A High Quality Research Program
Louisiana History Day is a project-based learning experience that is an annual research and presentation competition for students in grades 6–12. It is a state affiliate of National History Day and is sponsored by The National WWII Museum.
Why should students and teachers participate in History Day?
It makes history engaging, relevant, and fun because it allows students to direct their own learning and showcase their creativity while building historical thinking and 21st-century skills.
By the Numbers
- 600,000 students and 30,000 teachers worldwide participate annually
- 5 categories – Paper, Exhibit, Website, Performance, Documentary
- Up to 5 students can work together in a group (except for Papers)
- 2 divisions - Junior (grades 6–8) and Senior (grades 9–12)
- 3 levels - Regionals (February–March), State (April), National (June)
- 1 annual theme but 1000s of possible topics!
Louisiana Regions
2023 Contest Dates and Locations
Baton Rouge Regional
Thursday, February 16
West Baton Rouge Museum in Port Allen
Natchitoches Regional
Saturday, March 11
Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and Northwest Louisiana History Museum in Natchitoches
Monroe Regional
Saturday, March 11
Chennault Aviation and Military Museum in Monroe
Lafayette Regional
Saturday, March 18
Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve - Acadian Cultural Center in Lafayette
Shreveport Regional
Saturday, March 25
Louisiana State Exhibit Museum in Shreveport
New Orleans Regional
Saturday, March 25
The National WWII Museum in New Orleans
State Competition
Saturday, April 15
The National WWII Museum in New Orleans
National Competition
June 11–15
The University of Maryland at College Park
Registration links for each region coming soon!
Social Studies Elective: Louisiana History Day Project-Based Learning
Louisiana History Day is proud to offer a social studies elective for Middle School and High School teachers across the state. Please note, the curriculum is only available to Louisiana teachers and cannot be shared outside of the state. Feel free to review the full class schedule.
For questions, please email historyday@nationalww2museum.org.
Rules and Themes
How to Create Your Project
Guidance for all categories and aspects of creating a project can be found on the National History Day website:
Project Checklists
For more information or to ask questions about National History Day in Louisiana, contact the Louisiana State Coordinator at historyday@nationalww2museum.org.
Workshops for Teachers
For any of the following sessions, sign up here: https://forms.gle/eFUh6Zft1eWWfGHz9
Connecting History Day to the Louisiana State Social Studies Standards
This workshop is a deep dive into how History Day fits the 2022 State Social Studies Standards.
Thursday, September 8 | 5:00 – 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday, September 14 | 4:00 – 5:00 p.m.
Theme Exploration
This year’s theme is Frontiers in History: People, Places, Ideas. Join this workshop to understand the theme and learn effective strategies for introducing it to your students.
Wednesday, September 28 | 4:00 – 5:00 p.m.
Thursday, October 6 | 5:00 – 6:00 p.m.
Contest Rule Book & Rubrics
With the launch of the new NHD Contest Rule Book and evaluation forms last year, this workshop will do a deep-dive into the updated requirements and the new rubrics.
Tuesday, October 18 | 4:00 – 5:00 p.m.
Wednesday, October 26 | 5:00 – 6:00 p.m.
History Day Nuts & Bolts
This workshop covers the elements that help bring projects together, including writing thesis statements and connecting them to effective arguments, the process paper, and the annotated bibliography.
Tuesday, October 25 | 4:00 – 5:00 p.m.
Wednesday, November 2 | 5:00 – 6:00 p.m.
For more information, contact:
LaToya Bailey Williams
Louisiana History Day State Coordinator