Curated OER
Introduction to Primary Sources
Students explore the usage of primary sources, what they are and how they originate. Artifacts are compared and contrasted as part of this historical inquiry as questions are formulated and conclusions drawn.
Curated OER
Communities in Crisis Lesson 1: Primary Source? What is That?
Distinguish between primary and secondary source documents using the theme of philanthropy. Middle schoolers discuss Anne Frank: The Diary of Young Girl as a way to study the past using a primary source. Then they investigate how to...
Smithsonian Institution
Mary Henry: Journal/Diary Writing
A great way to connect social studies with language arts, a resource on Mary Henry's historical diary reinforces the concepts of primary and secondary sources. It comes with an easy-to-understand lesson plan, as well as the reference...
New York State Education Department
Global History and Geography Examination: August 2010
Three major faith traditions have shaped world history: Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism. Using secondary sources from textbooks, as well as primary source documents, such as Aztec legends, pupils explore the interplay of these...
National WWII Museum
Communities at War: Reading Primary Sources Imaginatively
Uncle Sam wants you to support the troops. Learners use an engaging lesson plan to analyze primary and secondary sources to discover what life was really like for American citizens at home during WWII. Pupils complete worksheets, group...
Curated OER
Understanding Primary and Secondary Sources
Students identify legends in Tennessee and U.S. history, and differentiate between primary and secondary sources. They list examples of primary and secondary sources, participate in a field trip to the Country Music Hall of Fame, and...
Curated OER
Primary and Secondary Sources
Students complete worksheets having to do with primary and secondary source documents. In this sources lesson, students define a primary source document, look at examples of primary and secondary sources. Students complete multiple...
Curated OER
Friar Margil and the Spanish Missions
Seventh graders review the differences between primary and secondary sources. They are told that the Father Margil illustration can be used as a primary source. Students define the terms "assimilation" and "diversity." They use...
College Board
Evaluating Sources: How Credible Are They?
How can learners evaluate research sources for authority, accuracy, and credibility? By completing readings, discussions, and graphic organizers, scholars learn how to properly evaluate sources to find credible information. Additionally,...
Canadian War Museum
Comparing Primary and Secondary Sources
This simple two-day lesson introduces learners to the differences between primary and secondary sources. The lesson includes group work that explores the similarities and differences, and the advantages and disadvantages of primary and...
Curated OER
The Real World Revisited
Class members participate in a series of hands on, online, and multimedia activities to identify the difference between primary and secondary sources. They watch a related video and visit a variety of sites to locate primary and...
Curated OER
Transparency Review
Students investigate and distinguish between primary and secondary sources when analyzing works of literature. They present their information on transparencies that are displayed to the class.
New York State Education Department
Global History and Geography Examination: June 2011
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...
Curated OER
White Star Line and the Titanic
Was the Titanic advertised as an unsinkable ship, or was it just what the public believed? For this analysis activity, historians examine both primary and secondary sources to determine the answer to this question and the reliability of...
Briscoe Center for American History
Identifying Primary Source Documents
Who is Mary Maverick and why is she important? the focus of this, the second in a series of five lessons that are designed to introduce middle schoolers to how historians use primary source documents to understand the past, is on how to...
Center for History and New Media
A Look at Virginians During Reconstruction, 1865-1877
The transition between rebellion to reunification was not smooth after the Civil War. Young historians compare primary and secondary source documents in a study of the Reconstruction era in Virginia, noting the rights that were not...
Curated OER
Introduction to Primary and Secondary Sources
Fourth graders are introduced to primary and secondary sources. Using examples of each type of source, they work together to identify which are primary and which are secondary sources. They end the lesson by reviewing the...
Curated OER
Understanding Clues from the Past: School Days
Third graders read primary and secondary sources as the study about schools in the early years of Kansas. In this primary and secondary source lesson plan, 3rd graders examine how historians use primary source documents to tell about the...
Curated OER
Tools of the Historian: Primary vs. Secondary Sources
Students identify the difference between primary and secondary sources. They discuss the importance of evaluating all sources they might use. They read primary and secondary sources that relate to the colonial period.
Curated OER
The Railroads in Texas
Seventh graders differentiate between, locate, and use primary and secondary sources, such as biographies from the Handbook of Texas. They analyze the effects of scientific discoveries and technological innovations, such as the railroad,...
Curated OER
Runaway Ads
Fourth graders distinguish between primary and secondary sources while creating an underground railroad presentation. In this underground railroad lesson, 4th graders research the underground railroad using copies of primary and...
Curated OER
The Crittenden Conway Duel
Young scholars explore primary and secondary sources. In this primary and secondary source activity, students investigate a crime scene. Young scholars search for evidence around the classroom and evaluate their findings. Students write...
mdk12.org
Primary Source Quadrant Cards
Young historians can use this simple graphic organizer to define primary source and list both examples and non-examples of the term. A similar resource can also be constructed for secondary sources!
PBS
Using Primary Sources: The Rogue's Gallery
What would be in your life's scrapbook? Scholars use short video clips, primary and secondary documents, and photos to investigate a 1909 scrapbook. They analyze and uncover what the Rogue Book tells them about the past in Western...