Analyzing Primary Sources: Tools & Guides

Primary sources, as described by the Library of Congress, “are the raw materials of history — original documents and objects that were created at the time under study. They are different from secondary sources, accounts that retell, analyze, or interpret events, usually at a distance of time or place. Bringing young people into close contact with these unique, often profoundly personal documents and objects can give them a sense of what it was like to be alive during a long-past era. Helping students analyze primary sources can also prompt curiosity and improve critical thinking and analysis skills.”

Below we have gathered a number of short articles, blog posts and videos with advice and strategies, as well as tools and guides, for analyzing primary sources from the Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources program; resources come from the Library unless noted otherwise.

Analyzing Primary Sources

• Getting Started with Primary Sources
• Analyzing a Primary Source (2:06 minutes)
• Analyzing Primary Sources from the Library of Congress presentation
• Foundations Webinar: Analyzing Primary Sources from the Library of Congress | session materials
• Top Ten Tips for Facilitating an Effective Primary Source Analysis
• Activating Prior Knowledge: Combating Crickets
• Looking Harder: Inspiring Close Observation
• Practicing Close Observation: Spying on the Past
• Purposeful Questions & Close Observation Primary Source Nexus
• Observation in Primary Source Analysis: The Sticky Notes Solution
• Foundations Webinar: Analyzing Multiple Perspectives | session materials

Primary Source Analysis Tools 

• Primary Source Analysis Tool (fillable .pdf)
• Elementary Age Primary Source Analysis Sheet, TPS Western Region
• Elementary Image & Text Analysis Sheets Kimberly Heckart
• Event Happenings Worksheet Primary Source Nexus
• RISE analysis tool & RISE analysis guide Barat Education Foundation & DePaul University

Using the Primary Source Analysis Tool

• The Library’s Primary Source Analysis Tool: Helping K-12 Students Start Analyzing Primary Sources
• Primary Source Analysis Tool: Using the “Reflect” Column to Develop Critical Thinking
• Primary Source Analysis Tool: Forming Meaningful Questions
• Primary Source Analysis Tool: What’s Next? Further Investigation
• How to Use the Observe, Reflect, & Question Analysis Tool SIUE TPS

Primary Source Analysis Guides

• Analyzing Primary Sources Teacher’s Guide
• 25 Questions to Ask Your Primary Source, TPS Middle Tennessee State University
• Analysis Guides for Different Types of Sources
  books and other texts, manuscripts, maps, motion pictures, newspapers, oral histories, photographs & prints, political cartoons, sheet music & song sheets, sound recordings
• Analysis Prompts for Different Source Types Primary Source Nexus
  audio recordings, images, maps, music–song recordings & sheet music–newspapers, oral histories, political cartoons, texts, video recordings
• Thinking Like. . . Organizer — Practicing the Inquiry Process TPS Connect Metropolitan State University of Denver
• Elementary-Level Analysis Guides TPS Rockford University

Analyzing Books & Other Texts

• Analyzing Books and Other Printed Texts Teacher’s Guide
• Analyzing Manuscripts Teacher’s Guide
• Analyzing Primary Sources: Learning from Texts Primary Source Nexus
• Informational Text, the Common Core, and the Library of Congress
• Informational Text for Meeting Your Standards
• Informational Text: Multiple Points of View in Multiple Formats
• Making Text-Based Primary Sources More Accessible TPS Quarterly Vol. 2, No. 4, Fall 2009
• Information Literacy: How Does the News Change Over Time?

Analyzing Historical Newspapers

• Analyzing Newspapers Teacher’s Guide
• Analyzing Primary Sources: Learning from Newspapers Primary Source Nexus
• Interpreting Historical Newspapers 2:25 Minnesota Historical Society
• Teaching with Historical Newspapers National Endowment for the Humanities (30:42 minutes)
• Teaching with Historical Newspapers Library of Congress & Tom Bober, 2015-16 teacher in residence (49:20 minutes)

Analyzing Images

• Analyzing Photographs and Prints Teacher’s Guide
• Analyzing Primary Sources: Learning from Images Primary Source Nexus
• Bloom’s Taxonomy Image Writing Prompts Primary Source Nexus
• Analyzing Primary Source Images Primary Source Nexus
• Visual Primary Source Analysis Tool Emerging America
• Blog posts
  • Helping Students find the Story Behind the Picture
  • Information Literacy: How Do a Photographer’s Intention and Context Shape the Photograph?
  • Point of View in Photographs – All in the Details
  • Point of View in Photographs – All in the Details, Part 2
  • Taking a Closer Look at Prints and Photographs
  • Reading Portraits: Analyzing Art as a Primary Source
  • Teaching with Architectural Drawings and Photographs
  • Supporting Writing with Images
• Videos
  • Foundations Webinar: Analyzing Complex Images | session materials
  • Analyzing Images 5:34 Minnesota Historical Society
  • Look Back. See Further. Analyzing Photographs from the Library of Congress Collections University of the Arts webinar, analyzing a portrait, a street scene and a recreational image (29:18 minutes)
  • Working with Visuals Library of Congress webinar featuring Tom Bober, 2015-16 teacher in residence (42:25 minutes)

Analyzing Maps

• Analyzing Maps Teacher’s Guide
• Analyzing Primary Sources: Learning from Maps Primary Source Nexus
• Getting Started with Maps in the Classroom
• Engaging Students with Primary Source Maps
• Analyzing Maps, Minnesota Historical Society (12:07 minutes)
• Exploring Maps with Open Eyes TPS Rockford University (3:23 minutes)
• Maps: More Than Just a Tool for Navigation
• Making Interdisciplinary Connections with Maps
• The Mind of the Mapmaker: Purpose and Point of View in Maps
• Using Literary Maps in the Classroom
• Verba Incognita: A Guide to Deciphering Latin on Maps

Analyzing Motion Pictures/Video

• Analyzing Motion Pictures Teacher’s Guide
• Analyzing Primary Sources: Learning from Video Recordings Primary Source Nexus
• Multimedia Moment: Analyzing Film in the Classroom
• Multimedia Moment: Documenting WWI Film Analysis Using Video Editing Software

Analyzing Music & Sound

• Analyzing Sheet Music and Song Sheets Teacher’s Guide
• Analyzing Primary Sources: Learning from Music Primary Source Nexus
• Analyzing Sound Recordings Teacher’s Guide
• Analyzing Primary Sources: Learning from Audio Recordings Primary Source Nexus
• Analyzing Sound Recordings (16:01 minutes) Minnesota Historical Society

Analyzing Oral Histories

• Analyzing Oral Histories Teacher’s Guide
• Analyzing Primary Sources: Learning from Oral Histories Primary Source Nexus

Analyzing Political Cartoons

• Analyzing Political Cartoons Teacher’s Guide
• Analyzing Primary Sources: Learning from Political Cartoons Primary Source Nexus
• Reading Cartoons Primary Source Nexus

Facilitating Primary Source Research

• Developing Information Literacy Skills Primary Source Nexus
• Inspiring Research Questions with Library of Congress Primary Sources
• Primary Sources and Research Part II: Sourcing and Contextualizing to Strengthen Analysis
• Primary Sources and Research Part III: Evaluating Sources and Using Evidence
• Selecting Questions to Increase Student Engagement
• Supporting Student Research Skills
• Research Learning Modules Maryland Public Television