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Getting Started The Smithsonian Institution was founded in 1846, six years after photography arrived in America. Today, our museums and archives house more than 13 million photographs.   This lesson plan closely examines four of the 13 million photographs in the Smithsonian.  The pictures represent four important steps in the history of the medium: • introduction of portrait photography • invention of a photographic printing process • capture of instantaneous action • advent of home photography Through the lessons, students will see that, while not every picture tells its own story, every picture has a story behind it.  The lesson plan has two parts: • In the first lesson, students make observations and inferences about the pictures.  • In the second, they use their predicting skills to try to determine the chronological order of the pictures.  Share the background information with the students only after they complete the second lesson. Download the Lesson Plan View the Standards Required Materials Download the PDF Photography at the Smithsonian The oldest Smithsonian-related photograph predates the oldest Smithsonian building—it is a picture of the architect’s model.