In this first activity in the Causation Practice Progression, you’ll get familiar with different ways of understanding cause and consequence, and you’ll learn to use cause and consequence as analytical tools for understanding change over time. Historical events rarely have a single, proximate cause—some happen immediately before an event, some long before an event; some play a central role, and some merely contribute. Some causes may also be considered consequences, and the significance of the event may change depending on your framing of that event. In this activity, you will quickly learn about different types of causes.

Note that “Alphonse the Camel” is a story that was used in the Big History Project course, so you might be familiar with it. Although the story is being reused in this course, the way it’s being used is different, so be sure to pay close attention to the differences!

Start by listening to or reading the following story:

Alphonse the Camel

Once upon a time, there was a camel (called Alphonse). For various reasons (relating to an unfortunate accident during his birth) the camel had severe back problems. This was not the end of his misfortune, however, because he also had an evil, exploitative owner (called Frank the Camel Killer). Frank had hated camels ever since he experienced a nasty incident in his childhood involving a camel’s hoof and his rear end. He was very bitter and hadn’t trusted camels since.

Frank regularly overloaded his camels prior to taking them on grueling and totally unnecessary round trips up and down mountains on his way to deliver goods to his customers. These customers, shockingly, were completely indifferent to these frequent and gross violations of the rights of camels and even found Frank and his antics vaguely endearing. On top of it all, Alphonse was sometimes his own worst enemy. Camels are very proud creatures, and he would act tough in front of his camel friends, and on his rare breaks he would show off how much he could carry.

Plenty of camels had died doing similar work to Alphonse and his friends. After a particularly nasty few weeks when camels were keeling over left, right, and center, the camels decided to form a union to defend their rights and protect them from evil owners. However, when it comes down to it, camels are selfish creatures who don’t trust each other. They were more worried about looking after themselves than about working together, and the union soon fizzled out.

One Friday, Frank had just finished loading up Alphonse and his poor exploited fellow creatures for yet another grueling and totally unnecessary round trip up and down the mountains. He had piled and piled and piled up the goods onto Alphonse’s back and was taking a break, chewing a straw while thinking smugly about his handiwork. On a whim, he decided to add the bedraggled straw he had been chewing to Alphonse’s load. Alphonse groaned obligingly. He eyed his owner with disgust. He keeled over and died of radical and irreversible back collapse.

Now, list all the reasons you can think of for why Alphonse died. Once you and your class have come up with a final list, write all the reasons on sticky notes or cards.

Arrange your stickies or cards into three different categories: short-, intermediate-, and long-term causes. Once you’ve arranged your cards by timeframe, look at your short-term cards to identify the triggering event in the story. The triggering event is defined as the most immediate cause of an event. Be ready to share your categorizations with the class.

You might notice that you didn’t categorize long-, intermediate-, and short-term causes the same way as some of your classmates. That’s OK! Our perspective—in this case, timeframe—can shift how we categorize the causes. Therefore, the definitions of long term, intermediate term, and short term vary and depend on the timeframe or periodization that you use to examine an event.

Finally, take a look at the Causation Tool (included in the Causation – Introduction worksheet), which is meant to help you categorize causes and consequences. Although you haven’t been introduced to everything on the tool quite yet, you will become familiar with role, type, and effects soon enough! You can use this tool to create a causal map or other representation of causation. Eventually, you will probably get so used to the tool that you won’t need it anymore. But for now, it will help as you get used to this type of historical analysis.

How do historians develop stories about the past? How do they make these stories meaningful and accurate? Why are these stories usable? What would historians of the future say about your life and experience? These are the kinds of questions that are raised in this first unit.

This first overview video serves two purposes. First, it introduces some of the tools that historians use to gather evidence and build narratives of the past. Second, it introduces you to the format of the other overview videos you’ll encounter in this course. In each, Kim and Colby will introduce you to the major themes of the unit; they’ll highlight some numerical data that can illuminate large trends; and they will scale shift—zooming out or in on larger or smaller events to gain different perspectives on the past.

Preview – Skimming for Gist

Before you watch the video, open and skim the transcript. Additionally, you should always read the questions below before you watch the video (a good habit to use in reading, too!). These pre-viewing strategies will help you know what to look and listen for as you watch the video. If there is time, your teacher may have you watch the video one time without stopping, and then give you time to watch again to pause and find the answers.

Key Ideas – Understanding Content

Think about the following questions as you watch this video:

1. What is claim testing?
2. What kind of evidence does Bennett use to test Kim and Colby’s arguments?
3. What is scale switching?
4. Why did Colby not travel to Australia to film this video?
5. What are frames, and what are the three frame narratives used in this course?

Evaluating and Corroborating

1. This video uses the phrase “usable history” a few times. What do you think makes history usable? Can you think about a historical event, person, or process that has been important in your own life?

This activity introduces you to the WHP Three Close Reads process. You will use this process when approaching all readings in the course because it will help you practice historical inquiry. The Three Close Reads process will teach you how to analyze historical accounts and interpretations by using a variety of reading strategies. Instead of simply learning about historical concepts, you’ll learn to evaluate different perspectives on historical issues so you can take an active role in constructing and deconstructing history, rather than taking everything you read at face value.

At the beginning of each unit of this course, you will be provided with an introductory reading that will help you get a sense of what’s to come. By looking at a zoomed-out view of a unit, you’ll be able to think about the patterns and themes that exist within it, something that’s often more difficult to figure out when you study history in smaller time periods or segments.

Before digging into the article, take out the Three Close Reads Worksheet, and with your class, quickly review the process as well as how to fill out the organizer section. Reading everything in the course three times might seem insane, but it’s actually a really helpful tool for getting all the information you need from the articles. Don’t worry—the process get faster and faster with each reading. Somewhere in the middle of the course, you’ll probably notice that the three reads take the same amount of time one used to take.

Before you start to read, make sure you have a question or idea to think about as you read to write in the box at the top of the Three Close Reads worksheet. Your teacher will probably provide you with the question or idea at first. As you get farther along in the course, your teacher might ask you to help choose these topics or questions. Keep this framing question or idea in mind as you read the article.

Reading 1 – Skimming for Gist

The first close read is really meant to be a skim of the article. It should be very quick and give you the gist (general idea) of what the article is about. You should be looking at the title, author, headings, pictures, and opening sentences of paragraphs for the gist. On the Three Close Reads worksheet, look at the “Questions” section for the first close read and see which questions you can answer quickly.

Reading 2 – Understanding Content

Now that you’ve completed the first close read, look at the second section of the worksheet. This read is probably closest to the kind of reading you usually do. Basically, you’re trying to get a better understanding of the concepts and arguments that are presented in the article. Review the “Pay Attention to…” and “Questions” sections of the worksheet so you know what to think about when reading and to be sure you understand the information from the article. Also, this is where you will write down any vocab you see in the article that is unfamiliar to you. Your teacher will suggest ways to keep track of these words.

By the end of the second close read, you should be able to answer the following questions:

1. Why did the fourteenth-century Black Death become a “usable” history to more people in 2020?
2. Some historians have argued that students should learn facts or information. Others have argued that they should learn a set of skills. Which approach (facts or skills?) is used in this course?
3. The author of this overview gives an example of a historian of the future working with social media about a fight you had with a friend. Why might a historian care about this fight?
4. Why is it important that historians have several history stories to work with?
5. What is claim testing?
6. What are the three frames in this course?

Reading 3 – Evaluating and Corroborating

Now it’s time for the third and final read. For this read, focus on why this article matters, how it connects to other content you’ve studied. Since this is the first reading assignment of the course, you may not connect it to much, other than the knowledge you already have.

At the end of the third read, discuss the following question with your class:

• Write a brief history story that makes a claim. It can be about anything! Then write down a kind of evidence you might look for to test that claim. Now tells us why this history story might be usable for understanding or acting in the present.

This article serves two important purposes: introducing you to Three Close Reads, as well as introducing you to a narrative we want you to evaluate throughout the entire course.

** Note: The questions in the section below are the same as in Three Close Reads – Introduction Activity. **

At the beginning of each new era of this course, you will be provided with an overview reading that will help you get a sense of what’s to come. By looking at a zoomed-out view of an era, you’ll be able to think about the patterns and themes that exist within it, something that is often more difficult to figure out when you study history in smaller time periods or segments.

Preview – Skimming for Gist

The first close read is really meant to be a skim of the article. It should be very quick and give you the gist (general idea) of what the article is about. You should be looking at the title, author, headings, pictures, and opening sentences of paragraphs for the gist. On the Three Close Reads worksheet, look at the “Questions” section for the first close read and see which questions you can answer quickly.

Key Ideas – Understanding Content

Now that you’ve completed the first close read, look at the second section of the worksheet. This read is probably closest to the kind of reading you usually do. Basically, you’re trying to get a better understanding of the concepts and arguments that are presented in the article. Review the “Pay Attention to…” and “Questions” sections of the worksheet so you know what to think about when reading and to be sure you understand the information from the article. Also, this is where you will write down any vocab you see in the article that is unfamiliar to you. Your teacher will suggest ways to keep track of these words.

By the end of the second close read, you should be able to answer the following questions:

1. Why did the fourteenth-century Black Death become a “usable” history to more people in 2020?
2. Some historians have argued that students should learn facts or information. Others have argued that they should learn a set of skills. Which approach (facts or skills?) is used in this course?
3. The author of this overview gives an example of a historian of the future working with social media about a fight you had with a friend. Why might a historian care about this fight?
4. Why is it important that historians have several history stories to work with?
5. What is claim testing?
6. What are the three frames in this course?

Evaluating and Corroborating

Now it’s time for the third and final read. For this read, focus on why this article matters, how it connects to other content you’ve studied. Since this is the first reading assignment of the course, you may not connect it to much, other than the knowledge you already have.

At the end of the third read, discuss the following question with your class:

1. Write a brief history story that makes a claim. It can be about anything! Then write down a kind of evidence you might look for to test that claim. Now tells us why this history story might be usable for understanding or acting in the present.

This activity will introduce you to WHP’s map activities. Maps are a great way to show information about our world. They let you know where stuff is in relation to other stuff. They can help orient you in time and space and identify some important historical changes. But maps are also one more way to tell a story. In Unit 1, you’re learning about history frames and narratives. In this first activity, you’ll get familiar with WHP mapping activities by completing a scavenger hunt—a map of your personal world!

You’ll begin this activity by completing a scavenger hunt, in which you identify, label, and annotate a blank map. Next, you’ll discuss what maps are and what they do. Finally, your teacher will do some show-and-tell, guiding you through some of WHP’s maps so you can easily recognize the various blank, political, and thematic maps you’ll encounter in the course.

Step 1

This is the first of several mapping activities you’ll complete in this course. At the beginning of each unit, you will identify features and label them on a map, and at the end of each unit, you will use maps to respond to the Unit Problem or frame narratives.

Individually or in small groups, you should review the scavenger hunt list and label the map to the best of your ability. Some items on the list ask you to provide an annotation—meaning you need to write notes on the map giving additional explanation along with the label. Remember, this is the first map activity, and you’re not expected to know everything.

Step 2

As a whole class, share your answers to the scavenger hunt and make any corrections to your map. Your teacher will then ask you some questions about what maps are and what they do.

Step 3

In groups or as a whole class, your teacher will guide you through some of WHP’s maps. In the scavenger hunt, you’ve just worked with a blank map, but there are two more kinds of maps in WHP activities: political and thematic maps. As your teacher introduces you to each new map, try to identify important features. What information is contained in the map? What do the labels and colors mean? Where is the legend? What did the makers of this map care about? What’s missing from this map? Did anything surprise you?

In this final vocab activity of the unit, as with all the final vocab activities in each unit, you will engage in a deeper exploration of the unit’s vocabulary. You’ll move beyond simply defining words to applying them in this activity, and by doing so, you’ll solidify your understanding and use of the words in context.

In this activity, you’re going to create a live concept map using Unit 1’s vocabulary. In case you haven’t heard of a concept map, it’s typically a diagram that shows the relationships among concepts, with the concepts drawn in circles or boxes. Lines are used to connect the related concepts. In this activity, either string or hand holding will function as the connecting lines.

Your teacher will either give you a vocab card or assign a word and have you make your own card. Then, you’ll take a few minutes to go around the room, making connections to other students’ words. Connections can be made in a number of different ways: You can think about synonyms, antonyms, word families, and even connections to similar ideas. Each time you make a connection, explain what it is to the other student, and then write the word on the back of your vocab card. Every few minutes, your teacher will ask you to explain your current connection. You will start to notice some patterns!

Print and cut out the Supporting Statement Cards

Claim testing is an important analytical process for assessing the quality and veracity (truthfulness) of claims. It helps you “see” and evaluate people’s assertions and gives shape to one of the most important and useful critical thinking practices in history. Since history is all about making assertions, it’s important that you learn the skill of testing claims early and use it frequently as part of evaluating historical accounts and making historical interpretations.

Reading, writing
Being well-versed in claim testing will help you be a critical consumer of what you read. If you use claim testers to construct essays, your speaking and writing skills will improve.

In this course, and in everyday life, we encounter assertions or claims. At times, we believe we can take these at face value, but more and more, it is important to question and test the claims that we come across. In other words, we need to decide if the claims are true, so we can determine what to believe. In this course, we use what we call claim testers to help us check the soundness and strength of our beliefs. The four claim testers are intuition, authority, logic, and evidence. Before we use the claim testers, we need to understand what they are! Look at the claim testing poster on the wall, and get ready to review each claim tester as a class.

Now, you’ll practice with a claim. You are going to get a bunch of statements that support the claim: “There is one true history.” Your job will be to determine which supporting statements match which claim tester. Before starting, think about the following example with your class:

The school board and the government require that we all take the same social studies classes.

What claim tester do you think is being used here? Discuss your answer with the class.

Now that you’ve practiced as a class, get into groups and sort the cards into the four claim testing categories and tape them to the grid in the areas designated by your teacher. You will be asked to defend your categorizations at the end of the activity, especially for those supporting statements that were hard to place in just one claim tester category.

Finally, see if you can come up with any statements or counterclaims that might help debunk the claim, “There is one true history.” Do you believe this claim?

Remember that this course encourages us to consider multiple accounts in history. We all have different perspectives, and that is often reflected in how history stories are told. So, while there might be different stories about the same thing, it’s not necessarily because one story is true and another is false—it’s about our perspective. And often, the story that seems more true is just better supported via claim testers—and that is why you’ll be practicing claim testing all the time in this class.