1. Primary vs. Secondary Sources

2. History --- remember
Events or people from the past that have some significance.
History is a story about the past.
Historians construct the story by using evidence from the past.

3. Historian = detective What do historians use to learn about the past?
Where do they find evidence to make decisions on what is historically significant?

4. Traces of information
Write down everything you have done in the last 24 hours

5. Traces of information Trace = a scrap left over from the past
Can be anything from a menu to a telegram or an e- mail
Look at your list
Make a list of any traces you might have left of your life in the past 24 hours (including digital traces)
Circle the traces that were left on purpose

6. Traces of information
Which of your traces do you think would likely be preserved (survive for a long time)?
What would a historian think about you if they found some of your traces?

7. Using Traces Historians use traces to create accounts of history
Traces = evidence (when evaluated)
Account = a narrative or a story

8. Primary vs. Secondary Sources
What is the difference?
Discuss with a partner.

9. Primary Sources
Primary Sources: are sources of information that are created at the time of the event.
Examples: Journals, newspapers, photos, interviews, etc.

10. Secondary Sources
Secondary Sources: are accounts created after the event, often describing or analysing it.
Examples: textbooks, books, encyclopedias

11. Understanding primary sources
Historians must interpret the traces they find
From their interpretations they must make inferences and draw conclusions

12. Making inferences
Inference = forming a conclusion based on what is already known
When you reach a conclusion based on what you see, hear or know you are making an inference.

13. Volunteers?
Based on our volunteers’ actions try and decide what they are doing, thinking or feeling.

14. Observation vs. Inference
Observation = what you see, hear, know
Inference = the conclusion you make based on what you see, here, know

15. Practice Task # 1 Arrange the cards into two columns Observations
Inferences

16. Practice Task # 2 Inferences must be plausible
Arrange the cards into two columns
Plausible inferences (possible)
Implausible inferences (impossible)

17. Let’s try it –primary source analysis
Individually using your photo analysis handout examine the three photos in your textbook.
Record your observations and your inferences
Observations: what you see
Inferences: what you think, based on your observations