This special issue, edited by Ingrid Gessner and Angelika Ilg, explores how the arts and cultural analysis shape teaching practices in American studies. The contributions examine literature, Indigenous poetry, film, and photography as ways of approaching questions of history, memory, and social relations in the classroom. Across different contexts – from university seminars to digital projects and museum exhibitions – the authors ask how these materials can support critical engagement and open up new perspectives on US American history and culture.