Reading a TimelineHow historians show time, and the traps in reading one.4th GradeA timeline turns dates into distance. Reading one has rules.1CHECK THE DIRECTIONEarliest on the left, latest on the right. Almost always.2CHECK THE SCALEIs each gap ten years or a hundred? It changes everything.3READ THE GAPSA big gap between events means a long quiet stretch.4WORK OUT DURATIONSSubtract the earlier date from the later one.CAREFUL WITH BCBC counts backwards: 500 BC is earlier than 200 BC.From 500 BC to AD 500 is 1,000 years — there is no year zero.A century is 100 years. The 1900s are the twentieth century, whichcatches everyone out.Reading a Timelinewww.littleactivity.com

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Social Studies · 4th Grade

Reading a Timeline

How historians show time, and the traps in reading one.

How to use it

Build a timeline of their own life, then one of the last hundred years. Compare the scales.

Free · print-ready PDF · US Letter and A4

Grade
4th Grade
Ages
9–10
Subject
Social Studies
Pages
1

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