Using Primary Source Documents
Primary source documents are not the dates and facts limited to historical blurbs found in a student's text book. Instead, they are the "original documents and objects which were created at the time under study" (http://www.loc.gov/teachers/usingprimarysources/). Students can use these primary source documents to analyze history through the lens of people who witnessed events firsthand. Have students include a minimum of five primary resource documents into their research paper. Your class should spend a few days in the library collecting these documents, but should also be responsible for finding documents on their own, if necessary.
The Library of Congress is a excellent data base for which students may find relevant documents and pictures. This research is not only for the research paper, but students may use excerpts from these articles during their oral history interview with the participant. For instance, if a participant is having trouble recalling specific details, your student may ask the participant to react to an excerpt or picture by giving their opinion on that first hand account.
Take a look at this example of a primary resource document taken from an interview with C.C. Furnas, a chemical engineer who observed the progress of the U.S. satellite programs at all levels and his. In the article, written in Time magazine in 1957, C.C. Furnas describes his reasons why the United States had failed to launch a satellite into space before the Soviet Union. Place your cursor over this link and CLICK.
http://books.google.com/books?id=QFYEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA19&dq=%22the+feat+that+shook+the+earth%22+and+time+1957&hl=en&ei=n8O9TbOLDsaRgQf5ianHBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCoQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22the%20feat%20that%20shook%20the%20earth%22%20and%20time%201957&f=false
As you read the article with the class, follow the tips provided by the Library of Congress on how to teach students on how to critically analyze and synthesize the information they collect. CLICK the Library of Congress logo above to read the mini-lesson.
The Library of Congress is a excellent data base for which students may find relevant documents and pictures. This research is not only for the research paper, but students may use excerpts from these articles during their oral history interview with the participant. For instance, if a participant is having trouble recalling specific details, your student may ask the participant to react to an excerpt or picture by giving their opinion on that first hand account.
Take a look at this example of a primary resource document taken from an interview with C.C. Furnas, a chemical engineer who observed the progress of the U.S. satellite programs at all levels and his. In the article, written in Time magazine in 1957, C.C. Furnas describes his reasons why the United States had failed to launch a satellite into space before the Soviet Union. Place your cursor over this link and CLICK.
http://books.google.com/books?id=QFYEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA19&dq=%22the+feat+that+shook+the+earth%22+and+time+1957&hl=en&ei=n8O9TbOLDsaRgQf5ianHBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCoQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22the%20feat%20that%20shook%20the%20earth%22%20and%20time%201957&f=false
As you read the article with the class, follow the tips provided by the Library of Congress on how to teach students on how to critically analyze and synthesize the information they collect. CLICK the Library of Congress logo above to read the mini-lesson.