What Is History? Becoming a History Detective

Hello, detective! I am Atlas, and today you become a History Detective. History is the study of the past — everything that already happened, from long ago up until yesterday. But here is the tricky part: nobody alive today saw all of it. So how do we know what truly happened? We do NOT just guess and make up a story. Instead, like a real detective, we look for clues. We call these clues evidence. Evidence is anything real that people from the past left behind. There are three kinds of clues: first, objects — things people made or used, like a clay pot, a coin, or a toy; second, writing — words people recorded, like a letter, a diary, or carvings on a wall; and third, pictures — images people created, like a painting or a photograph. Around the whole world, people left behind all three kinds of clues, so we can learn about many different families, countries, and ways of living. A good detective examines the evidence carefully. Examine means to look at something closely and ask questions: Who made this? When? What does it tell us? If we are not sure, we look for more clues. Guessing might be fun, but it can be wrong. Evidence helps us get closer to the truth. So pick up your magnifying glass and let us investigate!