Helping Students Analyze Primary Sources

Do your students struggle with analyzing primary sources? 

Here are some things you can do to help.

 

Begin by spending a few days on primary and secondary sources. This set includes doodle notes and station activities for both primary and secondary sources. I'd break this lesson into 3 days.

Day 1: Secondary Sources Doodle Notes
Day 2: Primary Sources Doodle Notes
Day 3: 5 Learning Stations to reinforce student knowledge of primary and secondary sources

 

Next, remind students that many of the primary resources that they'll encounter were written or created by ordinary people living ordinary lives. Then, let them create a primary source document about their own life. Intrigued? I've created a free lesson that you can use!

Then, during each unit, introduce your students to at least one primary source. It can be a letter, a speech, a photograph, a political cartoon, a piece of artwork, or even a song. Have students read it, listen to it, observe it, and think about how the primary source connects to the period of time they are learning about. 

 

Wish there was something you could use instead of creating primary sources analysis handouts yourself?

I've created engaging doodle pages for a variety of primary source types that make analyzing primary sources a lot easier for students!