Evaluate Sources

Evaluate Sources

What students learn

Students learn how to tell whether a source is reliable by checking the author, purpose, date, and evidence. Start with Evaluate Sources: What Makes a Source Reliable? to hear the basic rule.

Why it matters

Researchers do not want to build answers on shaky information. Evaluate Sources: Check the Author and Purpose helps students see that who wrote the source and why it was written can change how much trust it deserves.

Learn the idea

A good reader looks for clues: Who wrote this? What is it trying to do? Does it seem one-sided? Evaluate Sources: Look for Bias, Agenda, and Evidence shows how bias and missing references can weaken a source. Then Evaluate Sources: Check the Date and Spot Unreliable Sources reminds students that newer information matters for current topics and that ads, blogs, and social posts need extra caution.

Try it

Give the student two short articles or webpages about the same topic. Ask them to pick the stronger source and explain why. Have them name at least two checks: author, purpose, date, bias, or evidence.

Parent guide

When the answer is vague, bring it back to one concrete question at a time. Ask, "Who made this?" "Why did they make it?" and "What proves it?" That routine makes source checking feel manageable.