Do Now: What are some methods historians can use to reconstruct the past? (Think about materials that they could study) HW: Read pages 6-11 Download, print, read Hopi and Judeo-Christian Creation story, fill in Venn Diagram noting how they are different

Who are historians? Your book’s definition: Historians study the past by examining historical records. Historians can be anyone who analyzes past events in a professional manner.

Historian Skill #1: Differentiating between primary and secondary sources

Primary= pieces of evidence written, created, or otherwise produced during the time under study. Examples: Autobiographies, diaries, e-mail, interviews, letters, film footage, official records, photographs, speeches, works of art, architecture, original works of literature

Secondary sources provide interpretation and analysis of primary sources; they are one step removed from the original event and include the informed opinions of historians. Examples: encyclopedias, literary criticism, scholarly journals, newspaper articles, TEXTBOOKS

Historian Skill #2: Distinguishing between fact, fiction, & opinion Primary sources are great b/c they are directly from that time period, but…. Personal bias/Point of view can be a big problem with primary sources! Secondary sources also contain the opinions of historians that are often disputable: they reflect bias/point of view as well.

Historian Skill #3: Historians establish chronology--the order in which events occurred. Knowing the correct order of events is ESSENTIAL for understanding CAUSE AND EFFECT! For example, one can not understand a process like evolution unless one understands the order in which certain species appeared on earth. Once the chronology is established, one can consider WHY certain events followed others.

Summary Question What skills must historians have in order to accurately reconstruct the past?