Primary and Secondary Sources


ELAR-Grade-4 Inquiry & Research Primary and Secondary Sources
Students learn to differentiate between primary and secondary sources. Next they evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of each type of source. Then they conduct a search to identify primary and secondary sources for a given topic. Finally they use the sources they found to write a short informative piece.

This learning experience is designed for device-enabled classrooms. The teacher guides the lesson, and students use embedded resources, social media skills, and critical thinking skills to actively participate. To get access to a free version of the complete lesson, sign up for an exploros account.

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Teacher Pack

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Here are the teacher pack items for Primary and Secondary Sources:

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Overview

In this experience, students learn to differentiate between primary and secondary sources. Next they evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of each type of source. Then they conduct a search to identify primary and secondary sources for a given topic. Finally they use the sources they found to write a short informative piece.

Students will collaborate in small groups for scene 3 and scene 4.

Objective

  • Distinguish between primary and secondary sources.

Duration

One class period.


When historians do research, they look at many different sources to learn about an event or time period. Some of the sources come from that time period and others were written later about the time period. In this experience, you will learn about these different types of sources.

Objective

  • Distinguish between primary and secondary sources.


Cartoon of girl reading book and question mark above her head

Ask two or three students to volunteer to answer a question in front of the class. Ask each volunteer to answer a question such as “What did you have for dinner last night?” or “Tell me about any pets you have.” Make sure each response includes at least two details.

Ask the remaining students to report on what they heard from each speaker with as much detail as possible.


Listen while your teacher asks some questions.


Choose one of the answers provided by your classmates. Rewrite their answer to the question in your own words. Be sure to include as many details as you can remember from their answers.

Post your answer

Lead a discussion about the responses. Point out that the students became “reporters” of the “news” they heard from their classmates. The classmates were speaking about their own lives, so their information is considered trustworthy. But someone who is even one person removed from the information brings their own attitudes, beliefs and perhaps even misunderstandings of the information to bear.


How do you know that information you hear or read is accurate? This experience will give you some insights.


When everyone is ready to continue, unlock the next scene.

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The Complete List of Learning Experiences in Inquiry & Research Unit.
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