How To Do Research Primary Source Unit

This How To Do Research Unit Guide provides a lesson-to-lesson foundation for teaching:● What primary sources are● Real vs. fake information (evaluating sources)● Document analysis● Different ways to obtain information● How to formulate research questions● How to find answers to research questions● The hows and whys of citations (annotated bibliography)Throughout the research process, students will learn that there will be dead ends, questions that are too broad or too narrow, questions that do not have answers. This is an accurate reflection of what their experiences will continue to be as they move into higher level research projects in their educational careers. Integrated into our explanation of each lesson are specific prompts, the purpose of each lesson, and supporting materials, which are provided as handouts at the end of the unit guide.

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Full Course, Lesson, Lesson Plan, Module, Primary Source, Teaching/Learning Strategy, Unit of Study

Author: The Rockefeller Archive Center

Written Document Analysis Worksheet - Novice.

The following document analysis worksheet was designed and developed by the Education Staff of the National Archives and Records Administration. You may find this worksheet useful as you introduce students to written documents.

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Primary Source, Teaching/Learning Strategy

Written Document Analysis Worksheet - Intermediate

The following document analysis worksheet was designed and developed by the Education Staff of the National Archives and Records Administration. You may find this worksheet useful as you introduce students to written documents.

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Primary Source, Teaching/Learning Strategy

My Robotic Teacher

In this unplugged activity, students are introduced to the concept of algorithms. They will use the Computer Programming video from Brainpop to prompt a discussion around giving directions and the value of iteration. Students will then engage by creating their own algorithm to help get their “robot teacher” from point A to point B.

Material Type: Activity/Lab

Author: NYC Computer Science for All

Hour of Code 2.1: Programming Unplugged: My Robotic Friends Relay

This activity will begin with a short review of "My Robotic Friends," then will quickly move to a race against the clock, as students break into teams and work together to write a program one instruction at a time.

Material Type: Lesson Plan

Arts Integration in Practice: Cross-Curriculum

Find out about examples of arts integration strategies that are adaptable to a wide range of curriculum areas.

Material Type: Case Study

Author: The Kennedy Center

Great Courses and Teachers in STEM

Good resource from the Open Education Consortium.

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lecture Notes

Author: Open Education Consortium

Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

LOC has compiled a consortium of primary sources to work in the classroom. Ready-to-use lesson plans, student activities, collection guides and research aids to spread awareness and highlight the Asian Pacific American experience.

Material Type: Lesson Plan, Primary Source, Reading, Syllabus

Authors: Library of Congress, National Archives, National Endowment for Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center, Smithsonian Institution

Lesson Plan: How Derek Chauvin trial highlights trauma of police brutality

Derek Chauvin has been charged in the murder of George Floyd and the prosecution and defense are using two very different tactics to highlight their cases. This lesson plan has students analyze the facts of the Derek Chauvin trial as well as any potential stereotypes used in the case and the racial undertones thereof.

Material Type: Lesson Plan

Authors: PBS Newshour, Ricky House

Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade

The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database has information on almost 36,000 slaving voyages that forcibly embarked over 10 million Africans for transport to the Americas between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries. The actual number is estimated to have been as high as 12.5 million. The database and the separate estimates interface offer researchers, students and the general public a chance to rediscover the reality of one of the largest forced movements of peoples in world history. This resource includes a database of Trans-Atlantic slaving voyages searchable by a wide range of variables in additional to essays, maps, and numerical estimates of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, and K-12 lesson plans.

Material Type: Data Set, Diagram/Illustration, Lesson Plan, Primary Source, Reading

Authors: Allen Tullos, David Eltis

Life Story: Sarah "Madam C.J." Breedlove Walker

Life Story: Sarah “Madam C.J.” Breedlove Walker (1867-1919): Entrepreneurship, Philanthropy, and Black Beauty Culture The story of America’s first self-made black female millionaire and how she built a beauty empire that celebrated and empowered black women.

Material Type: Primary Source, Reading

Author: New-York Historical Society

Women & the American Story

Women & the American Story (WAMS) is a free curriculum website from the New-York Historical Society. WAMS connects educators with classroom resources that illuminate diverse women’s contributions to the American past. Explore units on Early Encounters, Settler Colonialism and the Revolution, Building a New Nation, Expansions and Inequalities, A Nation Divided, Industry and Empire, Modernizing America, Confidence and Crises, Growth and Turmoil, The Information Age, and more.

Material Type: Lesson Plan, Primary Source

The National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation's historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service's National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America's historic and archeological resources.

Material Type: Reading