Young historians learn how to analyze various forms of primary source documents. The colorful packet is packed with all you need to engage kids in this essential skill.

Analyze the federal government's direct response to the Whiskey Rebellion through this fantastic primary source analysis activity activity.

Invite your learners to take a look at life during the term of United States president George Washington through analysis of an interesting primary source. The document summarizes American manufacturing capacities, as detailed...

Political cartoons are primary source documents and learning to read them can be a challenge. Challenge the reading skills of your class with a political cartoon featuring rough and ready, Teddy Roosevelt. 

Young historians will learn not to fear primary source materials (or fear itself, for that matter) thanks to this resource that uses Franklin D. Roosevelt's March 4, 1933 Inaugural Address to model how to conduct a close reading of such...

Franklin D. Roosevelt's April 14, 1938 Fireside Chat on economic conditions provides young historians an opportunity to polish their primary source comprehension skills. A great resource to add to you curriculum library.

Proficient reading of informational text, especially primary source documents, requires practice. This message from Thomas Jefferson about the Louisiana Purchase offers readers a chance to develop these comprehension skills.

Was Nat Turner a hero or a violent criminal? Using primary sources and images that discuss the rebellion of enslaved people he led in antebellum Virginia, scholars consider the question. Then, they create memorials to Turner and...

With so many ways to follow the news today, it is imperative to think critically about the sources of information we are turning to. Here is a fantastic graphic organizer that will help your learners develop the skills to...

Planning on using primary source materials? Introduce your class members to SOAPS, a worksheet that models how to analyze and reflect on primary source materials. Readers name the document, identify the subject (S), the...

Standard Oil's stranglehold on the US government is the subject of a 1904 political cartoon. Kids use the questions on the provided worksheet to prompt their analysis of this primary source.

Talk about a timely resource! As part of a series of primary source exercises, individuals read and respond to questions about Theodore Roosevelt's "The Square Deal" speech. Roosevelt reminds us of what our social system should be.

Ronald Reagan's 1983 speech to the National Association of Evangelicals (also know as the "Evil Empire Speech") offers readers with an opportunity to practice their skills at reading informational text, specifically primary source...

Through close analysis of a primary source document and discussion questions, learners gain great insight into how Abraham Lincoln viewed his duties as president of the United States, as well as his response to those who criticized...

A key challenge in teaching kids how to read informational text, particularly primary source documents, is finding suitable resources and then developing questions that guide readers. Never fear, help is here in the form of a series...

Political ads as primary source documents? But of course. Viewers analyze the strategies involved in the Republican Party's 1984 advertisement in support of Ronald Reagan's reelection. 

Your home-school, Sunday school, or private Christian school learners can build critical thinking and textual analysis skills by taking a look at Ten Commandments. They use this worksheet to analyze and break down textual meaning in an...

What led to the United States Civil War? Interested historians consider a variety of political, social, and economic factors using primary sources and an essay prompt in an authentic high-stakes test. Primary sources include political...

Learners explore the the Age of Imperialism using primary sources and an authentic College Board documents-based question. Other prompts explore the economic changes brought about by the American Civil War, technology, mercantilism, and...

Pupils turn into investigative reporters throughout history to learn what it takes to balance different primary sources on the same topic. They use what they learn to create a narrative based on their own interpretation of a historic...

Was bombing German cities an effective means to an end, or was it a war crime? Could it be both? Young historians ponder these questions with an activity that prompts them to use primary sources to summarize the debate surrounding RAF...

People in Ukraine, Rwanda, and Cambodia have all faced challenges to their human rights and even genocide. Using primary and secondary sources, scholars evaluate these challenges and the international community's role in them. The...

How do the state and federal governments relate to each other? The Constitution has a lot to say about that! Using an interactive online tool, pupils explore the Tenth Amendment. They apply their knowledge to political cartoons and news...

"Much has been given us, and much will rightfully be expected from us." As part of a series of worksheets that provide readers with an opportunity to develop their primary source comprehension skills, kids examine an excerpt from...