Brief Description
Students use Internet and library resources to compose a telling-time timeline -- a visual history of time.
Objectives
Students will
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develop research skills.
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gain perspective about telling time by discovering the history of clocks and time.
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create a visual history (in timeline form) of the history of time/clocks.
Keywords
Time, measurement, telling time, timeline, clock, sundial, watch, hours, minutes
Materials Needed
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library and/or Internet access
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art supplies for creating a visual timeline of clock history
Lesson Plan
In this activity, students use library and/or Internet resources to create a history of time (clocks) timeline. Having an appreciation of the history of telling time will help them understand why it is essential that they master the skill.
Timeline Resources on the Internet
Clocks have been around since ancient times; an Egyptian sundial dating to the 15th century BC is the earliest indication that people divided the day into some kind of standard unit. The following online resources will help students put the history of clocks into perspective and provide some excellent sources of information:
Timeline Tips
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You might let all students research the entire history of time, or you might divide the topic by time period or types of timepieces (e.g., timekeeping in ancient times, earliest clocks, electric clocks, and watches).
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If all students research the history of time, and if they all have access to a computer, you might have them create individual Excel documents that can be merged and sequenced.
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If students do not have Excel experience, they might use a word processor to create a document. Each entry should begin with the year, two dashes, then an explanation of the importance of that year, as in the following example:
1581 -- Galileo discovered the properties of the pendulum.
That way, students' entries can be merged and sequenced by year. In Microsoft Word, simply go to Table, select A-Z Sort and sort by paragraph and date. (Notes: You will need to keep any B.C. dates separate and sort them separately. All entries must be a single paragraph in length in order to be sorted in the way described above.)
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Specific events can be extracted from the timeline document to create a visual timeline complete with pictures drawn by students, photocopied from library books, or printed from the Internet.
Assessment
If students worked in small groups, the can use a rubric (see example) to evaluate their own performance and the performance of their team members. If students worked independently, each timeline document should be evaluated according to the student's ability to follow directions, apply research skills, and report important information accurately and grammatically correctly.
Lesson Plan Source
Education World
Submitted By
Gary Hopkins
National Standards
FINE ARTS: Visual Arts GRADES K - 4 NA-VA.K-4.1Understanding and Applying Media, Techniques, and Processes NA-VA.K-4.6 Making Connections Between Visual Arts and Other Disciplines GRADES 5 - 8 NA-VA.5-8.1 Understanding and Applying Media, Techniques, and Processes NA-VA.5-8.6 Making Connections Between Visual Arts and Other Disciplines GRADES 9 - 12 NA-VA.9-12.1 Understanding and Applying Media, Techniques, and Processes NA-VA.9-12.6 Making Connections Between Visual Arts and Other Disciplines
LANGUAGE ARTS: English GRADES K - 12 NL-ENG.K-12.1 Reading for Perspective NL-ENG.K-12.2 Reading for Understanding NL-ENG.K-12.4 Communication Skills NL-ENG.K-12.5 Communication Strategies NL-ENG.K-12.8 Developing Research Skills NL-ENG.K-12.12 Applying Language Skills
MATHEMATICS: Measurement GRADES 3 - 5 NM-MEA.3-5.1 Understand Measurable Attributes of Objects and the Units, Systems, and Processes of Measurement GRADES 6 - 8 NM-MEA.6-8.1 Understand Measurable Attributes of Objects and the Units, Systems, and Processes of Measurement GRADES 9 - 12 NM-MEA.9-12.1 Understand Measurable Attributes of Objects and the Units, Systems, and Processes of Measurement
MATHEMATICS: Connections GRADES Pre-K - 12 NM-CONN.PK-12.3 Recognize and Apply Mathematics in Contexts Outside of Mathematics
MATHEMATICS: Representation GRADES Pre-K - 12 NM-REP.PK-12.3 Use Representations to Model and Interpret Physical, Social, and Mathematical Phenomena
SOCIAL SCIENCES: U.S. History GRADES K - 4 NSS-USH.K-4.1 Living and Working together in Families and Communities, Now and Long Ago GRADES 5 - 12 NSS-USH.5-12.1 to USH.5-12.10 All Eras
SOCIAL SCIENCES: World History GRADES 5 - 12 NSS-WH.5-12.1 ot WH.5-12.8 All Periods
TECHNOLOGY GRADES K - 12 NT.K-12.1 Basic Operations and Concepts NT.K-12.3 Technology Productivity Tools NT.K-12.4 Technology Communications Tools NT.K-12.5 Technology Research Tools
Find more activities for teaching basic math skills in Education World's Math Subject Center. There you will find lesson plans for teaching math skills by using the phone book and many more fun activities.
Click to return to this week's Lesson Planning article, It's About Time: Teaching Students to Tell Time.
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Last updated 01/28/2012
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