Source Detective Evidence

Overview

Lesson 4 of 10 explicitly teaches Year 5 students how to gather and evaluate evidence from primary and secondary sources. Students practise these skills using short source packs about a colonial Gold Rush figure they have chosen, and complete an evidence gathering sheet with scaffolded notes that match report subheadings.

Learning intentions

• Students will be able to identify whether a source is primary or secondary and explain why.
• Students will evaluate sources by considering origin, purpose and perspectives.
• Students will gather relevant information and record it accurately using scaffolded frames.
• Students will use evaluated evidence to write report notes for their figure under subheadings.

Success criteria

• I can sort sources as primary or secondary and justify my choice.
• I can say what a source was created for (purpose) and who it might represent (perspective).
• I can point to specific details from the source when recording notes.
• I can choose the best evidence for each report subheading and record it clearly.

Curriculum links

• AC9HS5S04: evaluate primary and secondary sources to determine origin, purpose and perspectives.
• AC9HS5S02: locate, collect and organise information and data from primary and secondary sources in a range of formats (using evidence gathering sheets).
• AC9HS5S05: develop evidence-based conclusions by selecting evidence (not just opinions) to support report notes.
• AC9HS5K03 / AC9HS5K02: connect the figure’s role and colonial impact (where relevant to students’ chosen figure and colonial life context).

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–5 min · Retrieval starter. Teacher shows three quick “clue” statements (e.g., “written at the time”, “made later from research”, “a poster to persuade people”) and students vote with fingers for primary/secondary; teacher records common misconceptions.
2. 5–15 min · Explicit teach: Source evaluation toolkit. Teacher introduces a simple 4-question “Detective Checklist” and models using a one-minute think-aloud on a sample source.

• Q1: Origin—Who made it and when?
• Q2: Purpose—Why was it made?
• Q3: Perspective—What viewpoint or group does it reflect?
• Q4: Usefulness—What evidence does it provide for my report question? Teacher highlights that the same event can look different in different sources.

3. 15–20 min · Guided practice: Whole-class evidence scan. Teacher provides a short pair of sources (one primary, one secondary) about the same aspect (e.g., work conditions, discovery, protest, travel, living arrangements). Students underline one “fact evidence” sentence in each and then discuss which source is more useful for a chosen subheading (e.g., “What was their role?”).
4. 20–45 min · Guided practice in groups: Evidence gathering sheet. Students work with their figure source pack (teacher-selected mix of primary and secondary). Teacher releases through steps:

• Step A (2 minutes): Students confirm which sources are primary/secondary using the checklist.
• Step B (8 minutes): Students complete only the “Source details” boxes (origin, purpose, perspective) for 2 sources.
• Step C (12 minutes): Students fill the “Evidence for subheading” section by copying/recording 2–3 key pieces of evidence per subheading using sentence starters:
• “The source shows…”
• “Because it was made by…, it may…”
• “This is useful for… (subheading) because…”
• Step D (3 minutes): Students do a quick relevance check: “Does this evidence answer my subheading question?”

5. 45–58 min · Teacher conferences: reliability and note quality. Teacher rotates through 5–6 small groups for 2–3 minute check-ins while others continue fine-tuning notes. Conference focus:

• Are students identifying origin, purpose and perspective correctly?
• Have they recorded specific evidence (not general statements)?
• Are they choosing evidence that matches the subheading? Teacher uses a brief checklist to give immediate “next step” feedback (e.g., “Add purpose”, “Rewrite as evidence not opinion”, “Swap to more relevant source”).

6. 58–60 min · Exit ticket. Students submit one mini-answer: “One source I used is primary/secondary because… and the purpose/perspective was…”

Resources

• Detective Checklist (poster on board)
• Evidence gathering sheet with report subheading frames (1 per student)
• Figure source packs (printed or tablet-ready) including both primary and secondary sources
• Highlighters/coloured pens
• Source quote strips (optional) for struggling students to select exact lines
• Timer for group tasks
• Teacher conference checklist clipboards
• Student notebooks for rough notes
• Access to a map image of the colony/Gold Rush region (for context, if needed)

Assessment

• Formative during guided practice: teacher observes source sorting accuracy and relevance checking.
• Conference assessment: brief rating of note quality (specific evidence, accurate origin/purpose/perspective).
• Exit ticket: checks understanding of primary/secondary reasoning and one source evaluation element.

Differentiation

• Support:
• Provide sentence starters and partially completed “Source details” examples for students needing scaffolds.
• Offer a “choose 2 pieces of evidence” constraint to reduce overwhelm.
• Use colour-coding: primary (blue), secondary (green).
• Extension:
• Ask students to identify a potential stereotype or over-generalisation in a source and state how it might affect usefulness (e.g., describing groups unfairly).
• Challenge students to justify why one source is more reliable/useful for a subheading.
• EAL/SEN:
• Offer word banks for origin/purpose/perspective phrases (e.g., “was written by…”, “to persuade…”, “suggests that…”).
• Allow oral rehearsal of notes with teacher before writing.
• Classroom management:
• Keep group roles (Reader, Recorder, Checker, Timekeeper) to maintain engagement and ensure all students contribute.