2026 History Day Judges Training
Location: Los Arboles Middle School (MAP)
Date: March 7th, 2026
Itinerary/Schedule
Please remember, ALL of the information on this page is important to review to be a qualified History Day judge. We appreciate your time!
CLICK HERE TO SEE YOUR JUDGING GROUP AND CATEGORY (coming soon!)
Scroll down for judges training videos and training materials
All Judge’s should complete this self-paced training:
This self-paced Asynchronous History Day Judge’s Orientation: https://ocde.instructure.com/enroll/MM8AHE.
Important note* Unlike previous year’s where each judge submitted an individual evaluation/score sheet with comments, this year each judges group will submit just ONE evaluation form which they should come to an agreement on and can write comments on ONE Sheet to submit.
Judge Training Video:
theme is from a previous year, but ranking system is the same.
Forced Ranking Video:
theme is from a previous year, but ranking system info is the same.
Theme Video:
TRAINING MATERIALS
Category Specific Information
Documentaries:
Sample Documentary:
This Junior Individual Documentary entry earned third place at the 2017 National History Day Contest:
The 1971 FBI Burglary: Taking a Stand Against Illegal Government Surveillance
Exhibits:
Judging Criteria for Exhibits
Sample Exhibit:
Julienne Sauer, from Contra Costa County, placed first at the 2013 NHD contest with her Junior Individual Exhibit:
What a Book Can Do: Rachel Carson's Silent Spring Launches the Environmental Movement
Papers:
Judging Criteria for Papers
Sample Paper:
Stacey Olson, from Sonoma County, placed second at the 2012 National History Day contest with her Junior Historical Paper:
Websites:
Sample Website:
Anoushka Bose, from San Diego County, placed fifth at the 2011 NHD Contest with her Junior Individual Website:
Performances:
Same Performance
Michela Rodriguez, Jasmine Anklesaria, Sabrina Devereaux, and Gwendolyn Gardiner placed first at the 2012 National History Day contest with their Senior Group Performance:
Podcasts:
Sample Podcast
Ben Borchers, James Hutzler, and Quincy Miller placed first at the 2022 National History Day California contest with their Senior Group Podcast:
DeepWater Horizon: Debating the Inconvenience of the Nation's Big Oil Offshore Drilling Diplomacy
Handouts for
all judging categories:
Evaluating Projects
Judging Materials (All Categories)
Suggested Interview Questions (NEW!)
Judge Comments - Best Practices and Sentence Frames (NEW!)