Week 6--Integrating History from Multiple Perspectives II

Integrating historical analyses and primary source documents.

• Reading from Revolution in Eastern Europe by Peter Cipkowski (1991), published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, pp. 43-44.
• Reading the Reader’s Theater, constructed by students from historical documents reprinted in A Student’s Diary: Budapest, October 16-November 1, 1956 by Laszlo Beke (New York: Viking Press, 1957) and The Hungarian Revolution by Melvin J. Lasky (Ed.), (New York: Praeger, Inc, 1957).

Using Primary Sources to Understand Individual Perspectives

• “Meeting on the Congo” describes the encounter between Henry Stanley, a newspaper writer and the first white man to travel down the entire Congo River, and a group of Africans who lived along the Congo.
• As you read through this first-person account of the meeting, think about how you would have felt. Why did the encounter go so badly? How could the conflict have been avoided? What do we learning from reading this first-person account of the event?

• Reading #1: THAT WAS NO WELCOME: Adapted from Stanley, Henry. Through the Dark Continent. Vol. II. New York: Harper & Row, 1885. pp. 268-73. Reprinted in Merry M. Merryfield and Adama Timbo. (1983). Teaching About Francophone Africa. Bloomington, IN: African Studies Program.
• Reading #2: THAT WAS NO BROTHER: Adapted from remarks of King Mojimba, as told to Father Joseph Fraessle, reprinted here from Heinrich Schiffers, The Quest for Africa, New York: G.P. Putnam's sons, 1957, pp. 196-7. Reprinted in Merry M. Merryfield and Adama Timbo. (1983). Teaching About Francophone Africa. Bloomington, IN: African Studies Program.
• How did reading one perspective on this event shape the way you understood “reality”?
• What possibilities exist for how these documents (and other historical documents) might be used for role-playing?
• What follow up activities could you do with students?

View the example of “The Short Life of Anne Frank” (at http://www.teachers.tv/video/23972) which uses various primary sources, including excerpts from Anne’s diary, photos, and film clips from the era, to tell her story in a developmentally appropriate way for young children.

Discuss the film, particularly in light of previous discussions on teaching children about controversial or sensitive issues.

Visual Elements within the photograph--What You See

light and shadow Does the light seem to be natural or artificial? Harsh or soft? What direction is the light coming from? Describe the shadows. Are they subtle or do they create strong contrasts?

value Is there a range of tones from light to dark? Squint your eyes. Where is the darkest value? The lightest?

focus What parts of the image are clearly in focus? Are some parts out of focus? Note: The range between the nearest and farthest things that appear in focus define the photograph's depth of field

space Do overlapping objects create a sense of space? Is the space shallow, deep, or both?

shape Do you see geometric or organic shapes? Are there positive shapes, such as objects, or negative shapes that represent voids?

line Are there thick, thin, curvy, jagged, or straight lines?

color What colors do you see, if any?

texture Do you see visual textures within the photograph? Is there an actual texture on the surface of the photograph?

by Cass Fey, Curator of Education, Center for Creative Photography • The University of Arizona • Tucson, Arizona 85721-0103 • Phone: 520-621-7968