American Ancestors gives K-12 schools free access to AmericanAncestors.org, and a classroom teacher, administrator or school librarian is the person who fills out the form. It’s a school program, not a personal teacher discount. The offer is for accredited schools with a physical location that supports an external IP address, and every computer at that location can use the member benefits for free.
If you teach social studies, run a library, or just have a class that’s curious where their families came from, this is a free way to put a serious genealogy database in front of students.
How To Get The American Ancestors Teacher Discount
The K-12 School Membership page has the form. It says to complete it if you’re a classroom teacher, administrator or school librarian, and the offer is tied to your school’s external IP address. American Ancestors tells you to contact your school’s IT department to get that address, so it’s worth sending that question before you sit down with the form.
You also have to agree to comply with student privacy laws, including the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. Once your school is set up, American Ancestors says every computer at that location can use the member benefits.
What The Membership Includes
American Ancestors lists three things in the school membership. You get access to over 1.4 billion searchable names on AmericanAncestors.org, free access to databases from external organizations, and access to the American Ancestors Digital Library and Archives.
Its youth education page puts the same offer in one line: K-12 schools can receive free member access to AmericanAncestors.org.
What It Doesn’t Cover
The page is plain about the limits. You must renew your account each year, and the offer isn’t intended for access at home, so this is a login for the school’s network, not one for your living room. The offer is for accredited schools, so confirm that your school meets that description before you apply.
The Free Curriculum
Separately from the membership, American Ancestors describes a free-to-access national curriculum for students in grades 4 through 8. Its Family History Curriculum page lists the full curriculum with lesson-by-lesson downloads and editable student handouts, and says the inquiry-based lessons align with the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.
The youth education page also says you can meet with the Youth Genealogy Curriculum Coordinator to create a personalized plan for bringing family history into your classroom, home school, library or historical society. Its heading calls that a free one-hour training.
If You Wanted A Personal Membership
The school program doesn’t help if you want a membership of your own. Fluz lists 1.5% cashback at American Ancestors with a Fluz virtual card, so check its page for the current number before you pay. We didn’t find a TopCashback page for American Ancestors, and Rakuten’s address for it loads a general page instead of a store page.
What We Couldn’t Confirm
We didn’t submit the form, so we can’t tell you how long approval takes or how American Ancestors decides what counts as an accredited school.
Q&A
Does American Ancestors give teachers a discount?
It gives K-12 schools free access through its School Membership. We didn’t find a discount for an individual teacher.
Who fills out the form?
American Ancestors says a classroom teacher, administrator or school librarian.
Do I need my school’s IP address?
Yes. The offer is for schools with a physical location that supports an external IP address, and the page says to contact your school’s IT department to get it.
Can I use it at home?
No. American Ancestors says the offer isn’t intended for access at home.
Does the membership need renewing?
Yes. The page says you must renew your account each year.
Is the classroom curriculum free?
American Ancestors calls it a free-to-access national curriculum for grades 4 through 8.
More Information:
The details above come from American Ancestors’ pages and the cash back portals as they loaded when we checked, and programs change, so confirm the terms before you apply. See more entertainment discounts for teachers.
