Unit Title: Oral Histories in the Classroom

Essential Questions/Lessons

• What is history?
• How can we learn about our community's/family's history?
• What was it like when our parents/grandparents/greatgrandparents grew up?
• What was going on in the state/country/world when our parents/grandparents/greatgrandparents/community members were young?

Objectives for the unit:

1. Students will learn interviewing techniques:
   • Listening
   • Asking good questions
   • Note-taking
   • Writing thank you notes, etc.
2. Students will practice these techniques as they research and write biographies of their peers.
3. Students will conduct oral histories on audiotape.
4. Students will analyze audiotapes as primary documents.
5. Students will collect artifacts from family members, community members, the Early American History Museum, and online sources.
6. Students will analyze the above artifacts as primary documents.
7. Students will write historical fiction tales related to these artifacts.
8. Students will connect these oral histories and artifacts to important people and events in American history.

Materials

Standards

Handouts

Additional Resources