Using only specific details from this primary source, what type of person is an anarchist? Use the Primary Source Nexus search bar to find out more about the Chicago anarchists. Describe three things you learned and two things you would like to learn more about. There is a post on the Primary Source Nexus that features…
Explain what you know about opera. Click the image above to access the digital book. Choose one opera and read the description. Summarize the story for a friend. Listen to one of the songs from the opera you selected. Then fill out a sensory exploration chart as you listen to the recording again. After, describe…
Primary source analysis ideas from the Teaching with the Library of Congress blog Source bibliographic record Poem by Alice Duer Miller (printed at the bottom of the source) Look forward, women, always; utterly cast away The memory of hate and struggle and bitterness; Bonds may endure for a night, but freedom comes with the day, And…
Zoom into this map (online | .pdf) and use the primary source analysis tool (digital | paper) to analyze this source. Read “Damn the Torpedoes!” from the New York Times Disunion series, then take another look at this map. Explain new insights into this map that you gained. Analyze another primary source related to the 1864 Battle of…
Explain what you think this political cartoon is trying to say, using details from the illustration to support your conclusions. Jim Crow is the name often used to refer to segregation laws and customs following the U.S. Civil War. Do you think this cartoon is a good argument for or against African American rights? Why? Jump…
Access a larger image of this political cartoon. Do you think this cartoon supports or opposes abolition? Explain your reasoning, pointing to specific details in the source that support your view. Now review the bibliographic record and closely read the summary. Do you think this cartoon supports or opposes abolition? Explain your reasoning, pointing to specific details in…
Although image analysis activities do not generally require reading (apart from reading bits of text found in an image), the skills required to extract information from visual content are similar to those required to extract information from text. Practicing these skills using primary source images provides students with a great scaffolded learning opportunity. The table below…
What scientific event does this source facetiously mimic? Do you think the analogy works in this context? Why or why not? This source is referenced as a photographic print but is it a single image? How do you know? How do you think the postcard was made? Do some research to find out more about the…
Without knowing any background information, do you think this political cartoon is positive or negative? Why? Now do some research by following the links below and answer the questions. Links Taft vs. Bryan Presidential Election of 1908: select newspaper articles Wilson vs. Roosevelt vs. Taft Presidential Election of 1912: select newspaper articles Questions Who were the final…
Click here to save and download this primary source in .pdf format. Open up the document and use the magnification dropdown to look carefully at the political cartoon; if you are having trouble reading the text, use the transcription provided in the summary above. The illustration shows both northern and southern points of view. What…
Look at this collage as a whole and then examine it’s details. What do you notice first? What else draws your attention? How does this work inform your understanding of this event and its impact? This artist and professor at the School of Visual Arts talked about why he uses everyday materials and what attracted…
The Teaching with the Library of Congress blog provides several ideas for inspiring close observation and engaging students with primary sources, including having students make personal connections to an item, look for clues to time period and authorship, look for details that provide evidence of their thinking, and ask purposeful questions. Close observation of images is great practice…