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Research

Lesson 23: Flex Research: When History Looks Different

50 min

California CCSS: Focus Standards

California CCSS: Supporting Standards

ELD Standards

Student Lesson

Lesson 23: Flex Research: When History Looks Different

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Student Learning Objectives

Content

Students will corroborate two sources about the same aspect of Japanese American incarceration by identifying agreement, divergence, and reasons the accounts differ.

Language

Students will explain how purpose, audience, access, and time of creation shape source differences using evidence-based language and source attribution.

Essential Question

How can readers evaluate words and images for accuracy, perspective, and ethical use?

Connections to

Knowledge-Building:

Students build on the previous lesson by returning to a photograph that was already analyzed and pairing it with a second source.

Enduring Understanding:

Historical understanding depends on how events are documented and interpreted across different kinds of sources.

Future Lessons:

In future lessons, students will revisit survivor stories and associated photographs with attention to perspective, tone, and purpose.

Unit Performance Task:

Students gather and compare image and text evidence so they can present a hidden or overlooked story with accurate context and ethical representation.

Lesson Pacing

Lesson Flow	Purpose of Learning Experience
Launch5 Minutes	Students reconnect to the photograph they analyzed in Lesson 22 and identify what new source could deepen or challenge their first reading.
Literacy Lab: Corroboration Moves + Search Terms10 Minutes	Students learn the corroboration routine and build precise search terms that help them find a useful second source.
Learning in Action30 Minutes	Part A: Find a Second Source (W.7.7, W.7.8) Students use search terms and a source set to locate and record a second source connected to their original image. Part B: Explain Agreement and Difference (RI.7.6, RI.7.9) Students compare two sources on the same event or aspect and explain why the sources might represent it differently.

Vocabulary

Vocabulary Addressed in Lesson

corroborate: to compare sources to check where they agree or add to each other
divergence: a point where sources differ

Vocabulary for Additional Support

keyword: an important search word or phrase
access: the chance or ability to see, know, or record something

Material List

Seen and Unseen
Unit 2 Lesson 23 Student Edition
Comparing Multiple Sources graphic organizer
Students’ Lesson 22 annotated photograph or image notes
Approved printed corroboration source set with short oral-history excerpts, captions, historical notices, and archival images related to Japanese American incarceration

Routines

Turn and Talk
Quick Write

Lesson Sequence

Continue using the shared class model topic from the Lesson 22 research pair: a photograph showing a Japanese American family waiting for removal. The class will model how to find and compare a second source about the same event or aspect.

Display the three corroboration moves:

Read laterally: check who made the source and what kind of source it is before trusting its claims
Identify agreement: notice what both sources show, state, or suggest
Interpret divergence: explain why sources may differ because of purpose, audience, access, or time created

Teach:

When I corroborate, I do not ask only, “Did these sources match?” I ask, “What exact part of the event am I researching, and what second source could show a different angle on it?” A broad search like “WWII” is too wide, but a search like “Japanese American family removal 1942 oral history” is focused enough to find something usable. Once I find a second source, I compare where the sources agree, and then I explain the divergence by thinking about purpose, audience, access, and when each source was created.

Display this search formula:

event or aspect + place or year + source type

Examples:

Japanese American removal 1942 interview
assembly center family letter California
Dorothea Lange evacuation caption 1942
Ask: Which search string is most likely to help you find a useful second source about the photo of a Japanese American family in 1942?
- “Japanese American family removal 1942 interview” is the strongest search string because it names the group, the event, the time, and the kind of source I want.

PURPOSE

Support students in turning a broad topic into a focused search string and in explaining why a chosen source type is likely to deepen or complicate what the photograph shows.

SAY / ASK

Invite students to compare how they choose keywords in everyday online searching and then shift that strategy into academic search language.

Have students first point to or name the exact event or aspect they notice in the photograph before they build a search string. This keeps the search anchored to one detail instead of a broad historical topic.

Press students to build all three parts of the search formula aloud: event or aspect, place or year, and source type.

When students name a source type, prompt them to add a reason using because so they practice justifying why that source type is useful.

“You said, ‘I’d search family picture camp’—we can say, ‘I would search Japanese American family removal 1942 oral history because I need a source about the same removal event.’”

“You said, ‘I want another thing about this’—we can explain that by saying, ‘I need a second source that matches the same event or aspect and adds a different angle.’”

The event or aspect in my photo is ___, so my search string starts with ___.

I added ___ to narrow the search to the same time, place, or moment.

I chose ___ as the source type because it could reveal ___ that the photograph does not show.

WATCH FOR / SUPPORT IF NEEDED

Allow students to rehearse explanations in a shared home language before stating them in English.

If students give a one-word or overly broad search phrase such as “camp” or “WWII” → Prompt: "Say the exact event first. Now add a year, place, or source type so your search points to the same moment more precisely."

If students can name a source type but cannot explain why it helps → Prompt: "What can that source type show that a photograph cannot? Add that reason after because."

Student turns a broad topic word into a focused three-part search string that includes the event or aspect, a narrowing detail, and a source type.

Student explains a search choice with because and names how the second source could add information the photograph does not show.

Check for Understanding (W.7.8)
Write one focused search string for your own photograph and explain why it is more useful than a broad topic word. Japanese American removal children 1942 oral history
Modeling:
If needed, prompt students to move from a one-word topic to a searchable phrase by adding the event, time, place, or source type.

Check for Understanding (W.7.8)

Write one focused search string for your own photograph and explain why it is more useful than a broad topic word.

Japanese American removal children 1942 oral history

Modeling:

If needed, prompt students to move from a one-word topic to a searchable phrase by adding the event, time, place, or source type.

Connection to Today’s Learning:

Say: You are ready to use focused search language to locate a second source and record it accurately.

Part A: Find and Compare a Second Source (W.7.7, W.7.8) (15 minutes)

Students use their Lesson 22 photograph as Source 1 and search the approved source set for Source 2. Keep the focus on the same event or aspect, not just the same general topic.

Say these Directions: Take out your Lesson 22 photograph notes. Use the Comparing Multiple Sources organizer to record your photograph as Source 1, then use two search strings to locate a second source that addresses the same event or aspect. Record full source information before you begin comparing the two sources.

Ask: What detail from your first source are you using as the anchor for your search?
- I am using the detail that the families are crowded together and a mother is holding her baby before removal. That helps me search for a source about removal, departure, or evacuation instead of a general source about camp life.
Ask: What details from each source are important to your understanding?

	Source 1	Source 2
What do you know about this source?	Dorothea Lange photograph of families at Turlock Assembly Center before removal, May 1942, photograph	Later oral-history excerpt from a person removed with family members, interview, oral history, published 1976
What do you know about the author or photographer?	Dorothea Lange was hired by the War Relocation Authority (WRA) to photograph the forced removal and incarceration of Japanese Americans.	Survivor who experienced removal as a child alongside family members. Firsthand account, but not much more known.
What can you learn from this source? What mood, tone, or emotion does it convey?	The photograph shows the human reality of forced removal. It reveals how nervous these ordinary families and small children were, undermining any wartime justification that they posed a threat.	The oral history reveals the emotional impact of removal that a photograph cannot capture: fear, confusion, loss, and the lasting trauma on family relationships.

Check for Understanding (W.7.8)
Record the source information for Source 2 and write one sentence explaining how it connects to Source 1. [Name of person], interview/oral history, published 1976. This is an account from an adult who experienced removal as a child, and it reveals the inner and lasting emotional impact of the moment shown in the photograph: fear, confusion, loss, and the lasting trauma on family relationships.
Modeling:
If needed, prompt students to use this frame: “This source connects to my photograph because both sources show ___.”

Check for Understanding (W.7.8)

Record the source information for Source 2 and write one sentence explaining how it connects to Source 1.

[Name of person], interview/oral history, published 1976. This is an account from an adult who experienced removal as a child, and it reveals the inner and lasting emotional impact of the moment shown in the photograph: fear, confusion, loss, and the lasting trauma on family relationships.

Modeling:

If needed, prompt students to use this frame: “This source connects to my photograph because both sources show ___.”

Situation	Try this
Struggling with: Narrowing a search	Offer a three-part frame: group + event + source type. For example, students can move from Japanese Americans to Japanese American removal letter. Recording source information: Have students underline the creator, circle the date, and box the source type before copying the information onto the organizer. written output: Allow students to orally state their source information first or use speech-to-text for the connection sentence.
Ready for extension	Students generate a third search string that would help them find a source with a different perspective on the same event, then add that to the organizer. Students identify whether their second source is primary or secondary and explain how that affects what it can reveal.

Part B: Explain Agreement and Difference (RI.7.6, RI.7.9) (15 minutes)

Corroboration

Students finish the organizer by identifying one agreement, one divergence, and one explanation for the divergence. Then they test their reasoning with a partner.

Say these Directions: Use the last sections of your organizer to identify one point of agreement and one point of divergence between your two sources. Then write 2–3 sentences explaining why the sources might represent the same event differently. Use at least two of these words in your response: purpose, audience, access, time, and perspective.

Ask: What is one way your two sources agree, and what is one likely reason they differ?
- My two sources agree that families were forced to leave quickly with only what they could carry. They differ because the photograph was made during the event and mostly shows the outside of the moment while the oral history was told later and explains the emotions and memories behind it.
Ask: What question can you ask your partner to help test their explanation for divergence?
- I can ask, “Do you think the difference comes more from when the source was created or from what the creator wanted the audience to notice?”

Display the following completed bottom organizer row if needed for support and guidance:

Similarities (Agreement)	Differences (Divergence)	What Conclusions Can You Draw? (Why the Difference May Exist)
Both sources show forced removal of ordinary families.	The photo shows outward calm while the oral history describes fear and confusion.	The photo captures one visible moment, but the oral history was created later and adds reflection, memory, and personal feeling.

Similarities (Agreement)

Differences

(Divergence)

What Conclusions Can You Draw? (Why the Difference May Exist)

Both sources show forced removal of ordinary families.

The photo shows outward calm while the oral history describes fear and confusion.

The photo captures one visible moment, but the oral history was created later and adds reflection, memory, and personal feeling.

Pulse Check (RI.7.9, RI.7.6)
A 1942 photograph shows a family standing quietly with luggage before removal. A later oral-history interview about the same removal describes fear, anger, and confusion. Which explanation best accounts for the difference between the two sources? One of the two sources must be inaccurate because credible sources always match exactly. Incorrect: This reflects the misconception that divergence means one source is false. Credible sources often differ because of perspective, purpose, and what each source can capture. The later oral history adds reflection and emotion that a photograph of one moment could not fully show, and each source was created under different conditions and for a different purpose. Correct: This answer explains divergence by considering medium, time of creation, and creator purpose. The photograph is automatically more trustworthy because it was created first. Incorrect: This reflects the misconception that earlier always means more accurate. Timing matters, but it does not make a source automatically complete or superior. The oral history is automatically more trustworthy because personal memory always includes every important detail. Incorrect: This reflects the misconception that memory is total and complete. Oral history is valuable, but it also reflects later reflection and selective memory.

Pulse Check (RI.7.9, RI.7.6)

A 1942 photograph shows a family standing quietly with luggage before removal. A later oral-history interview about the same removal describes fear, anger, and confusion. Which explanation best accounts for the difference between the two sources?

One of the two sources must be inaccurate because credible sources always match exactly.
- Incorrect: This reflects the misconception that divergence means one source is false. Credible sources often differ because of perspective, purpose, and what each source can capture.
The later oral history adds reflection and emotion that a photograph of one moment could not fully show, and each source was created under different conditions and for a different purpose.
- Correct: This answer explains divergence by considering medium, time of creation, and creator purpose.
The photograph is automatically more trustworthy because it was created first.
- Incorrect: This reflects the misconception that earlier always means more accurate. Timing matters, but it does not make a source automatically complete or superior.
The oral history is automatically more trustworthy because personal memory always includes every important detail.
- Incorrect: This reflects the misconception that memory is total and complete. Oral history is valuable, but it also reflects later reflection and selective memory.

Situation	Try this
Struggling with: Explaining divergence	Offer this frame: “Both sources show ___, but they differ because ___ had access to ___ while ___ could reveal ___.” using evidence from both sources: Have students place a star next to one specific detail in each source before they begin writing. written explanation: Allow students to record an oral explanation first, then turn that oral rehearsal into two written sentences.
Ready for extension	Students identify which source better reveals visible conditions and which better reveals lived experience, then explain why both are still necessary. Students propose a third source type that could further complicate the comparison and explain what new information it might add.

Lesson Texts

Short-Form Text

Exposing Injustice: Incarceration of Japanese Americans

Dorothea Lange Digital Archive at the Oakland Museum of California

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Lesson Materials

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Comparing Multiple Sources297 KB

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Status updates

California CCSS: Focus Standards

California CCSS: Supporting Standards

ELD Standards

Student Learning Objectives

Essential Question

Connections to

Lesson Pacing

Vocabulary

Vocabulary Addressed in Lesson

Vocabulary for Additional Support

Lesson Sequence

Turn and Talk

🎯PURPOSE

🗣️SAY / ASK

👁️WATCH FOR / SUPPORT IF NEEDED

Check for Understanding (W.7.8)

Part A: Find and Compare a Second Source (W.7.7, W.7.8) (15 minutes)

🎯PURPOSE

🗣️SAY / ASK

👁️WATCH FOR / SUPPORT IF NEEDED

Check for Understanding (W.7.8)

Part B: Explain Agreement and Difference (RI.7.6, RI.7.9) (15 minutes)

Corroboration

🎯PURPOSE

🗣️SAY / ASK

👁️WATCH FOR / SUPPORT IF NEEDED

Pulse Check (RI.7.9, RI.7.6)

Quick Write

Lesson Texts

Lesson Materials

PURPOSE

SAY / ASK

WATCH FOR / SUPPORT IF NEEDED

PURPOSE

SAY / ASK

WATCH FOR / SUPPORT IF NEEDED

PURPOSE

SAY / ASK

WATCH FOR / SUPPORT IF NEEDED