>> From the Library of Congress in Washington DC. ^M00:00:07 The Library of Congress Web site presents digital versions of historic primary sources like letters, photographs, maps, drawings, sheet music, advertisements, recordings, and political cartoons. In this activity, we're going to use this photograph to illustrate how to analyze a primary source. We can learn from and about history by analyzing this photo, as well as other types of primary source materials. Learning from primary sources involves moving through an inquiry process with defined goals in mind. Learners use primary sources to make discoveries and articulate their ideas about a topic under study. We'll use observation, reflection, and questioning to analyze this photo, just as we would analyze any primary source. Observation is an important step in analyzing a primary source. In this photo, what do you observe? Reflection is another step in analyzing a primary source. Looking at the photo again, what do you think you know? Questioning is yet another step in the primary source analysis. After examining and reflecting about the photo, determine what you would like to find out by formulating your own questions using who, what, why, when, where and how as starting points. What do you want to find out? Inquiry is a non-linear process. You can move back and forth between the different steps as you work. Do your questions spark any new reflections? Do you observe anything now that you didn't before? Do your reflections make you want to look for more details? When you finish analyzing the photo, try your hand at a little investigative work to find answers. ^M00:01:56 >> This has been a presentation of the Library of Congress. Visit us at loc dot gov.