Whose Document Is This?
A 50-minute Grade 4 lesson on how the maker of a record shows in what the record counts and what it ignores.
Whose Document Is This? is a free 50-minute Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies lesson plan for Common Core standard D2.His.6.3-5 — describe how a source's maker shaped what the source says. It is timed across 5 sections, gives the exact wording to use where the wording carries the mathematics, names 3 misconceptions with the teaching move that addresses each, and ends with an exit ticket and a printable worksheet with its answer key.
- Grade:
- Grade 3 to Grade 5
- Length:
- 50 minutes
- Standard:
- D2.His.6.3-5
Grade 3 to Grade 5 · History
D2.His.6.3-5
Describe how people's perspectives shaped the historical sources they created.
Objective
Students will be able to name a source's maker and purpose and find the line where the purpose shows.
Students are successful when they can
- Names the maker and the date.
- Names the purpose.
- Points at a line where the purpose shows, and at an omission.
What you need
- All eight regional sources with their provenance lines
- Highlighters
- The printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan
The lesson
Warm-up — read the small print first
5 min- Read only the provenance line of the harbour return, then of the union circular.
- Ask what each tells you before a word of the content.
Teach — from maker to line to omission
17 min- The harbour return: made by the harbourmaster for the board. Highlight the dues figure.
- Ask what it does not record: who owned or bought the cargo. He had no reason to.
- The circular: made by the committee for its members. Highlight the profit figure.
- Ask what it omits: the wage bill, which would complicate the argument.
- The health table: made to support a recommendation. Highlight the piped water line.
- Say the method: name the maker, name the purpose, find the line, then find the silence.
- Say the general rule: a source records what its maker needed, not what we want.
“What did the maker need this document to do?”
Guided practice — highlight and list
15 min- Pairs take three sources and highlight the line where the purpose shows.
- They write what each maker had no reason to record.
- Groups compare their omission lists.
Independent practice
10 min- Students complete the 'Whose Document Is This?' page.
- Check the answer uses the source's own words.
Close
3 min- Ask which source's maker is hardest to work out.
What goes wrong, and why
Each of these is a reasoning error rather than carelessness. The fix addresses the reasoning.
Thinks a table of figures has no maker.
Why: Numbers look impersonal.
Fix: The harbourmaster compiled it for a board. Read the provenance line.
Says a source with a purpose cannot be trusted.
Why: Purpose sounds like distortion.
Fix: Every source has one. The purpose tells you what to trust it about.
Confuses omission with concealment.
Why: Both are absences.
Fix: The harbourmaster had no reason to record cargo owners. That is not hiding.
If they are not there yet
- One source with the provenance read aloud.
- Match a maker to one of two purposes.
If they finish early
- Write what the harbour return would look like if dockers had compiled it.
- Find two sources whose makers wanted opposite things.
- Say what the 1998 author needed her book to do.
Exit ticket
Who made the harbour return, why, and what did they have no reason to record?
What to look for: The harbourmaster, for the board, recording nothing about who owned or bought the cargo. A maker with no purpose means the second step is missing.
Printable practice for D2.His.6.3-5
Free to print and copy, answer key included. Each sheet can generate a fresh set of problems for a retake.
- Whose Document Is This?Look at the source, then answer the questions.
Questions about Whose Document Is This?
How long does the Whose Document Is This? lesson take?
50 minutes, split across 5 timed sections: warm-up 5 min, teach 17 min, guided practice 15 min, independent practice 10 min, close 3 min. The minutes are stated per section and add up to the stated length, so the plan can be cut or extended at a section boundary rather than abandoned halfway.
Which standard does Whose Document Is This? teach?
D2.His.6.3-5 — D2.His.6.3-5, History for Grade 3 to Grade 5: “Describe how people's perspectives shaped the historical sources they created.” In plain terms, describe how a source's maker shaped what the source says.
What do I need to teach this lesson?
All eight regional sources with their provenance lines, highlighters and the printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan. Everything listed is either ordinary classroom equipment or a free printable from this site — there is nothing to buy and nothing to prepare beyond photocopying.
What mistakes should I expect in this lesson?
Three, each a reasoning error rather than carelessness: thinks a table of figures has no maker; says a source with a purpose cannot be trusted and confuses omission with concealment. The plan gives the thinking behind each one and the teaching move that addresses the thinking rather than the symptom.
How do I know whether the lesson worked?
The exit ticket asks: “Who made the harbour return, why, and what did they have no reason to record?.” The harbourmaster, for the board, recording nothing about who owned or bought the cargo. A maker with no purpose means the second step is missing. That tells you whether the class needs a reteach or a thirty-second conversation before you plan tomorrow.
Is there a worksheet to go with Whose Document Is This??
Yes — 1 printable D2.His.6.3-5 worksheet, linked at the end of the plan and free like the rest of the site. Each one comes with an answer key and 25 versions, so the practice after the lesson can be a different paper on every desk.
Is Whose Document Is This? free to use?
Yes. The plan, its printables and their answer keys are free to read, print and photocopy for your own class, with no account and no email capture. It was last reviewed on 7 September 2026. Please do not resell it or republish it as your own.
Last reviewed 2026-09-07. Aligned to D2.His.6.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.