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History, Civics & Social Studies · Grade 3

Questions and Historical Evidence

Third graders practise the historian's toolkit with Abraham Lincoln's years in Springfield, Illinois: asking compelling and supporting questions, sourcing a real primary source (his 1861 farewell speech), telling evidence from opinion, checking one source against another, and placing events on a timeline to find how many years passed.

  • 4 lessons
  • About 75 minutes
  • Historical evidence check: 9 questions
  • Ways to answer: choose an answer, highlight a text, match pairs, type a number, place on a number line and put in order
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What learners will discover

  • Ask compelling and supporting questions about the past and choose kinds of sources that could answer them.
  • Tell primary from secondary sources and identify a source's author, date, place, audience and purpose.
  • Tell evidence from opinion, check one source against another and use evidence to support a claim.
  • Place events on a timeline and calculate the number of years between them.

Lessons

  1. Asking historical questions 4 steps2 practiceabout 18 min
  2. Sourcing a primary source 5 steps3 practiceabout 20 min
  3. Evidence, opinion and corroboration 5 steps3 practiceabout 18 min
  4. Timelines and elapsed time 5 steps3 practiceabout 19 min
  5. Historical evidence check 9 questions at the end

Keep exploring

More 3rd grade social studies

Guide for grown-ups