Subscribe

8th grade · Social Studies · Unit 8 of 9

Sources & Evidence

Primary and secondary sources, context and conclusions

What your child practices

Children practice choosing and judging sources, reading artifacts and art, comparing accounts and drawing conclusions from evidence.

Alaska content standards learning standard: SS.8.3.2.1; SS.8.8.2.1 · analyzing primary and secondary sources and different interpretations of events

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practice.

  1. A primary source was created by someone who was there at the time; a secondary source was made later.
  2. When accounts disagree, compare them and ask who wrote each one and why.
  3. A clear research plan: choose a topic, write questions, find sources, take notes, then draw conclusions.

Example: Two accounts of the same battle disagree. What should a good historian do? Do not just pick the one you like. Ask who wrote each and why. Compare them with other evidence. Answer: compare them and ask why they differ

Sources & Evidence in Alaska

In the Alaska content standards, this is unit 8 of 9 in 8th grade Social Studies, after The Civil War and before Maps, Graphs & Data.

Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.

Source: Alaska Department of Education and Early Development

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    A secondary source is…

    • an account based on other sources, made later
    • a photo from the time
    • a coin
    • a letter from the time

  2. Question 2

    Considering the context of a source means…

    • ignoring the author
    • reading only the title
    • copying it
    • thinking about when, where and why it was made

  3. Question 3

    Drawing a conclusion means…

    • guessing
    • memorizing dates
    • making a judgement based on evidence
    • copying

  4. Question 4

    Which is a primary source?

    • a modern textbook
    • a documentary
    • an encyclopedia
    • a diary of a medieval monk

  5. Question 5

    Which is the best way to organize notes for research?

    • scribbles
    • one long list of random facts
    • a chart or concept map by topic
    • memory only

  6. Question 6

    Oral history from Elders can be a valuable source because it…

    • has no value
    • records knowledge and experiences passed down in communities
    • is never accurate
    • is a rumor

More 8th grade