our Footlockers can reach as many students as possible throughout the school year. Please return the Footlocker to the Museum via mail (or local drop-off) promptly to allow for ample processing time. If Footlockers do not arrive at the Museum due to late shipment and cause delays with upcoming reservations, a late fee may be charged to your booking.
Once you have shipped the Footlocker back to the Museum, let us know via email. If any item has been damaged, please include that information as well. We will email you once the Footlocker and its contents have been received and assessed, verifying that all artifacts were returned in the same condition.
BILLING
Once the Footlocker has been returned to the Museum, the condition of all artifacts will be assessed. If any artifacts are lost, stolen, or badly damaged (at the discretion of the Museum), you may be billed for the cost of replacement/repair.
QUESTIONS? Email Operation.Footlocker@nationalww2museum.org