 Do Now:
 How was history passed down before writing was invented?
 How is a historian like a detective?

Aim: How do historians reconstruct the past?
Do Now: Compare the device above with what we have today to listen to music.
Take out I.S.I.S. paragraph.

 How has your life changed from the way it
was five years ago? You’re probably playing different games and have long outgrown your old clothes. Your family may have moved to a new home. Your life will continue to change as you grow older. Look around carefully. Ten years from now, everything around you – every object you use, every song you enjoy listening to – will help tell the story of what your life was like today. How will your life change in ten years from now?

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History – the story of the past
Historians – people who study history.

 Oral tradition – passing on history by word of mouth
 This is how history was passed on before writing

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Artifact – an object made by someone in the past.
What is an example of an artifact?

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Primary source – materials that were created during the time under study.
Examples:
Autobiography
Newspapers
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Diary
Artifacts
Letters
Official documents

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Secondary source – records of the past that are based on studies of primary sources.
Examples
Biography
Textbooks
Encyclopedias
How does information given in a primary source differ for that of a secondary source?
Primary sources are more reliable than secondary sources because primary sources come from the time under study.

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Go to St. Mary’s homepage and 6 th Social
Studies
Open “Primary vs. Secondary Sources” under
Resources
Complete the worksheet

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Do Now: How does a person make good decisions?
Think about before you make an important decision, what do you think about to make sure it is a good choice.
Take out homework – Primary vs. Secondary
Sources worksheet

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Decision - to choose from a number of alternatives.
Evaluate – to judge something’s worth.
Historians must study sources and decide how to interpret them.
Why is decision making important for historians when they are researching the past?

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A decision is a choice
1. identify the goal you want to reach
2. identify the different alternatives for reaching your goal
3. evaluate each alternative
4. choose the best alternative

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Historians can have different ideas of the same historical period.
Further back in history the tougher it is to reconstruct the past.

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Goal – find the city of Troy
Use the Iliad as a guide to find where Troy was located.
Studied the geography and landforms to make a decision
Choices
 Corfu
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 South of Turkey
Chooses Turkey to start searching for Troy

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Historians are like detectives.
 Use evidence (sources)
Sometimes the evidence has disappeared over the years.
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 Makes it difficult to reconstruct the past
Historians’ viewpoints shape the way we view history.

 How is decision making and evaluating a part of a historian’s job?

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Name three specific types of primary sources
Name three specific types of secondary sources