REFLECTIONS

Primary sources are a very valuable source to social studies teachers.  They are a source that should be used to help students construct their own knowledge.  With the aid of the Internet, primary sources are more available than ever before.  It is up to the social studies educators to take advantage of this
vast resource.

As a future social studies educator, I feel that primary sources can tell the past better than myself.  Primary sources should be a large part of the curriculum.  By using primary sources, students learn interpretation skills that will help them once they enter into the real world.  It is my goal to incorporate primary sources into my future social studies classroom.

During the fall semester of 2000, I attended a digital history workshop at the Library of Congress.  This workshop taught the participants ways to use primary sources in the classroom.  I learned some very useful tools that I will be able to use in my future classroom.

There are several lessons where I used primary sources.  These primary sources helped me teach the lessons and it helped students better understand the material.  The primary sources I used ranged from cartoons to speeches.  Primary sources should have an important role in the social studies classroom.
I feel that primary sources are a great resource that all social studies teachers should use in their classrooms.  With the aid of the Internet, all those with computers can access these resources.  Do no teach lesson solely from the textbooks; let students construct knowledge with meaning while interpreting historical documents.