Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media
Continental Differences
Middle schoolers break into groups and closely investigate primary sources associated with the seven different continents. After deciding which continent their primary sources relate to, representatives from each group present their...
Curated OER
Understanding and Using Primary and Secondary Sources in History
Explore primary and secondary sources in this historical analysis lesson. Young researchers define the terms primary source and secondary source. They read a primary source document provided by the teacher and answer questions about the...
Curated OER
Rhetorical Devices in a Primary Source
Analyze Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous and powerful "I Have a Dream" speech as a primary source document. After reading up on rhetorical devices and working in small groups to define terms, class members identify and explain the use of...
Center for History Education
Slavery and Civil Disobedience: Christiana Riot of 1851
When is it a moral obligation to disobey the law or to fight back? Using primary sources that document the "Christiana Riot" of 1851, learners consider these questions. The firsthand accounts tell the story of the riot, which happened...
PBS
Using Primary Sources: Nazi Spy Ring Busted
Spy games are not just for professionals anymore! Scholars use short video clips, primary documents, and photographs to investigate Nazi spies in America during World War II. The young detectives analyze the paranoia warfare can create...
Curated OER
Applying KWL Guides to Sources with Elementary Students
What is a KWL chart? Here is a well thought-out lesson that has learners use KWL charts to gain historical perspective. Your class examines primary sources about historical events and identifies what they know, want to know, and,...
Curated OER
Create a Walking Tour of San Francisco's Chinatown
Take a tour of Chinatown as it was in the 1800's. Analyzing primary source images and documents, learners will gain a better understanding of the myths and misconceptions of Chinese immigrants during the 1800's. They create a pamphlet to...
Library of Congress
The Emancipation Proclamation and the Thirteenth Amendment
How did the Emancipation Proclamation lead to the Thirteenth Amendment? Middle schoolers analyze primary source documents including the text of the Emancipation Proclamation, political cartoons, photographs, and prints to understand the...
History with Peters
A Clear Signal for Change: Multiple Interpretations and Nat Turner’s Rebellion
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...
Curated OER
"In Defense of My Race and Country": African-American Soldiers on Why They Are Fighting
Why would an African-American slave fight in the Civil War? Read and analyze primary source documents to understand the ex-slave perspective on fighting in the Union Army. Everything to complete this lesson is included.
Center for Civic Education
The Power of Nonviolence: What Is Nonviolence? What Does It Cost?
Your young learners will delve into the language of primary source documents in order to identify the characteristics, benefits, and costs of nonviolence. The lesson plan includes a mix of activities, including an anticipatory activity,...
Briscoe Center for American History
Applying the SOAPS Method of Analyzing Historical Documents
Young historians use the SOAPS (Speaker, Occasion, Audience, Purpose, Subject) method of questioning to determine the historical value of primary source documents. The third in a series of five lessons that model for learners how...
Curated OER
Finding James Fort
Welcome to Jamestown! Third and fourth graders read and analyze primary source documents about Jamestown or Fort James. They read and analyze descriptions of Fort James from primary sources. They access a website to explore more...
TPS Journal
Sourcing a Document: The First Thanksgiving
How reliable is a painting of the first Thanksgiving if it was created 300 years after the fact? Learners assess the validity of a primary source image to determine what it can actually reveal about this event.
Newseum
Media Mix-Ups Through History: Analyzing Historical Sources
Scholars use the E.S.C.A.P.E. (Evidence Source, Context, Audience, Purpose, Execution) strategy to analyze a historical source to determine why mistakes happen in news stories. They then apply the same strategies to contemporary flawed...
Curated OER
Debate: Should the U.S. Annex the Philippines?
Building an argument with supporting evidence is a vital skill. Learners engage in a debate over the annexation of the Philippines after the Spanish-American War. They take on the perspective of an individual from that time period,...
Curated OER
Forty Acres? The Question of Land at the War's End
Should land be redistributed to former slaves after the Civil War? This essential question guides a lesson on the Reconstruction Era, as learners analyze primary sources (linked), recording responses on a worksheet (linked). To model the...
Humanities Texas
Primary Source Worksheet: Excerpt from the Diary of Union Soldier Samuel Cormany
Young historians read and analyze a soldier's direct account of his participation in the battle of Gettysburg, as well as consider the overall strategy and tactics taken by the Union and Confederate troops.
Curated OER
Teaching With Documents: U.S. Constitution Workshop
What does it mean to be American? Explore the constitution and what it really means to be a citizen here. First, learners of all ages will investigate different primary source documents. Then, they establish each document's...
Curated OER
Comparing SLaves and Servants in Colonial New York
Young historians compare and contrast differences in the laws that regulated the activities of slaves and servants. They review and analyze a series of primary source documents to explain the social constructs related to slaves and...
Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media
Differences Among Colonial Regions
Classes look at and analyze primary source images to explore the differences between the colonial regions during the Revolutionary era. They break into groups to tackle each region and then present their findings to the class. A final...
EngageNY
Mid-Unit Assessment: Classifying and Evaluating Primary Sources
Let's go for a walk. Learners complete the mid-unit assessment by completing a gallery walk to analyze different primary sources discussed while reading A Mighty Long Way. After viewing the sources, class members complete organizers and...
National Woman's History Museum
Eleanor Roosevelt: An Agent of Social Change
First ladies often take a back seat to their husbands' policies, but Eleanor Roosevelt broke that mold. Interested historians examine primary sources written by Roosevelt, including a speech and articles. Completing a round-robin of...
Curated OER
Examining Primary Sources: The Ten Commandments
Your home-school, Sunday school, or private Christian school students 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...