1	The Craft of History Prelude to American History American History Honors AP U.S. History
2	Why study history? History is the story of PEOPLE Not only in the past – links to today (current events) – i.e. Middle East, voting, others??? Constant change in interpretation, new evidence is found!
3	What does the study of history involve? Collection of evidence Interpretation of the evidence Historians determine WHY events, actions, etc. take place and HOW THEY ARE SIGNIFICANT
4	Identification When we “identify,” we ask: Who? or What? (or both) When? Where? Why? Significance? Re-occur?
5	Types of History Political History Social History Economic History Diplomatic History Cultural History
6	Themes in History Reform Values Economics Technology Environment Diversity Unity/Conflict Culture
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8	Primary Sources Primary sources are materials directly related to a topic by time or participation. These materials include letters, speeches, diaries, newspaper articles from the time, oral history interviews, documents, photographs, artifacts, or anything else that provides first-hand accounts about a person or event.
9	Examples of Primary Sources Declaration of Independence Letter of John Cotton to wife during Civil War Nast’s political cartoons from Harper’s Weekly Peale’s portrait of George Washington
10	Secondary Sources Secondary sources are historical accounts NOT written in the time period or by someone participating in the event being described. Secondary sources can include primary sources?
11	What affects history? People, obviously Geography? Technology? Weather? Climate? Anything else?
12	Bias / Perspective Everyone has a bias – even historians Historians write from their perspective and this method can often times lead to debate Is history just an account of facts? Historiography – the study of history
13	Introduction to American History Passage from Paul Johnson’s A History of the American People “The creation of the United States of America is the greatest of all human adventures. No other national story holds such tremendous lessons, for the American people themselves and for the rest of mankind. It now spans four centuries and, as we enter the new millennium, we need to retell it, for if we can learn these lessons and build upon them, the whole of humanity will benefit in the new age which is now opening.” (1997) What do you expect to learn from this course?