Teaching with Primary Sources

NCTE is engaged in work with the Library of Congress as part of the Teaching with Primary Sources Consortium to expand the use of primary sources in the teaching and learning habits of literacy teachers and students. 

New Resources for Teachers

In February 2025 NCTE and the Library of Congress released Working with Primary Sources in the English Language Arts Classroom. The book draws on nonfiction texts from the Library collection to explore methods for teaching with these and other original documents and objects.

NCTE and the Library also published a searchable database of more than 150 strategies for teaching with digitized primary sources from the Library collection, bringing these fascinating materials to classrooms across the country.

More than three dozen teachers lent their time and expertise to this project. Both resources are openly available to educators in ELA and other areas with an interest in embedding primary source use in education programs to deepen learner engagement, literacy, critical thinking skills, and content knowledge.

The book and database were created by ELA teachers and leaders convened by NCTE through grant funding from the Library’s Teaching with Primary Sources program, an effort to expand the use of primary sources in the teaching and learning habits of literacy teachers and students.

Working with Primary Sources in the English Language Arts Classroom

This peer-reviewed collection of teaching ideas and assignments details ways in which ELA have taught their students to examine Library sources critically. It is the first copublished book by NCTE and the Library.

Over the course of two years, a cohort of teachers met and discussed how to incorporate primary sources into their literature, poetry, and writing curricula.

The resulting chapters draw on nonfiction texts from the Library’s holdings to explore applications in the ELA classroom. Sources include images, film, and audio recordings.

Searchable Database of Primary Source Strategies

This searchable database includes strategies for teaching with more than 150 specific items in the Library’s digitized primary source collection. The strategies were created by teachers and leaders in English language arts education.

The strategies articulate specific literacy merit for curriculum or classroom use, along with suggested themes, units, and state standards. Content is searchable through tags such as picturebook and argument.

The strategies will help teachers who already incorporate these primary sources in the classroom as well as those who have not yet explored the Library’s vast resources.