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Think like a historian

Primary vs. Secondary Sources

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Primary Sources vs. Secondary Sources

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Primary Sources

Original pieces of work produced by people who witnessed historical events. Even though all documents are from firsthand experiences, they reflect the point of view of the witness.

Examples:

  • Text - letters, diary entries, maps, recipes, original documents, reports, cartoons, posters
  • Images - photographs, videos, film, artwork, performances
  • Audio - speeches, interviews, oral histories

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Primary Source Examples

Written Documents

Photographs

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Primary Source Examples

Maps

Cartoons

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Primary Source Examples

Sound Recordings

Neil Armstrong after he landed on the moon

July 20, 1969

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Secondary Sources

Interpret, critique, or analyze primary sources. Creators of secondary sources look at primary sources, develop meaning from them, and create their own analysis of the primary source.

Examples:

  • Non-fiction books & biographies
  • Newspapers & magazines
  • Comments on blogs and articles
  • Textbooks

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Secondary Sources

Newspapers

Magazines

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Secondary Sources

Non-Fiction Books

Biographies

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Media Center Tasks

Task 1

Sort documents in the folder into 2 piles - primary vs secondary - Get your answers checked before you move on to task 2

Task 2

Analyze one primary source and one secondary source document from the folder.

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Media Center Tasks

Task 3

Sourcing: Think about a document's author and its creation.

Answer the following questions about DOCUMENT K

  1. Who created this document?
  2. For what purpose?
  3. How trustworth might his source be?