Long Ago and Today: How We Learn About the Past

Look at your own two hands. A very long time ago — even before your grandparents were born — kids used hands just like yours to grind corn, weave baskets, and light fires without matches. How do we know that? Because people leave clues behind!

Learn what 'history' means and why it happens before you were born. Learn 3 kinds of clues (artifacts, photos, and stories) that teach us about the past. Learn to sort a group of objects into 'old' and 'new.' Learn how a museum keeps old things safe so we can learn from them.

History is the story of everything that happened before right now — even five minutes ago is history! But when we say 'history' in school, we usually mean a long time ago: hundreds or even thousands of years back. Every single day that has ever happened adds one more page to the giant story of history.

An artifact is an object a real person made or used long ago, like a clay pot, a stone tool, or an old toy. Historians (people whose job is studying the past) also use old photographs and stories that grandparents and great-grandparents pass down. In Egypt, historians found painted clay pots that are over 5,000 years old — older than almost any building standing today!

Historians sort objects by figuring out clues: Is it made of stone, wood, or plastic? Does it have a date stamped on it? Does it look like something your family still uses today? A stone axe is very old. A plastic lunchbox is new. Sorting objects this way is one of the first steps in studying history.

Museums are special buildings where historians keep artifacts safe so everyone can see real clues from the past. Workers control the light and air around old objects so they don't crumble or fade. When you visit a museum and see a real 200-year-old dress or tool behind glass, you are looking at a real clue from history!