NM7_Chapter 1 Lesson 1

Lesson 1: What is History?

What do historians do?

What can we learn?

• Historians use primary and secondary

sources when they research the past.

• Historians have to look at multiple

sources to see many perspectives before
they draw conclusions about the past.

• Historians rely on artifacts, photographs,

documents, and oral history as primary
sources. Textbooks are secondary
sources.

• When exploring the past, you can ask

questions about geography, technology,
economics, government, and culture.

What can we learn?

bias—one sided point of view

primary sources—firsthand accounts or
documents and objects from the past

perspective—understanding events and
people based on the accepted ideas and
values of the time period

Key Terms

New York Tribune Front Page, 1907

Image Discussion

Think About It

It is important to ask critical questions when
studying history. It is one of the best ways
to learn about the past. As you learn about
New Mexico, you can ask questions that
focus on the five Ws and an H. These are
who, what, when, where, why, and how. In
what other situations might it be useful to
ask questions? What kinds of questions
might you ask about a source in order to
determine if there is bias?