Using the Familiar to Introduce Students
to the Study of Primary and Secondary Sources
Instructional Support for the Student Activity
I Left a Trace!
The activity I Left a Trace
is designed to serve as an early stage instructional intervention
when teaching students to investigate primary and secondary
source materials. The intent of the activity is to ease students'
transition by using the familiar. Students first explore their
own contribution to the historical record. They then explore
a public event and how we learn about the past through a study
of such events. Throughout the process, students also become
used to recording, mapping, and analyzing information.
In Parts A and B...
Students record and analyze their own activities over a 24-hour
period. The focus is on familiarizing students with the extent
of the historical record, while simultaneously exploring its
limitations. Students learn about both accidental and purposeful
evidence—sources—and about the effect of lost or intentionally
destroyed sources and the subsequent gaps in the historical
record that result. The questions in Part B additionally provide
a basis for discussing the small part a student's own "record"
plays in the larger cumulative picture or context. They realize
that what they personally record is even only a small part of
their own record (which includes school and home records, medical
records, and even references and comments on their activities
that have been written or otherwise preserved by other people),
and begin to realize the importance of public documents and
records on what we can glean from studies of the past.
You
may choose to have students work alone or in groups. It is,
however, important that the questions—and students' responses—become
part of a classroom discussion, either after or during their
completion. Also consider the additional instructional tips.
In Part C...
Students work in groups (or individually if you prefer) to explore
a public event. Using the graphic organizer provided, they record
pieces of evidence that in some way could serve to document
the details and context of the event—in writing or otherwise—such
that future historians might be able to study what transpired.
You may wish to select one event for the entire class, or have
each group select their own event to study. You may even wish
to have groups present their "event analysis" to their
classmates upon completion. For each source or trace evidence
listed, ask students to use their map to describe the following.
- Who recorded it?
-
How was it recorded? (This refers to the circumstances,
accidental or purposeful, that resulted in the evidence being
recorded.)
-
Why was it recorded? (This presents an excellent opportunity
to discuss purpose and even to begin to introduce the concept
of bias—see the Bias Rule in Teaching
with Source Documents.) -- Access at: http://www.designedinstruction.com/learningleads/teaching-historical-source.html
 |
For
more on teaching and learning using historical source
documents and artifacts, see CASE:
Context Analysis Source Explorations.
CASE
represents a cohesive instructional approach that is adaptable
to any classroom or home teaching environment. The CASE
overview page contains a regularly updated variety of
CASE instructional units (including the free sample lesson
on child labor—"A Long Time Ago"), as well
as links to each pertinent instructional resource used
in units. Visit regularly for new additions and options.
|
