Geography and History

Objectives

• The students will be able to: – Distinguish between history and prehistory– Identify other related sciences of history and

their focus: paleontology, archaeology, and anthropology.

– Understand what fossils are – Distinguish between primary and secondary

sources and describe how each kind of source is used in interpreting history.

What is history?

• The past• Everything that has happened before now• Stories of what happened in the past• Gone

History versus Prehistory

• Period of time in the past after writing was developed

• Period of time in the past before writing was invented

A Type of Science?

• History and Geography are Social Sciences

Closely Related Fields

• Archaeology• Paleontology• Anthropology• Geography

Archaeology

• The study of history and prehistory though examining bones, tools, structures, and other fossils to learn about people and cultures from the past.

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAPUK0AF7us

Paleontology

• The study of the past through examining bone and fossil remains from that time period.

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEyl2rRa2YY

Anthropology•The study of humans, both past and present, how they behave, where they came from, their physical characteristics and their culture.

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMFsgPy1H5M

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7p-_whtOtQ

Learning About The Past

• Written Record• Oral Tradition• “Digging up” Objects

– Fossils, bones, tools, and more

Written Records

• Journals• Diaries• Newspapers• Stories• Religious Books• Documents

Oral Traditions

• Stories passed down by word of mouth– EX: Your grandmother told

your father something, your father told you, and you will tell your children

• Are oral traditions always completely accurate?

Fossils• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phZe

E7Att_s

• A trace or print of the remains of plants or animals

• Used by historians in different fields to learn about the past

• Carbon-14 Dating allows us to know the approximate age of fossils

• This lets us know the time period the fossils came from

Break!

Primary and Secondary Sources

Primary Source

• First hand• Created by people

who lived during the historical event– Participants or

observers

Primary Source--Examples

• Letters• Diaries/Journals• Eyewitness Accounts• Autobiographies• Speeches• Historical Documents• Photographs/Videos/Recordings• Original Art

Secondary Source

• Second hand information

• Written or created by people who were not present at the original event

• Often combines information from several primary sources

Secondary Source Examples

• History books• Historical Essays• Biographies

Let`s Practice

Primary or Secondary?

Primary or Secondary?

Primary or Secondary?

• Mr. Forbes telling you about how the Ancient Egyptian pyramids were built.

Primary or Secondary?

Primary or Secondary?

• Mr. Forbes telling you about what happened at the soccer game he was at yesterday

Primary or Secondary?

Primary or Secondary?

Primary or Secondary?

Primary or Secondary?

Primary or Secondary?

Primary or Secondary?

• An audio recording of a speech given by President Obama.

Primary or Secondary?

Primary or Secondary?