Warm-up: Think-Pair-Share
On your graphic organizer: Work with a partner
sitting next to you to come up with answers to the
following questions:
In your own words, WHAT is the definition of
history? (Answer on front)
WHY do we study history? (Answer on back)
WHO do we/should we study in history?
(Answer on back)
Is history unchanging? Once something is
written, does it or can it change? (Answer on
back)
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
What is history?
Why do we study it?
History… What/Why?
EQ: What is history, and why do we study it?
What is History?
A chronological record of significant events (as
affecting a nation or institution) often including
an explanation of their causes
A study of the events of the past, how and why
they happened, as well as what happened as a
result
A branch of knowledge that records and
explains past events
Which definition is your favorite?
Which one do you think is the most accurate?
Wait… isn’t this Social Studies?
A definition of social studies per merriam-webster.com:
“…a part of a school or college curriculum concerned with the study of
social relationships and the functioning of society and usually made
up of courses in history, government, economics, civics, sociology,
geography, and anthropology”
In other words, a study of society! However, in Social Studies,
History is the big brother to all the other sciences (Political Science,
Econ., etc.).
So, we will have a blend of these sciences but for the purpose of
studying let’s frame it under how we study History
WHY study history?
Why do you think we should study history?
Seriously…. Why care at all???
How do a bunch of dead, old people help us
in our lives?
WHY study history?
Why do you think we should study history?
“Those who are ignorant of the mistakes of
the past are doomed to repeat them.”
Why not also study the SUCCESSES of the
past and learn from them?
Do we need to know where we are from to
help us figure out where we are going?
And, it’s FUN!
Think-Pair-Share
The Historical Record
With the same partner you had
earlier, work together to answer this
Essential Question (on the left side of
your notebook):
How do we know what we know about
history/the past when we were not there?
How do we understand history?
Historians/Political Scientists, Social Scientists, etc.
use the Scientific Method to address various
questions….
Why was there an American Revolution?
Was it actually a “revolution”?
What caused the Great Depression?
Are Americans better off now than they were 30 years
ago?
Scientific Process for historians
If tested and proven multiple times,
Ask a question becomes an established theory
Either validated by peers or
Do background research
disproven
Form hypothesis Publish results for other
scientists to review
Test hypothesis (intensive research
that examines all data or conducts Confirm results and form
experiment) conclusion
Look familiar?
Engineering design process
Okay, so how does a Historian do
research and find “the truth?”
There are many pieces of evidence
used to help Historians…
How do we know what we know about history when we were not
there?
Written record – Letters, diaries, newspapers,
books…
Oral record – Stories, music, speeches…
Visual record – Photographs, artwork, TV…
Artifacts – Things left behind (buildings, clothing,
pottery…)
The written record
The Written Record
When studying history, we use PRIMARY
SOURCES and SECONDARY
SOURCES.
So… what are they? What do you think they
are?
What is a source?
Why do we use sources?
Primary sources
A primary source is a document or
physical object which was written or
created during the time under study.
These sources were present during an
experience or time period and offer an
inside view of a particular event.
Information from http://www.princeton.edu/~refdesk/primary2.html
Types of primary sources
Some types of primary sources include:
ORIGINAL DOCUMENTS (excerpts or
translations acceptable): Diaries, speeches,
manuscripts, letters, interviews, news film
footage, autobiographies, official records
CREATIVE WORKS: Poetry, drama, novels,
music, art
RELICS OR ARTIFACTS: Pottery, furniture,
clothing, buildings
Examples of primary sources
Diary of Anne Frank - Experiences of a Jewish
family during WWII
The Constitution of Canada - Canadian History
A journal article reporting NEW research or
findings
Weavings and pottery - Native American
history
Plato's Republic - Women in Ancient Greece
Can you think of any other primary sources?
Primary sources
Secondary sources
A secondary source interprets and analyzes
primary sources. These sources are one or
more steps removed from the event.
Secondary sources may have pictures,
quotes or graphics of primary sources in
them. Some types of secondary sources
include:
PUBLICATIONS: Textbooks, magazine articles,
histories, criticisms, commentaries, encyclopedias
Information from http://www.princeton.edu/~refdesk/primary2.html
Examples of secondary sources
A journal/magazine article which interprets
or reviews previous findings
A history textbook
A book about the effects of WWI
Can you think of any
other secondary
sources?
For sources, always ask yourself
What is the source?
When and where was it produced?
Who created it?
For whom was it created?
What was the creator’s intent?
Primary vs. secondary sources
In groups of 3-4, discuss this
question and come to an
agreement on the question.
VS.
Develop an argument
supporting your response,
and be prepared to share your
answer with the class.
Is one type of source
more valuable than the
other? Why/why not?
The oral record
Oral record
The American Indians did not have a
written record until the 1800s. How do we
know about their lives and history before
then? How did THEY know?
Are oral histories reliable? Why or why
not?
Oral history today
Oral history very popular today, and many people
are working to record people’s stories to preserve
them for future generations.
Ellis Island Oral History -
http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/immigr
ation/tour/stop2.htm
StoryCorps – A project from NPR designed to
capture the stories of everyday Americans (not
just politicians and other famous figures).
http://storycorps.org/listen/
The visual record
Visual sources
How can the visual
record be helpful to us
when we try to
understand the past? Six officers of the 17th New York Battery –
Gettyrsburg, PA June 1863
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/cwphtml/tl1863.html
What types of visual
sources can we use?
Photographs
Artwork
Video
Visual Record
Visual Record
Visual record
The Artifact Record
Artifact record
What is an artifact? Put it in your own
words.
For each of the following pictures, tell what
you can conclude about the time in the past
that is shown.
Artifact
Record
Artifact
Record
Artifact
Record
Think/write a list of 5 things you did yesterday
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
5 things you did yesterday
Did you leave a record of any of these?
Written, oral, visual, and/or artifact
How would future HISTORIANS know
what you did?
3, 2, 1
What do you think are the 3 most important
things to use in studying the past?
What are 2 warnings you need to give
someone who is trying to “figure out” the
past?
Answer this 1 important question: How do
we know what we know about the past when
we were not there?
Discuss the validity of
this statement:
History is what we choose to remember
about the past.
What about these questions…
What is bias? Does it exist in history?
Can we be sure that we actually KNOW what
happened in the past?
How can we make sure that we are studying
history as it actually happened, and not just how
someone chose to write it?
What types of perspectives might we encounter in this class this
year?
Where we are from, our parents’ background
(politics: Conservative/Liberal), race,
profession, information source bias, our
hobbies, our other interests, prejudices, and of
course ignorance of various ideas, peoples, etc.
Bias isn’t necessarily bad, but we must
recognize bias as something that can distort our
perception and keep us from seeing the whole
range of views and pieces of evidence
Bias and Point of View (POV)
What’s the difference?
Bias – generally has a negative context, prejudice
QUESTION: Which one is a
football?
Point of View/Perspective
Generally has a neutral context
The way one considers an issue; mental attitude or opinion
Perspective can be built by examining:
Geography, Economics, Culture, Government, and Technology
There are different types
of history
What kinds of history can you think of?
World
US
NC
WS
Hanes
Family
Social
Military
AND MANY MORE!
Importance of historical events
So, at some point you/historians have to
JUDGE an event’s RELATIVE
IMPORTANCE.
Let’s break it down.
What does relative mean?
What does importance mean?
EX: 2 armed nuclear bombs were accidentally dropped on
Goldsboro, NC in 1961. Only 1 of 6 safety switches stopped the
bomb from exploding.
Would this be more important to someone from Winston-Salem
or New Orleans, Louisiana? WHY?
EX: Learning about strategic flanking battle maneuvers in
World war II.
Who needs to know this more: an 8th grade student or a
Lieutenant in the Army? Why?
What if we think of the events of this year so far?
What are some events that you think
occurred are historically significant and have
RELATIVE IMPORTANCE?
What about a non-important event?
Often, the importance of an event is not
immediately known.
Point of View
A group of five people go for a walk: an
artist, an engineer, a biologist, an athlete,
and a real estate developer. They are out in
the woods when they come upon a crystal-
clear, flowing river. How do you think each
of these people would view the river?
How does the previous scenario relate to our
study of history and historians?
VOCABULARY REVIEW
HISTORY / HISTORIANS
ARTIFACT
WRITTEN RECORD
PRIMARY SOURCE
SECONDARY SOURCE
ORAL RECORD
VISUAL RECORD
RELATIVE IMPORTANCE
BIAS
Your FIRST HW
The BIAS Assignment
Assignment will be posted in our Google Classroom
Don’t forget to write your NAME, the DATE, and the
CLASS PERIOD!
“If you don’t know history then you
don’t know anything. You are a leaf
that doesn’t know it is part of a
tree.”
-Michael Crichton
