What to purchase for timelines

[Beth Walker]

I am planning to do a wall chart timeline starting next year with my D students. I have looked at the History Through the Ages timeline figures and also the Knowledge Quest timelines (wall posters). Should I use the wall chart that comes with the History Through the Ages packet or should I purchase the Knowledge Quest timelines and place the HTTA figures on that chart instead. Or is there some other system that others have found works better? My main thing is that we will be starting over with Year 1 next year (2nd time through) and I want my students to keep the timeline for the next 4 years, adding to it as we go. I need something durable to display on the wall that will hold up for four years. I would love to know how others do their timeline wall charts.

Thanks,

Beth

[DanaCinTN]

Have you seen the Adams Chart of World History that Bookshelf Central sells? It can pull out (or stay in accordion style) to over 25' long...we loved it when we were homeschooling! http://bookshelfcentral.com/index.ph...oducts_id=1230

Blessings,

[Beth Walker]

I did see that Dana, but my understanding is that this is a timeline that is already put together with all the info filled in. I want to have my girls create the timeline as we go along and add the events/people we study. Please correct me if I am wrong on this. Or, if you see a benefit to a pre-made timeline over creating our own I am curious to know your thoughts. I always value your insights!

[Marcia]

Just curious, Beth, but why do you want to do a wall time line as opposed to notebook-based, individual ones?

[Beth Walker]

First of all, I thought that is what everyone did! It wasn't until I started researching what to buy that I realized a lot of people do the notebook style timelines. I like the visual reminder being up all the time. To me, the notebook is "out of sight, out of mind" but wall charts are a constant reminder of people and events and the scale of time. For the same reason, I plan to frame and put on our wall the Map of Humanities. I love that!

I also like the idea of making it a "group" project (my two girls will do it together but I am sure their little brothers will be watching!) And of course, the boys will get to do their own when they are older too.

I really am open to ideas and would love to know why people choose the individual notebook timelines over the wall charts. I have been looking forward to this stage ever since we started Tapestry 6 years ago but I am glad I haven't bought anything yet. :-)

[DanaCinTN]

Hi Beth,
Personally, I think there are several ways to use time lines. I assigned my boys the time line dates in the year-plans and each made his own from 8th - 11th grade (one full rotation through TOG). The purpose of individually made ones is so that the student can see at a glance *the events that he has studied* and how they fit together. We used the Time Line Creator that Bookshelf Central sells for this purpose.

However, we also used the Adams Chart of History, as I previously mentioned. The purpose in this is to have a visual of all major events (even those not studied). We would pick an event...say, the Civil War...and run our fingers vertically down the page to see what else was going on elsewhere in the world.

I think it is akin to having an atlas for reference and using Map Aids for practice in finding and labeling locations.

Hope this helps some!

Blessings,

[Marcia]

First of all, I thought that is what everyone did! It wasn't until I started researching what to buy that I realized a lot of people do the notebook style timelines. I like the visual reminder being up all the time. To me, the notebook is "out of sight, out of mind" but wall charts are a constant reminder of people and events and the scale of time. For the same reason, I plan to frame and put on our wall the Map of Humanities. I love that!

I also like the idea of making it a "group" project (my two girls will do it together but I am sure their little brothers will be watching!) And of course, the boys will get to do their own when they are older too.

I really am open to ideas and would love to know why people choose the individual notebook timelines over the wall charts. I have been looking forward to this stage ever since we started Tapestry 6 years ago but I am glad I haven't bought anything yet. :-)

I chose (and recommend) individual notebook/computer time lines because I found them to be more effective with my own kids, in terms of the REASON why we do time line work at all. Have you ever posted a reminder sign on your refrigerator and then noticed that, after about a month, you don't even notice it anymore? I used to have a time line on my wall in my early homeschooling days for the same reason as you: I thought it was what everyone did. However, I realized over time that *I* was the one learning from it about the big-picture connections of history, not my kids. I found that after I switched to the individualized notebook/computer software approach, EACH child began interacting with the WORK and THINKING of DOING their time lines. THEY were searching for just the right spot on the line for each event/person, each of them, and then drawing in the figures, and then noticing the connections for themselves. Having done the work, each remembered the insights far more than when we used wall time lines.

An unlooked-for bonus was that we used dedicated notebooks for these four-year projects, and when the kids left home, they chose to take them along and continue to use them for reference to this day!

Again, this was my personal experience, and so it's what I recommend. I have no real PROBLEM with wall time lines. I just don't think that they are the biggest bang for the buck... oh, and, if you happen move, it's a real pain! (We moved a lot during my six kids' elementary years!)

[Beth Walker]

Thanks Marcia and Dana! You have convinced me. :-) I really appreciate your thoughts on this and it does make sense. I was just telling my oldest last night that some people learn from others (refering to making mistakes) and some people just have to learn for themselves. I am thankful I can learn from your experience and glean from the wisdom you gained over the years. That has definitely been a HUGE fringe benefit of Tapestry.