Museums across Australia are recognising educators for World Teachers’ Day 2026 with after-hours events, professional learning and curriculum-linked experiences that celebrate teachers’ role in inspiring curiosity and lifelong learning.
In Canberra, the National Museum of Australia is holding a free community day at its Tim and Gina Fairfax Discovery Centre on 30 October, highlighting the importance of early learning. In Sydney, the Australian Museum’s Teachers’ Night on 3 November invites educators to explore exhibitions, meet the education team and join First Nations gallery tours and weaving workshops.
ACMI is hosting the ATOM Vic 2026 State Conference, where educators can explore media education, screen literacy and digital technologies while Museums Victoria’s Museum Teachers program continues to provide free entry, professional learning and classroom resources.
In Brisbane, Queensland Museum Kurilpa’s free Educator’s Evening on 10 November, from 4:30 pm, gives Years 3–6 teachers after-hours access to the Stories of Country First Nations gallery and SparkLab. Teachers can meet curators and colleagues, share feedback on future resources and enter a draw to win a SparkLab class excursion.
In Perth, WA Museum Boola Bardip is offering a familiarisation session on 28 October to help teachers plan school visits, followed by an Aboriginal Knowledges in Science for Educators session on 3 November.
South Australian Museum’s one-hour Thinking Out Loud program, available for groups of 10–40 teachers, shares practical strategies for building students’ curiosity and critical thinking. Questacon is also running free Engineering is Elementary STEM workshops across South Australia from 28 October to 5 November.
Beyond World Teachers’ Day events, museums across Australia and New Zealand support educators year-round by bringing history into the classroom. Museums of History NSW offers curriculum-linked excursions for Stages 1–6, virtual excursions and teacher-guided visits across its historic houses, collections and archives, while the Australian War Memorial provides education programs, free digital resources and professional learning on Australia’s wartime history.
In South Australia, the History Trust’s History Matters series connects teachers with historians and curators to share approaches such as object-based learning. Sovereign Hill’s living gold-rush museum and Narmbool environmental programs help students explore Australia’s past, Aboriginal histories and cultures, migration and sustainability, and the Australian National Maritime Museum offers free virtual excursions linking maritime history, First Nations knowledge and ocean science.
Other institutions are helping teachers build skills in science, art and civics. In Tasmania, TMAG and QVMAG provide curriculum-linked programs, hands-on workshops and resources across art, history and natural sciences. MAGNT’s Discovery Centre workshops and partnership with Questacon’s INTERSECT network support inquiry-based teaching, while its Exit Art 2026 initiative showcases senior secondary students’ creative work. Scitech offers hands-on STEM experiences and professional development, and the Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House provides free digital workshops and resources that build critical thinking, media literacy and active citizenship. In Sydney, Powerhouse’s Teacher Academy celebrates educators and empowers them as creative designers of learning.