Reading Historical Sources
Aligned to C3.D3 — C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.
What this lesson teaches
Historians use evidence. A primary source comes from the time studied (a letter, photo); a secondary source explains it later (a textbook). Ask who made a source and why.
Worked example
A soldier's diary from a war is a primary source; an article a historian writes about that war using many diaries is a secondary source.
Practice questions
- Label two sources as primary or secondary.
- Why might two eyewitnesses describe the same event differently?
- What questions should you ask about any source?
Watch the lesson
Every lesson comes with a video taught in English and Spanish — the same video the QR code in the printed workbook opens.
▶ Watch this lessonEn español
Lectura de Fuentes Históricas
Los historiadores usan evidencias. Una fuente primaria proviene de la época estudiada (una carta, una fotografía); una fuente secundaria la explica después (un libro de texto). Pregúntate quién creó una fuente y por qué.
Ejemplo: El diario de un soldado durante una guerra es una fuente primaria; un artículo que un historiador escribe sobre esa guerra usando muchos diarios es una fuente secundaria.
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