Most weeks I will spend time exploring a variety of websites and apps I have collected throughout the week. However, I found an article on Edutopia last week that has 6 Free Online Resources for Primary Source Documents
With the Common Core Literacy Standards, all classes/contents need to be teaching students how to research and write argument papers. The internet offers current and relevant resources in one easy and convenient location. Gone are the days of dragging supplies to the library to look through a card catalog, write down call letters, track down encyclopedias and microfische (remember those?!) documents. Now, we just open Google, type in our topic, hit enter, and Voila! So we don’t need to teach students the library search tactics anymore, but what we do need to teach is how to find credible and reliable digital resources. This becomes a much more cumbersome issue than carrying fifteen enormous books to a quiet table on the third floor of the library.
Students (and sometimes adults) believe whatever they find online. “Hey, it’s on the internet, so it must be true, right?” Wrong, of course. Our media specialist does a fantastic job going into the classroom and teaching students the art of online research, how to determine credible sources, and how to cite said sources in their original essays.
The article in Edutopia makes those steps a bit easier for the classroom teacher by providing six links to reliable online primary source documents. These are for everyone – not just English and Social Studies teachers.
