Primary and Secondary Sources Activity
Worksheets
30 minutesGrades9, 10Social Studies, English Language Arts
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Written by Christina Cawdery
About this activity
In this activity, students will learn about and practice identifying sources as "primary sources" and "secondary sources." Students use a primary and a secondary source to explore climate-change-driven human migration. By exploring both data and first-hand accounts, students learn the value of using the two kinds of sources to better understand a problem.
Everything you need to teach it
- Primary and Secondary Sources ActivityView Activity
Teaching tips
- This activity can be used in a history or English class to reinforce the difference between primary and secondary sources.
- In a math class, students can use this activity to become familiar with the human stories behind the statistics.
- Students can discuss how the different kinds of sources elicit different kinds of emotions, and how these emotions impact their perception of a topic.
- Students can synthesize the information they learned from the two sources in a persuasive writing assignment in which they explain whether or not communities should care about climate migration.
- Students can complete a creative writing assignment in which they write a poem or journal entry to express their feelings about climate migration.
- If students have experienced climate migration, and feel comfortable, they can write their own first-hand accounts.
From the scientist review
Students explore what primary and secondary data sources mean and are able to identify them in credible climate-related articles and gray literature. They also attempt to decipher the aurthor's perspectives and the rationale behind the work. This activity was thoroughly reviewed and has passed our science credibility evaluation.
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About the teacher writer
Christina Cawdery
Middle School Teacher
Christina Torres Cawdery is a middle-grade English educator at Punahou School in Honolulu, HI. In addition to teaching, Christina is a writer whose work has appeared in places like ASCD, Edutopia, Learning for Justice, NCTE's Council Chronicle, and Education Week. She is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in English at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa.
