News
Examining the Raw Materials of History
Upper School History teacher Dr. Otis Pope and his students have been making visits to the Newberry Library for a class focusing on historical inquiry and primary sources. With a collection extending across 27.5 miles of library stacks, the Newberry offers students a bevy of historical materials to review while visiting.
Aiming to create a presentation for their peers on an item they fancied, students used guiding questions Dr. Pope provided, including:
- What are the material characteristics of the item?
- When was it made?
- Why was it made?
- How does the primary source relate to the research topic they are studying?
As part of this work, students examined the Liber pontificalis from the Catholic Church in 1497; a document entitled Traduccioìn de los sagrados canones del Santo Concilio de Trento de la lengua Latina a la Castellana that emerged from the Council of Trent in Italy in 1774; and an 1893 document articulating the rationale behind the absence of the colored American in the World’s Columbian Exposition, in addition to the Afro-American's contribution to Columbian literature.
Following their independent investigation, students rotated through each other’s work to learn more about its history and relationship to the present. As a culminating activity, students will compose a research paper on a primary source of their choosing from the Newberry Library’s collection.
Check out photos from the Newberry Library here.
Francis W. Parker School educates students to think and act with empathy, courage and clarity as responsible citizens and leaders in a diverse democratic society and global community.