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Teaching Data Literacy in Social Studies: An Interactive Professional Development Tool Why teach data literacy in social studies? Not only is data literacy required by state standards and included in standardized assessments, it is important for understanding core social studies disciplines. This module addresses the role that data visualizations play in social studies standards, assessments, and texts. It also provides links to resources that can be used to support data literacy as a component of disciplinary literacy. What kinds of data visualizations will students encounter in social studies? Information can be visualized in multiple ways, from bar graphs to scatterplots, choropleth maps to distribution maps, timelines to time series. Designers can choose from an array of graphical elements such as points, lines, or icons used to represent data, and multiple aesthetic attributes such as color, shape, and size. Furthermore, designers can apply multiple combinations of titles, legends, and explanatory text to provide context for a data visualization. Given the almost dizzying array of data visualizations students may encounter in social studies, it is helpful to place them in categories related to the types of questions they will help us answer. How do students learn with data visualizations? Reading data visualizations in print and online social studies texts can improve students' overall comprehension and quality of reasoning. And there is evidence to suggest that reading data visualizations helps students better understand historical and geographic context, multiple causation, and change over time — all important concepts for students to grasp in social studies subject areas. However, students may face significant challenges in trying to make sense of different kinds of data visualizations. This section provides insight into both benefits and challenges of reading timelines, maps, and graphs and charts. How should students analyze data visualizations in social studies? The challenges that data visualizations present, coupled with their prevalence in social studies texts, standardized assessments, in online social studies resources, and as sources of information in society, suggest that teaching with and about data visualizations in social studies is essential. This module provides guidance for how teachers can support students' data literacy for social studies. Index of Lesson Plans This page contains a list of the minimal manuals and lessons found on this website. Minimal manuals are designed to be adapted to different grade levels and do not have a grade designation associated with them. Lesson plans are organized according to the school level for which they are designed. However, many of these lessons can be adapted for different grade levels.

Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History

This page provides two ways to view primary source data visualizations and their connection to Michigan social studies standards. First you can link to pages with a list of standards connected to data visualizations. Next, data visualizations are organized by the time periods that correspond to those in the Michigan State Standards for 3rd and 4th grade, where Michigan history is taught. The primary sources within each section are listed in chronological order and can be viewed more closely, along with their descriptions, by clicking on "go there."

Click HERE to see how these primary source data visualizations are connected to Michigan Social Studies Standards for 3rd Grade Michigan History.

Click HERE to see how these primary source data visualizations are connected to Michigan Social Studies Standards for 4th Grade Michigan History.

Michigan Before Statehood

Michigan After Statehood

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This map of Michigan created in 1953 by Herbert Bayer and the Container Corporation of America shows many human characteristics and economic activity within the state. Some of these include principal resources, population, occupations, manufacturing, mineral production, agriculture, and land use. The left hand sideline contains a long description of important information that Michigan is known for. This image can be found at https://www.davidrumsey.com/.
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1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
One year before Michigan's statehood, this new map of Michigan-- created by Henry S. Turner --shows the different canals, roads & distances of Michigan. At the very top center of the map there is an explanation that goes over the various symbols provided on the map. The right sidelines of the map give steamboat routes of locations from Detroit to Fort Gratiot, Detroit to Fort Howard, and Detroit to Buffalo. This image can be found at https://www.davidrumsey.com/.
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1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
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1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
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1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
Designed by Thomas Campbell-Copeland, this is a map that displays the political battle ground in the presidential elections from 1872-1888. The voting for each Michigan county is represented in colored bars for the years of 1872, 1876, 1880, 1884 and 1888. The bars that are blank were intended to be filled in after the 1888 election. The black bars resemble a majority vote for the Democratic Party and the red resembles a majority vote for the Republican Party for that year. For further explanation of colors, a key can be found on the upper right hand side of the map. The left sidelines of the map also give information on votes per county for Supreme Court Judges in 1887, votes for president in 1884, and the analysis for voting for president from 1872-1800. This image can be found at https://collections.leventhalmap.org.
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1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
The Cliffs Shaft Mine was a former iron mine that is now a heritage museum. The museum celebrates the history of the Marquette Iron Range. The mining company established 5 mining pits and different shafts A-E. This mine at one time was also the nation's largest producer of hematite. This map shows one side of the mining site as there is also another map on the Michigan History Primary Source page to show the second side.
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1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
The Cliffs Shaft Mine was a former iron mine that is now a heritage museum. The museum celebrates the history of the Marquette Iron Range. The mining company established 5 mining pits and different shafts A-E. This mine at one time was also the nation's largest producer of hematite. This map shows one side of the mining site as there is also another map on the Michigan History Primary Source page to show the first side.
Contents of this tag:
1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
Taken from the Altas of the State of Michigan from the University of Michigan Library, this map shows the climatology of Michigan estimated from the year of 1873. The Altas was created by Alexander Winchell and edited by H.F. Walling. The image show two different maps of Michigan's climatology. The first map demonstrates the seasons of January and July and the second map shows between summer and winter.
Contents of this tag:
1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
Contents of this tag:
1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
The creator of this map is unknown, however it establishes and displays information regarding the lumbering lands owned by mining companies in the upper peninsula. The map also shows the proposed operations of the lumbering department for period from March 1st to December 1st in 1923. The different colors on the map show the different mining companies. A legend is provided at the bottom center to distinguish the different meanings of the colors.
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1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
This is a map from 1914 of the city of Grand Rapids, Michigan. The map shows how the city was organized at the time and where buildings were. The black squares near the top left corner of the map show the clustered buildings and architecture in the city. The red lines represent overall elevation in the area. This image can be found at USGS Science For a Changing World off of the Old Maps Online website.
Contents of this tag:
1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
Contents of this tag:
1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
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1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
This map of Michigan from 1966 shows the geology of the domes & basins within the state of Michigan. The left hand side of the map contains a description and gives more information about domes and basins. The authors James L. Scovel and Emmett J. O'Brien provided relief in the center of the map by adding contour and spot height. Depth of the map is shown by gradient hints. This image can be found at https://www.davidrumsey.com/.
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1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
This pictorial map shows the world's largest indoor-outdoor history museum which was dedicated to Henry Ford. The museum is 13 acres and celebrates many accomplishments of American innovators. This particular map of the museum was created in 1951 and displays many buildings with index. The sidelines correlate where each building is located. There is also a compass rose in the center. This image can be found at https://www.davidrumsey.com/.
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1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
Published in 1903 from the United States Census Office (the twelfth census) and supervised by Henry Gannett, this map shows the distribution of the death rate of influenza per 100,000 of population in Michigan. The map is divided up by counties in the lower and upper peninsula of Michigan and displays areas where death rates were impacted; some higher and lower than others. The lower left hand corner shows a key to what the different colors represent. This image can be found at https://www.davidrumsey.com/.
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1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
This colored Altas Map of the city of Detroit, Michigan was created and published in 1891 by D. Appleton & Co, appromimately 54 years after Michigan was founded as a state. Railways, street car lines, blocks, parks, and canals are a few physical features shown. It also includes numerical references to deports, hotels, churches, important buildings, and many key points of interest. This image can be found at https://www.davidrumsey.com/.
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1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
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1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
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1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
Created in 1822 by H.C. Carey, this colored Altas Map displays the territory of Michigan before establishing statehood. This Altas is also the first American Altas to model Le Sage's plan of adding explanatory text on the sidelines of a map. Some of the explanatory text on the sidelines include the boundaries, face of the country (soil), lakes, bays, and rivers, animals, climate, civil divisions and population, towns and forts, commerce, government, and a historical sketch outline. The map in the center presents the general territory and rivers that they had charted at the time. This image can be found at https://www.davidrumsey.com/.
Contents of this tag:
1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
Contents of this tag:
1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
This map was created in 1873 by H.F. Walling and Alexander Winchell. Alexandar Winchell was a known as the Chancellor of the University of Syracuse and was a state geologist of Michigan at the time. This map shows the geological formations in the state of Michigan by using colors. Each color is represented on the left sideline of the map with a description of what it correlates with. The sideline also has different geological periods listed to go with each geological formation. This image can be found at https://www.davidrumsey.com/.
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1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History
With no date on the title page, this map was estimated with the copyright date between 1831-1835. This map of Michigan, which was before it became a state, was created by David H. Burr. It is in full color with territories and boundaries marked on the map. Important landmarks, such as rivers and lakes are also marked on the map, including counties. This image can be found at https://www.davidrumsey.com/.
Contents of this tag:
1. Primary Source Data Visualizations for Michigan History