Students complete nine sentences about primary and secondary sources, credibility markers, and the first step of the research process. The matching activity pairs a soldier's 1863 diary, a Civil War textbook chapter, a newspaper eyewitness interview, and an encyclopedia article with their source type and explanation.
Matching sources to their primary or secondary classification using real examples builds the analytical vocabulary students need for all research-based assignments.
Style:
Research & Citing Sources
Part A: Fill in the Blank
Write the missing word or number on each line.
1. A primary source gives firsthand information, such as a diary or an interview.
2. A textbook that explains a historical event is an example of a secondary source.
3. The first step of the research process is choosing a focused topic.
4. When you quickly look through a text to find specific facts, you are scanning the source.
5. A published book is usually a reliable source because editors review it before printing.
6. Checking more than one source to confirm a fact is called verifying.
7. An article written by a university professor is more credible than one by an unknown blogger.
8. The date of a source tells you whether the information is still current and useful.
9. A credible news article includes the reporter's name and the date it was published.
Part B: Matching
Match each item on the left to the correct answer on the right.
1. Match each item to its correct answer.
A diary entry written by a soldier in 1863
→ Primary source — a firsthand account from the past
Secondary source — interprets events after they happened
A textbook chapter about the Civil War
→ Secondary source — interprets events after they happened
Secondary source — summarizes information from many sources
A newspaper interview with an eyewitness
→ Primary source — direct words from someone who was there
Primary source — a firsthand account from the past
An encyclopedia article about volcanoes
→ Secondary source — summarizes information from many sources
Primary source — direct words from someone who was there
Research & Citing Sources
★ Part A: Fill in the Blank
Write the missing word or number on each line.
1) A primary source gives firsthand information, such as a diary or an interview.
2) A textbook that explains a historical event is an example of a secondary source.
3) The first step of the research process is choosing a focused topic.
4) When you quickly look through a text to find specific facts, you are scanning the source.
5) A published book is usually a reliable source because editors review it before printing.
6) Checking more than one source to confirm a fact is called verifying.
7) An article written by a university professor is more credible than one by an unknown blogger.
8) The date of a source tells you whether the information is still current and useful.
9) A credible news article includes the reporter's name and the date it was published.
★ Part B: Matching
Match each item on the left to the correct answer on the right.
1) Match each item to its correct answer.
A diary entry written by a soldier in 1863
→ Primary source — a firsthand account from the past
Secondary source — interprets events after they happened
A textbook chapter about the Civil War
→ Secondary source — interprets events after they happened
Secondary source — summarizes information from many sources
A newspaper interview with an eyewitness
→ Primary source — direct words from someone who was there
Primary source — a firsthand account from the past
An encyclopedia article about volcanoes
→ Secondary source — summarizes information from many sources
Primary source — direct words from someone who was there
Ready to Practice?
Complete each section carefully.
10 Questions
10-15 minutes
Auto-graded
Retry anytime
🏆
Questions Correct
0
Correct
0
Incorrect
0
Skipped
0:00
Time
0%
Score
Review Your Answers
See what you got right, missed, or skipped.