Arlington, Va. – The Washington Capitals announced today details surrounding the return of the Caps in School Presented by KPMG program for the 2024-25 hockey season and school year.

Caps in School engages and rewards teachers across the region through year-long programs and partnerships in the education space. It encompasses the Educators Appreciation Night, a reading program, a writing program, a Think at the Rink field trip and a hockey school program. The Caps in School curriculum offers educators and grade-school students the opportunity to engage with the Capitals while participating in a variety of classroom programming.

Caps in School also provides students the opportunity to participate in hockey-themed challenges with incentives to encourage reading and writing in the classroom. The program puts an emphasis on the principles of sports and education while fostering individual and team character building that happens on ice and in the classroom.

Educators Appreciation Night

The Capitals are hosting an Educators Appreciation Night presented by KPMG on Saturday, March 22, at 5:00 p.m. against the Florida Panthers. The game will highlight educators from across the region as well as the Caps in School program throughout the night. All teachers, administrators, school staff, students, and families are encouraged to attend the game through the Educators Appreciation Night special offer and will receive a Capitals tote bag as an exclusive gift.

Tickets must be purchased through the special event ticket link in order to receive a limited-edition Educators tote bag. Click here to sign up for updates about the special ticket package.

The Capitals will also celebrate the Washington Capitals Educator of the Year at the game. Fans are invited to submit an entry to honor a deserving educator who makes a difference at a localschool and represents #ALLCAPS. The grand prize winner will receive a Caps prize pack that includes tickets, recognition on the jumbotron during the game and signed Capitals memorabilia. Nominations are accepted categories of teacher, administrator, principal, assistant and beyond.Click here to nominate an educator.

Reading Program

The Caps in School Reading Program is designed to encourage students to add more reading to their daily activity. All students receive bookmarks, and the top reading classes are rewarded with additional prizes each month. The Capitals conduct a grand prize raffle at the conclusion of the year for classrooms that submitted reading minutes for all five months of the program.

The Caps in School reading program is designed for kindergarten through fifth-grade students. Click here to register.

The Capitals were proud to welcome nearly 9,500 participating students across nearly 450classrooms to the Caps in School reading program last year. Together, they read a combined 4,233,395 minutes.

Educator Wish Lists

The Capitals are inviting teachers to share their Amazon wish lists and details around their classroom, school and Capitals fandom by clicking here. The Capitals will review the submissions and choose a select number of educators and reward them with items from their respective wish lists.

Through last season’s Caps in School program, the Capitals donated $3,000 worth of school supplies to seven teachers throughout the region. Capitals mascot Slapshot also surprised local teacher Ashley Benjamin and her class at Turner Elementary School with every item on her teaching wish list and Caps in School prizes for her students.​

Writing Program

The Caps in School writing program is designed to encourage students to fine-tune their skills and focus their writing while building confidence and gaining experience. Students in first through eighth grade within a 75-mile radius of Washington D.C.’s Capital One Arena are invited to participate. Only one entry per student will be accepted for a related essay contest. Essay prompts feature questions related to team sports and hockey and are divided by grade group for first through fifth grades and sixth through eighth graders. Stay tuned for updates at washcaps.com/capsinschool.

Last season’s Caps in School Writing Program encouraged students in first through eighth grade to write about the importance of communication and working through setbacks. More than 125 students submitted essays. Winners received a Caps swag bag and two tickets to a 2024-25 regular season home game.

Think at the Rink Field Trip

Caps in School will feature a Think at the Rink Field Trip, welcoming select third through fifth grade students to the Capitals practice facility, MedStar Capitals Iceplex, during the 2024-25school year. Related topics, demonstrations and activities will leverage STEM in hockey to align with classroom education.

The Capitals hosted 90 fifth-grade students from Hollin Meadows Elementary School for a STEM Field Trip last year at MedStar Capitals Iceplex. Students watched practice and participated in interactive stations run by Capitals and MedStar Capitals Iceplex employees. The stations revolved around the science of ice resurfacing, learning how to shoot a puck, nutrition, equipment and hockey trivia.​

Hockey School

The Washington Capitals Hockey School program, presented by Capital One, is aimed at providing access and introducing the sport of hockey to children in elementary and middle school. The program is currently implemented in over 1,601 local schools reaching over 1,052,294 students annually and includes free equipment and a custom curriculum. To learn more about the program, visitwww.capsyouthhockey.com/hockeyschool.

To learn more about the programs offered throughout the school year and to register for Caps in School updates, visit washcaps.com/capsinschool.