Disciplinary Literacy in History Classes

Disciplinary Literacy in History Classes

by alexandra emenecker

​Main Ideas:

• the reading and writing skills needed for ​engaging students in the creation of historical knowledge using primary sources, and questioning!!

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• ​Sourcing

• ​Corroboration

• ​Contextualization

• ​Close Reading

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Multiple Choice

What is a primary source??

• A source that is the first of it's kind

• an immediate, first-hand accounts of a topic, from people who had a direct connection with it

• The most important source in a collection

• The earliest known source from a certain time period

Multiple Choice

Which is NOT an example of a primary source?

(an immediate, first-hand accounts of a topic, from people who had a direct connection with it)

• An article published in 2020 about the coronavirus pandemic

• A letter written by a soldier in the Korean War

• A Newspaper article from 1933 about the Revolutionary War

• A photo taken at JFK's inauguration

​Discussion, Documents, and Questions... Oh MY!

​In Social Studies we use do not solely use primary sources to teach students how to create historical arguments.

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​Questioning using essential questions is HUGE!

​ARC OF QUESTIONS:

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​- What...?

​- How...?

​- Who...?

​- Why...?

​- What if...?

​What about Assessments... ?

More than just tests!

​- projects

​- posters

​- presentations

​- papers

​- PBL!!

Why should we care??

​History is the story of how we got where we are today. Looking back allows us to learn from the successes and failures of others.

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​When we teaching students to analyze documents from the past, they will have the skills to analyze documents they come across in everyday life.

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​When we teach students to ask deep, essential, historical questions, we equip them to question and discern the world around them today.