Why Historians Disagree · seed 1 · A4, ink-friendly. The answer key prints on its own page for grown-ups.

Same past, different stories

History · Historical Thinking · ages 15-16
Name ______________________   Date ____________

  1. Which of these is a primary source?

    • A letter written at the time
    • A modern film about the event
    • A rumour with no named author

  2. Give two reasons two historians can read the same event differently.

    • They always copy each other exactly
    • They ask different questions and use different sources
    • They never read any evidence at all

  3. What does sourcing a document mean?

    • Counting how many pages it has
    • Asking who made it and why
    • Memorising its date word for word

  4. Old books blamed the plague on bad air; new ones use burial records and DNA. What changed the account?

    • The plague itself changed its germs
    • New evidence and new questions overturned it
    • Historians simply got more stubborn

  5. A book claims the Second World War could not have been avoided. How do you test it?

    • State its claim in one sentence and weigh the evidence beneath
    • Count the book's chapters and trust the total
    • Check whether you like the author's photo

  6. One writer stressing continuity and another stressing sudden change must mean one of them is lying.

    Circle one:   True   False

  7. A friend says historians disagreeing proves nobody knows anything. What is the flaw?

    • Archives never open and questions never change
    • Disagreement ends all further research
    • Tested rivalry is how knowledge moves forward

  8. You argue the war was avoidable, citing two missed negotiations. What earns your case trust?

    • Shouting the claim more loudly than rivals
    • Hiding every fact that favours the other side
    • Admitting the strongest point against you and answering it
LightMySky · lightmysky.comW1-mt_qSzuXmTEJz-s1

Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

Same past, different stories W1-mt_qSzuXmTEJz-s1

  1. A letter written at the time · Primary means made at the time: letters, court records, photos, tools.
  2. They ask different questions and use different sources · Questions, sources, and time of writing all bend the account.
  3. Asking who made it and why · Who plus why plus what it cannot show decides what a source can prove.
  4. New evidence and new questions overturned it · Fresh proof plus sharper questions rewrite accepted stories as a matter of course.
  5. State its claim in one sentence and weigh the evidence beneath · Read history as argument: claim, evidence, gaps, then the other side.
  6. False · Weighing stays against shifts differently across the same dates is honest disagreement.
  7. Tested rivalry is how knowledge moves forward · Rival claims tested against evidence sharpen the field instead of sinking it.
  8. Admitting the strongest point against you and answering it · Showing the other side and still holding the claim is what earns trust.
Worksheet · LightMySky