UNIT #1: BEING A HISTORIAN Using Primary and Secondary Sources Part 1: Locating, Differentiating, and Interpreting Sources By: Mr. Mathis – Johnston Middle School

ACADEMIC VOCABULARY  Primary Source  Secondary Source  Artifact  Historical Records  Validity  ESPN Factors: Economic, Social, Political, eNvironmental

STUDENT-FRIENDLY OBJECTIVES  I can use computer software, databases, media and news services, biographies, interviews, and artifacts to locate information about Texas history.  I can distinguish between and interpret primary sources and secondary sources to learn about Texas history.  I can use the ESPN categorization to learn about events in Texas history.

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS  How is the examination of historical record/evidence enhanced by the analysis of both primary and secondary sources?  What is the difference between primary and secondary sources?  How can the historical record be both huge and limited?

 Primary sources are parts of the historical record from people who are participants in, observe and record or leave evidence/artifacts about those events or times. PRIMARY SOURCES 1900 Galveston Storm

EXAMPLES OF PRIMARY SOURCES  Primary sources can be public documents [laws, legal, official text, books]; private documents [diaries, letters, cookbooks…] images/audio, objects, personal items…  Often, primary sources include people’s impressions or opinions.  Primary sources may contain the word I.  Historians access and interpret the content, reliability and validity of primary sources to separate facts from the opinions and get an accurate picture of events.

 Secondary sources have already synthesized and interpreted multiple sources and contain descriptions and interpretations of events. SECONDARY SOURCES

EXAMPLES OF SECONDARY SOURCES  Secondary sources are often Textbooks, magazines articles, encyclopedias or anything that describes past/current events; Created by people who rely on someone else’s descriptions of what actually happened. We use secondary sources because they are convenient.  These sources represent the historian or authors INTERPRETATION of primary source material. In a primary sources the reader (historian) interprets the source him/herself.

 An artifact is a man-made object that has some kind of cultural significance.  A simple object (such as a tool or weapon) that was made by people in the past. ARTIFACT

EXAMPLES OF ARTIFACTS

 Historical records are literally any piece of evidence from the past. Most historical evidence is lost. HISTORICAL RECORD  Historical records/evidence do not have to be written.

CSI – A FAMILY DINNER  It was a day like any other, you have been forced to go out to dinner with your family. You had just finished watching episode of CSI Miami…  Someone or something turns up missing… It’s up to you…  What would be some examples of historical record or evidence of your evening with your family?

 Receipt for the dinner  Menu  Trash left on the table  Someone who took a photo of the family  Waitress memory of serving the family  Location of the restaurant  Fingerprints  Patrons LOOKING FOR HISTORICAL RECORD Evidence

 Validity refers to the quality of being logically or factually sound; soundness or cogency.  Example: Is this website a valid secondary source for my research paper? VALIDITY

WHICH WEBSITES TO TRUST .gov sites are usually the most reliable .edu sites are associated with an educational institution and have high reliability .org sites are associated with education and/or non-profit organizations and are generally reliable .com sites are established for commercial purposes – they often represent bias in their choice of documents to include as well as significant advertisements  Personal websites are often the least reliable as sources of information for historical research.

ESPN  Economic factors – relate to money, taxes, industry, agriculture, jobs, availability or resources, way people organize for the production, distribution and so on.  Social Factors – relate to population density, immigration, cultural diversity, lifestyle, and leisure time.  Political Factors – relate to the functions and procedures of government, laws, and elected officials; factors that deal with the topic of power and control  eNvironmental Factors – relate to the setting or physical environment of a place/time/event