Unit Plan
Curated OER

Mc Graw Hill: Compare Primary and Secondary Sources

For Students 4th - 9th Standards
Learn how to analyze and compare the relationship between a primary and a secondary source.
Primary
Other

New York State Library: Student Activity: Primary Versus Secondary Sources

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
Read about the Railroad Strike of 1877 using three excerpts from textbooks and three original newspaper articles. Compare and contrast the information in the primary and secondary sources.
Activity
Other

Using Sources Effectively

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This site provides hints and guidelines on how to effectively use sources.
Handout
Duke University

Duke University Libraries: Finding Primary Sources

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Finding primary sources can be difficult and confusing at times. This site provides a list of history databases, rare books and manuscripts, and research guides for those looking for primary resources such as diaries, letters,...
Handout
Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian: Engaging Students With Primary Sources

For Teachers 1st - 9th Standards
This reference guide is designed to highlight the benefits of using primary source materials in any classroom and to provide the teacher with practical suggestions and examples of how to do this. It includes a bibliography and links to...
Activity
TES Global

Tes: Determining of Credibility of Online Sources

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
[Free Registration/Login Required] This free resource is a sheet that will help students assess the credibility of an online primary source or an online secondary source.
Handout
University of North Carolina

University of North Carolina: Writing Center: Handouts: Evidence

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
What kinds of evidence best support the points you make in a paper? Where can you find the evidence you need? This handout answers all these questions and more, including the difference between primary and secondary sources. You'll also...
Unit Plan
Department of Defense

Do Dea: Discovery and Attribution

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
The research process can be daunting, but it doesn't have to be overwhelming! After you complete this self-guided unit, you will be well prepared to write a research paper. You will learn how to choose a topic, evaluate the reliability...
Interactive
Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media

Teaching History: Interactive Historical Thinking Poster (Secondary)

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This is an interactive historical thinking poster. History is an argument about the past. Constructing a narrative about history involves several tasks: Analyzing Primary Sources, Examining Source Information,Using Evidence to Support...
Unit Plan
Sophia Learning

Sophia: Critical Reading as a Learning Strategy

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This tutorial focuses on critical reading using a downloadable PowerPoint presentation, "Critical Reading 101," which includes separating fact from opinion, 6 propaganda techniques, and 6 common fallacies in reasoning. Also provided is...
Unit Plan
Thinkport Education

Thinkport: Central Idea and Evidence: Sea Turtle Nesting

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Students practice finding the central idea and summary of a nonfiction piece about sea turtle nesting.
Unit Plan
Sophia Learning

Sophia: Comparing and Contrasting Texts

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Two PowerPoint presentations and a video [2:57] on comparing and contrasting literary and informational texts as well as how to write a literary analysis. Includes links to external resources.
Graphic
ReadWriteThink

Read Write Think: Compare and Contrast Map

For Teachers 9th - 10th Standards
Use this graphic organizer to compare or contrast ideas, things, or texts. This is a great cross-curricular tool to use for both reading strategies and prewriting.
Activity
BBC

Bbc Bitesize Revision: Some Purposes of Reading

For Students 3rd - 8th Standards
As part of a review and close reading section of BBC Bitesize, this site presents an overview of various purposes of reading, including a five-bullet point explanation of reading purposes. Click the Next button for more information.
Unit Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

Neh: Edsit Ement: Go West: Imagining the Oregon Trail

For Teachers 9th - 10th
A 2,000-mile trek across a continent-with no idea what awaits you on the other side. Tell your students to put on their traveling shoes and prepare for the journey of their lives! In this lesson, students compare imagined travel...