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Primary vs. Secondary Sources

Total questions: 20

Worksheet time: 11mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

Identify the source type:

A play showing how Benjamin Franklin flew a kite during a lightning storm.

a)

PRIMARY

b)

SECONDARY

2.

Identify the source type:

A YouTube video describing how the pyramids were built.

a)

PRIMARY

b)

SECONDARY

3.

What is a primary source?

a)

A source created by someone who was there at the time of an event.

b)

A source created by someone who was NOT there at the time of an event.

4.

Secondary source documents include all of the following EXCEPT:

a)

A biography

b)

An analysis of original documents

c)

Sources created by someone who wasn't involved in the event and at a later time in history

d)

Original materials

5.

Identify the source type:

Anne Frank's diary describing her life during World War 2.

a)

PRIMARY

b)

SECONDARY

6.

Identify the source type:

A journal by a cowboy about the cattle drives from Texas to Kansas.

a)

PRIMARY

b)

SECONDARY

7.

Identify the source type:

A textbook describing the civil rights movement.

a)

PRIMARY

b)

SECONDARY

8.

Identify the source type:

A cartoon showing how Pocahontas met John Smith

a)

PRIMARY

b)

SECONDARY

9.

Identify the source type:

A short story describing Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla's 'electrical' battle.

a)

PRIMARY

b)

SECONDARY

10.

Identify the source type:

A famous artist's painting of what cowboy life was probably like.

a)

PRIMARY

b)

SECONDARY

11.

Identify the source type:

An interview with Alexander Graham Bell about how he invented the telephone.

a)

PRIMARY

b)

SECONDARY

12.

Identify the source type:

A scientist explaining what it was like for Buzz Aldrin to walk on the moon.

a)

PRIMARY

b)

SECONDARY

13.

Identify the source type:

The United States Constitution

a)

PRIMARY

b)

SECONDARY

14.

Which of these is NOT an example of a primary source?

a)

Original uniforms worn by soldiers

b)

Diaries written at the time of an event

c)

video of a historical event

d)

A poem about a famous person from your classmate

15.

Identify the source type:

A news report about the opening of a power plant.

a)

PRIMARY

b)

SECONDARY

16.

Identify the source type:

A radio broadcast from the day the Soviet Union launched Sputnik.

a)

PRIMARY

b)

SECONDARY

17.

Identify the source type:

An autobiography about the 40th president, Ronald Reagan.

a)

PRIMARY

b)

SECONDARY

18.

Identify the source type:

A book describing Christopher Columbus sailing to America.

a)

PRIMARY

b)

SECONDARY

19.

A primary source is ALWAYS more reliable than a secondary source.

a)

True

b)

False

20.

What is a secondary source?

a)

A source created by someone who was there at the time of an event.

b)

A source created by someone who was NOT there at the time of an event.