Trace-Based Cases: Tracing the Economic History of Artifacts
The word trace can be used as both a noun and a verb. For example, the Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a trace (noun) as a a sign or evidence of some past thing. As a verb, to trace means to discover signs, evidence, or remains, and to follow or investigate in detail.
Trace-Based Cases begin with a trace of something from the past, like an artifact, photo, painting, or other visual source. During initial cases, utilize teacher-generated questions. Then, gradually release the responsibility to the students, so they can eventually ask their own questions, beginning with the Trace. This begins by asking: What do you see? (evidence in photo and caption) What do you think? (making inferences based on the evidence they see) What do you wonder? (They ask their own questions)
Step 1: Descriptive Questions
We begin with some descriptive questions. These evidence-based questions provide background information to help students contextualize. However, rather than assigning these questions, work on them together with some group activities that involve a variety of sources, including: artifacts, photos, paintings, maps, charts, graphs, and written primary and secondary sources. First, provide a trace of something from the past, like an artifact. hen, provide more resources to answer basic descriptive information with what, who, when, and where questions. These are all evidence-based close-ended questions that can be answered by searching for facts within a variety of sources, such as: artifacts, photos, illustrations, and paintings. Next, you want to help your students develop deeper analysis questions. For example, in an economic sense, we can ask: What was produced? Who produced it? Who consumed it? When was it made? Where was it made? Where did they get the resources to make it?
Step 2: Analysis Questions
Analysis begins with why and how questions, which explore the relationship of the parts to the whole. This is where we start to understand the systems in place. Why was it made? How was it made?
Step 3: Evaluation Questions
Evaluation questions considers implications, solutions, conclusions, or recommendations: What if? So what? What now? and What next?
Trace-Based Cases begin with a trace of something from the past, like an artifact, photo, painting, or other visual source. During initial cases, utilize teacher-generated questions. Then, gradually release the responsibility to the students, so they can eventually ask their own questions, beginning with the Trace. This begins by asking: What do you see? (evidence in photo and caption) What do you think? (making inferences based on the evidence they see) What do you wonder? (They ask their own questions)
Step 1: Descriptive Questions
We begin with some descriptive questions. These evidence-based questions provide background information to help students contextualize. However, rather than assigning these questions, work on them together with some group activities that involve a variety of sources, including: artifacts, photos, paintings, maps, charts, graphs, and written primary and secondary sources. First, provide a trace of something from the past, like an artifact. hen, provide more resources to answer basic descriptive information with what, who, when, and where questions. These are all evidence-based close-ended questions that can be answered by searching for facts within a variety of sources, such as: artifacts, photos, illustrations, and paintings. Next, you want to help your students develop deeper analysis questions. For example, in an economic sense, we can ask: What was produced? Who produced it? Who consumed it? When was it made? Where was it made? Where did they get the resources to make it?
Step 2: Analysis Questions
Analysis begins with why and how questions, which explore the relationship of the parts to the whole. This is where we start to understand the systems in place. Why was it made? How was it made?
Step 3: Evaluation Questions
Evaluation questions considers implications, solutions, conclusions, or recommendations: What if? So what? What now? and What next?
Florida Trace-Based Cases
- Florida Immigration and Migration https://fcit.usf.edu/immigration-and-migration/
- Florida Steamships: Then and Now https://fcit.usf.edu/using-text-sets/
- Florida Tourism https://fcit.usf.edu/trace-based-case-florida-tourism/
- The Mystery of the Mounds https://fcit.usf.edu/trace-based-case-the-mystery-of-the-mounds/
- Explorers in Florida https://fcit.usf.edu/trace-based-case-florida-explorers/
- The Impact of Railroads in Florida https://fcit.usf.edu/trace-based-case-railroads/
- From Boom to Zoom: Economic Impact of Industry https://fcit.usf.edu/trace-based-case-from-boom-to-zoom/
For more on using artifacts, check out these articles: Using artifacts to foster historical inquiry and To touch, to feel, to see artifact inquiry in the social studies classroom. http://www.socialstudies.org/sites/default/files/publications/se/6003/600302.html
Asking Economic Questions About History
Watch this video to understand how historians deal with economic history. Start at 7 minutes Economic historians Begin at 7 minutes and end at 13:20. For more Trace-based cases, visit our Sunny Money site https://sunnymoney.weebly.com/trace-based-cases.html