Historical Thinking Skills

What is a Comparison?

• The estimation of similarities and differences.

• The principle of or relationship between actions and consequences.

• A thing or set of things helpful in forming a conclusion or judgment.

• The division of history into cycles, series of events, or a single action.

Answer explanation

Key word: Compare

What is Causation?

• An uninterrupted succession or flow.

• To cause to be different, or alter.

• The relationship between actions and consequences.

• The study of the past through inquiry.

Answer explanation

The root word in 'causation' is 'cause.' Cause comes from a word meaning a "reason" or "action."

What is Evidence?

• The arts, beliefs, customs, institutions, and other products of human work and thought considered as a unit.

• A thing or set of things helpful in forming a conclusion or judgment.

• An account of an event or artifact created by someone who took part in or witnessed the event.

• Information gathered by someone who did not take part in or witnessed an event.

Answer explanation

Fun Fact: The word evidence literally comes from a word meaning 'obvious to the eye.'

'An account of an event or artifact created by someone who took part in or witnessed the event' IS a kind of evidence known as a 'Primary Source.'

What is Periodization?

• The division of history into cycles, series of events, or a single action.

• An uninterrupted succession or flow.

• The study of the past through inquiry.

• The arts, beliefs, customs, institutions, and other products of human work and thought considered as a unit.

Answer explanation

The root word in 'Periodization' is 'Period.'

Types of periodization include units of time like seconds, minutes, hours, days and weeks. It also includes terms like "The Stone Age" or "World War 2."

What is Continuity?

• An account of an event or artifact created by someone who took part in or witnessed the event.

• An uninterrupted succession or flow.

• The estimation of similarities and differences.

• The principle of or relationship between actions and consequences.

Answer explanation

The root word in 'Continuity' is 'Continue.' Think of an unbroken chain.

What is Change?

• To cause to be different, or alter.

• The estimation of similarities and differences.

• An uninterrupted succession or flow.

• The study of the past through inquiry.

Answer explanation

Synonyms: evolution, transformation, progress

What is History?

• The arts, beliefs, customs, institutions, and other products of human work and thought considered as a unit.

• An account of an event or artifact created by someone who took part in or witnessed the event.

• The study of the past through inquiry.

• Information gathered by someone who did not take part in or witnessed an event.

What is a Primary Source?

• The estimation of similarities and differences.

• An account of an event or artifact created by someone who took part in or witnessed the event.

• The estimation of similarities and differences.

• Information gathered by someone who did not take part in or witnessed an event.

Answer explanation

Key root word: Prime (meaning first)

What is a Secondary Source?

• Information gathered by someone who did not take part in or witnessed an event.

• The estimation of similarities and differences.

• An account of an event or artifact created by someone who took part in or witnessed the event.

• To cause to be different, or alter.

Answer explanation

The root word in 'Secondary' is 'Second.' This kind of evidence is secondhand knowledge.

What is Correlation?

• A thing or set of things helpful in forming a conclusion or judgment.

• The division of history into cycles, series of events, or a single action.

• A connection between two things based on it happening at the same time.

• The circumstances in which an event occurs

Answer explanation

The Prefix 'Co-' means together. The root word 'relation' means the ways things are connected. Put together, a correlation is a connection between two or more things that seem to be related.