Guided Primary Source Analysis: The Banks of the Yellow Sea

Guided Primary Source Analysis: The Banks of the Yellow Sea

This Emily Dickinson poem was set to music by composer Ernst Bacon. Take a closer look at this sheet music and read the lyrics. What feeling does this poem give you? What specific word choices influence how you feel? What kind of music do you think would go with these words (happy, upbeat, sad, mournful, lively, slow,…

Guided Primary Source Analysis: Gauchos, Argentina

Guided Primary Source Analysis: Gauchos, Argentina

Be a primary source investigator. Zoom into this photograph. Look carefully at the details in the image. What did you learn about gauchos from your photo investigation? Read this entry on Gauchos from Encyclopædia Britannica or watch this National Geographic video about gauchos or both.What more did you learn about gauchos? How does that information compare with your primary source investigation? Tell…

Guided Primary Source Analysis: Little Rory Borealis

Guided Primary Source Analysis: Little Rory Borealis

Look carefully at this map of the Arctic (online or .pdf document). Which countries could Rory live in if he lived above the Arctic Circle? Which of the animals in the picture would you NOT see in the Arctic Circle? Rory’s mother named him after the Aurora Borealis, also called the Northern Lights, which you…

Guided Primary Source Analysis: Grandma’s Toilet

Guided Primary Source Analysis: Grandma’s Toilet

The title of this print is “Grandma’s Toilet”. Zoom into this artwork and use details from the image to figure out what toilet meant in this time (1893) and context. After, look up different definitions of toilet. What can you infer, or figure out, about the relationship between the young girl and the older woman? Use…

Guided Primary Source Analysis: Woman and Child

Guided Primary Source Analysis: Woman and Child

Describe how this illustration makes you feel. What details in the drawing contribute to this feeling? Write a description of this scene or write a poem to accompany the illustration. Now read the poem that this drawing illustrated. Describe how this poem compares with what you wrote. What other observations, reflections or questions does this source…

Guided Primary Source Analysis: Origin of April Fool’s Day

Guided Primary Source Analysis: Origin of April Fool’s Day

For elementary & middle school students Read this newspaper article, then make a list of the countries mentioned that celebrate April Fool’s Day and information about how they celebrate the day. Explain which story you found funniest or most interesting. Create an April Fool’s Day poem using information from the article and your own experiences. For elementary & middle school students Read this newspaper article, then…

Guided Primary Source Analysis: Round the World with Nellie Bly

Guided Primary Source Analysis: Round the World with Nellie Bly

Zoom into a more detailed image of this source. Explain what you can determine about Nellie Bly just by looking at this source (be sure to point out the details that support your findings). Read the following articles to learn more about Nellie Bly, Jules Verne and Elizabeth Bisland. Describe what you learned. Nellie Bly from America’s Library “Bly…

Guided Primary Source Analysis: Theory. Practice. Effect.

Guided Primary Source Analysis: Theory. Practice. Effect.

Use only details from the illustrations and text to determine what the author of this print wanted the audience to know (view larger image) about these people and their relation to an important historical event. Use evidence from the source to support your conclusions. Now review the bibliographic record from a copy of this source and read…