Primary Source Archives
British Museum
This primary source archive is made of up of Japanese artifacts that are housed in the British Museum. The collection includes items such as pottery, clothing, jewelry, and sculptures. These are from various periods in Japanese history.
PrimarySource.org
Emuseum
This archive provides images of items that regarded as national treasures and important cultural properties. These items are owned by Japan’s four national museums in Tokyo, Kyoto, Nara, and Kyushu. The have images of various primary sources including swords, paintings, calligraphy, and metal works.
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Fordham Archive
Columbia University
Primary Source Analisys Tools
The 6 C's of a primary source tool helps students analyze and evaluate a primary source in a clean and organized way. By breaking up the analysis into six separate categories, students are able to view the source and look for a single category. For example, I would provide students with an excerpt of Prince Shotoku’s constitution. The students will then examine this primary document for each section of the handout and critically analyze it.
The Library of Congress primary source tool is great because it can be used for any type of primary source. I would use this tool to have students analyze a Medieval Japanese scroll regarding the Heiji Rebellion. I would have students go to a website (http://learn.bowdoin.edu/heijiscroll/) that provides translations and some insights into the scroll. I would ask students to view the scroll with no translations and ask them to write their initial observations of the scroll. I would then have students view the scroll with the translations and view the scroll again. I would have them write what new insights and information the translations have provided to their understanding of the scroll. I would then have students answers who, what, where, when, and why in relation to the scroll in the question section. I would then have the students write questions that they have regarding the scroll that they would like to investigate further.
Lesson Plans Utilizing Primary Sources
The first lesson plan that does a great job of utilizing primary sources is a lesson on the explorer Drake's West Indian adventure. This lesson has students analyze and interpret maps as a primary source.
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The second lesson is one that has students analyzing the line "All men are created equal" from the Declaration of Independence. The lesson does a fantastic job on having students contextualize the phrase and provide rational for its meaning.
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