Virginia SOL S.USI.a
The Standard
synthesizing evidence from information sources including, but not limited to artifacts, primary and secondary sources, charts, graphs, and diagrams to understand events in United States history
Virginia Standards of Learning for History and Social Science
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students gather details from artifacts, written sources, images, charts, graphs, and diagrams. They combine those details to explain a historical event and support a conclusion.
What Mastery Looks Like
- Students make a clear claim about an event using evidence from at least two source types. They explain how the evidence connects and note when sources differ.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may summarize each source separately instead of combining evidence. They may assume primary sources are always accurate or overlook labels, dates, scale, and source perspective.
How to Assess It
- Give students a photograph, diary excerpt, and simple graph about one event. Ask them to write one conclusion supported by evidence from two sources.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Set up source stations with a replica artifact, map, letter, and graph, then have groups build an evidence board about one event.
Ask students to write: Which source best explains what happened, and which second source adds missing information?
Play Evidence Match, where teams pair claims with source cards and earn a point for explaining each match.
Compare a school event photo, announcement, and attendance chart, then explain how combining them creates a fuller account.
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Printable S.USI.a Worksheet
A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to S.USI.a, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.
PDF, US Letter, prints cleanly in black and white.
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Related Standards
- S.VS.a
analyzing and interpreting information sources, including but not limited to artifacts, primary and secondary sources, charts, graphs, and diagrams
- S.CE.a
selecting and synthesizing evidence from information sources, including, but not limited to artifacts, primary and secondary sources, charts, graphs, and diagra...
- S.3.a
analyzing and interpreting information sources, including, but not limited to artifacts, primary and secondary sources, charts, graphs, and diagrams
- S.USII.a
synthesizing evidence from information sources, including, but not limited to artifacts, primary and secondary sources, charts, graphs, and diagrams to understa...
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