Year 7 · History · Historical skills
How historians and archaeologists investigate the past
Learners distinguish primary and secondary sources, learn how archaeologists use evidence, and practise asking questions of sources.
Awaiting educator review. This material was drafted by our content team with AI assistance and is waiting for review by a qualified educator. Please check it suits your child before using it. Created 10 October 2026.
Learning goals
Learners will
- Distinguish between primary and secondary sources.
- Explain how archaeologists and historians use evidence.
- Ask questions about the origin, purpose and reliability of a source.
Success looks like
- I can classify a source as primary or secondary and justify my choice.
- I can explain the difference between a source and evidence.
- I can ask who made a source, when, and why.
The big idea
Historians cannot travel back in time, so they rely on sources: anything that gives information about the past.
A primary source was created during the time being studied: a diary, a coin, a painting, a tool, a building or a photograph. A secondary source was created later by someone interpreting the past, such as a textbook, a documentary or a museum display panel.
Whether a source is primary or secondary depends on the question. A 1950s textbook about ancient Rome is a secondary source about Rome, but a primary source about how history was taught in the 1950s.
Archaeologists study physical remains. They excavate sites carefully in layers, record exactly where each artefact is found and use scientific methods such as radiocarbon dating to estimate ages. Generally, deeper layers are older (the principle of superposition), unless the ground has been disturbed.
A source becomes evidence when we use it to answer a question. To judge reliability, historians ask: Who created it? When? Why? For whom? What might they have left out?
Knowledge is also passed down orally. First Nations Australians have maintained histories, laws and knowledge through oral traditions, song, dance and art for many thousands of years. Some of this knowledge is restricted and belongs to particular communities, so it must be accessed with permission and respect.
Worked examples
Classifying sources
Classify each source for a study of ancient Egypt: (a) a papyrus letter from 1200 BCE, (b) a modern documentary, (c) a pottery jar from a tomb.
- (a) Written at the time: primary.
- (b) Made in modern times to explain Egypt: secondary.
- (c) Made and used in ancient Egypt: primary (an artefact).
Answer: (a) primary, (b) secondary, (c) primary.
Questioning a source
An inscription praises a pharaoh's great victory. Why should a historian be cautious?
- Who made it? Royal officials, on behalf of the pharaoh.
- Why? To glorify the ruler.
- So it might exaggerate success or leave out defeats.
- Cross-check with other sources, such as records from the other side.
Answer: It may be propaganda, so it should be checked against other sources.
Reading layers
At a dig, a coin is found in layer 2 and a stone tool in layer 5 (deeper). Which is likely older?
- Deeper layers are usually laid down earlier.
- Layer 5 is deeper than layer 2.
Answer: The stone tool is likely older, if the layers are undisturbed.
Practice check
Have a go, then check your answers. Each answer comes with an explanation.
Answer guide for parents
Which is a primary source for studying ancient Rome?
A Roman coin — A Roman coin was made at the time.
What does an archaeologist mainly study?
Physical remains of the past — Archaeology studies physical remains such as artefacts and sites.
In undisturbed layers of soil, which layer is usually oldest?
The deepest layer — Layers build up over time, so the deepest is usually oldest.
Which question helps judge a source's reliability?
Why was it created? — Purpose affects how trustworthy a source is.
A source becomes evidence when…
it is used to answer a historical question — Evidence is information used to support an answer or argument.
An object made or used by people in the past is an ____.
artefact — Artefacts are objects made or used by people.
A textbook written today about ancient China is a primary or secondary source?
secondary — It was created long after the period it describes.
What type of scientific dating measures the decay of carbon in once-living material? (one word before 'dating')
radiocarbon — Radiocarbon dating can estimate the age of organic material up to about 50,000 years old.
Watch out for
- Learners often think primary sources are always reliable. A primary source can be biased or mistaken.
- Some think secondary sources are less useful. Good secondary sources combine many primary sources and expert analysis.
- Oral histories are sometimes dismissed as 'just stories'. Oral traditions are an important and valid way knowledge is kept, and historians increasingly work with them.
Tips for parents
- Practise with family items: is a grandparent's photo a primary or secondary source about their childhood?
- When studying First Nations histories, use resources created or endorsed by First Nations communities and organisations, and respect any restrictions on cultural knowledge.
- Encourage the habit of asking 'How do we know?' about any claim.
Go further
- Bury a few household objects in layers in a tub of sand and soil, then 'excavate' and record them.
- Create a museum label for a family object, including what it tells us about the past.
- Visit a state museum's archaeology or ancient world gallery.