More than Primary Sources: Teaching about the Archival Profession as a Method of K–12 Outreach

Abstract

Traditional archival outreach methods for K–12 students teach children how to be historians—not archivists—by emphasizing critical thinking skills and document analysis. In contrast, K–12 outreach in the field of archaeology simultaneously emphasizes archaeological work, historical analysis, and critical thinking. This article examines both the archival and archaeological K–12 outreach models and draws from one of the authors’ experiences at The History Center, in Diboll, Texas, to suggest changes to archival K–12 outreach that will leverage the profession’s preexisting interactions with students to advocate for archives.