Please note that many tasks were constructed prior to Common Core and the task alignments to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) were not identified in the task materials. To search for the performance tasks explicitly aligned to the CCSS, Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), or College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social Studies State Standards, please go to CCSS, NGSS, and C3 tabs.
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Source Subject Grade Level |
Immigration This task assesses students’ ability to contextualize two historical documents and place them in the correct chronological order. Drawing on students' knowledge about the American immigration boom of the 1800's, students are asked to place two related documents in order--and explain their reasoning, in effect taking their thinking beyond the rote recall of event dates, names and facts. Sources include Document A--part of an editorial from a San Francisco newspaper published in 1916, and Document B--an excerpt from a book titled A Tour in the United States by Archibald Prentice-published in 1848. Students who correctly contextualize the documents will see that Letter B, describing a rather simple immigration process for large numbers of German immigrants, was likely written before Letter A, which calls for legislation similar to the Chinese Exclusion Act in an attempt to exclude Japanese immigrants. |
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Source Subject Grade Level |
Inca Fortification This task requires students to weigh the values and limitations of a document as historical evidence, as it relates to resistance against Spanish rule by the Inca. Students well-versed in sourcing a document will be able to explain that a photograph of a native Inca fort is useful in that it provides some evidence of Inca fortification against Spanish attacks. However, for Question 2, Students will also observe that the photograph was taken centuries after the Spanish conquest of Tawantinsuyu-and explain how that fact limits the its usefulness as evidence of how the Inca resisted Spanish forces. Resources include PDF downloads of the assessment with source materials, and a rubric with benchmark descriptors. |
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Source Subject Grade Level |
Italian Atrocities This task requires students to consider the relative strengths and weaknesses of a document as historical evidence. Students with a sophisticated understanding of how to source a document will be able to explain how a news article from the time period provides a useful contemporary account of Italian actions against the Ottomon Empire. They will also observe, however, that an international news report by a local American newspaper may contain biases and second-hand information which make it less useful as evidence of what really happened--and exemplifying American Imperialism. Resources provided include a rubric and scoring guide, a downloadable PDF of the assessment with excerpted primary sources, as well as links to the original sources via the Library of Congress. |
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Source Subject Grade Level |
Japanese Internment This task assesses students’ ability to source and corroborate a document. Drawing on knowledge gained by sourcing an excerpt from a 2003 interview of a Japanese-American WWII Veteran, in which he recalls visiting an Internment camp, students then evaluate in several ways; Question 1 asks students to evaluate whether the excerpt provides enough evidence to draw conclusions about the conditions facing Japanese Americans interned during WWII. To answer this question, students must source the document to determine whether the account can be regarded as conclusive evidence. Question 2 asks students to identify and evaluate whether additional documents or perspectives could be used to corroborate the account. Resources include PDF downloads of the assessment with source materials, and a rubric with benchmark descriptors. |
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Source Subject Grade Level |
John Brown This task measures students’ ability to source a document. This assessment gauges whether students understand an important aspect of sourcing: the time elapsed between when a document was produced and the event that it depicts. The question asks students to agree or disagree with a claim regarding the usefulness of a painting for understanding the circumstances of John Brown's execution in 1859, then support their answer with reasons and evidence. Students who understand the importance of when a document was produced will see that the painting is of little use to historians who wish to understand the immediate circumstances of John Brown's execution in 1859 because it was produced over 10 years later. The task includes a range of supplementary materials, all accessible and available for download with the creation of a free account through the site:
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Source Subject Grade Level |
John Brown's Legacy This task gauges students' ability to source and contextualize a document. Students must first source a playbill, determining when it was created and by whom. Students then select facts that might provide the most relevant historical context in order to determine the authors' motivation, and explain how the facts might shed light on why the authors wrote the play. The task includes a range of supplementary materials, all accessible and available for download with the creation of a free account through the site:
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Source Subject Grade Level |
Labor History In this task, students are assessed to their ability to contextualize two documents and place them in the correct chronological order. In this assessment, students who correctly contextualize the documents will see that Document A, which describes the President deploying troops to quell labor unrest, was likely written before Document B, which discusses gains made later in the labor movement, like collective bargaining and the notion of workers’ rights. More than just the recall of facts and dates, students must show that they have a broad understanding of how the labor movement changed over time and demonstrate the ability to use knowledge about the past to place the historical documents in present context. Resources include PDF downloads of the assessment with source materials, and a rubric with benchmark descriptors. |
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Source Subject Grade Level |
Labor Movement in the 1930's This task measures students’ ability to source and contextualize a document. Students read an excerpt from a 1994 interview with labor organizer Marianna Costa. Students must then select the two facts that help them determine whether Costa’s experience in the labor movement was typical or atypical of the experiences of most textile workers in the 1930s. Resources available for this task include downloadable PDF versions of both the assessment as well as the Rubric with benchmark descriptors. |
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Source Subject Grade Level |
Lange's Iconic Photograph This task gauges students’ ability to source, contextualize, and corroborate a document. Students must consider how the context surrounding the creation of Lange’s iconic photograph affects its reliability as historical evidence of Dust Bowl life. Students must also analyze the photograph to determine how the content of the image might also affect its reliability. Finally, students are asked to determine missing information/perspective that would better help them evaluate the reliability of the document. The task includes a range of supplementary materials, many available for download with the creation of a free account:
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Source Subject Grade Level |
Louis XVI This task requires students to consider the relative strengths and weaknesses of a document as historical evidence. Students with a sophisticated understanding of how to source a document will be able to explain that Jefferson's memoir is useful as evidence of Jefferson's thoughts on Louis XVI's leadership and his observations while in France. They will also observe that Jefferson's memoir was written many years after his time in France, making it less useful as specific evidence about Louis XVI's leadership. Resources include PDF downloads of the assessment with source materials, and a rubric with benchmark descriptors. |
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