Cantu Ch. 13

The use of primary sources in a social studies classroom can be a very important and effective tool. There are many different places to find primary sources, however, I find that the LOC is on of the best places to find primary sources that are related to US History. Looking through Cantu Ch. 13, I have found at least one item that I would really like to incorporate into my classroom.

When using the LOC, students have the opportunity to find rich resources throughout US History that can be interesting and are easy to incorporate into a lesson. One of the ways I would use a primary source would be to have students do a group project about an event in US or World History. They can find resources from LOC or other websites to help them create a good presentation as a group. When working on their project, something that I found in this chapter that I would love to incorporate is the primary source analysis tool. This tool will help them break down a source and help them understand it. I think practicing this skill will help them learn to analyze documents effectively.

Big question: In what ways does the skill of analyzing primary sources prepare students for real life tasks when they have a career?

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Link: http://www.loc.gov/index.html