Lesson 5: Photographic History Timeline

Students create an historically accurate timeline.

(Adapted from the American Photography Teacher's Guide)

Subjects: Social Studies, Language Arts

Grade Levels: 10-12

Time Frame: 2-3 class periods

Materials Needed:

• Access to online photo collection

• Word processing program, Presentation software (Power Point)

• Reference Materials

Learning Objectives: Students will:

1. Use information they have learned along with research gathered from Internet sources to create a historically accurate timeline.

2. Understand and know how to analyze chronological relationships and patterns.

3. Understand the historical perspective.

4. Gather and use information for research purposes.

5. Demonstrate competence in speaking and listening as tools for learning.

The timeline should show various milestones. These milestones should be illustrated by photos that show the nature of historical development and should show significant historical events of the period.

Procedure:

1. Ask students to imagine what it would be like to live in a world without pictures. As a group, make a list of what would be different in our everyday lives.

2. Next, facilitate a short discussion on the importance of photographs in history.

• How do photos bring history to life?

• Do historic photos have the ability to keep people for repeating the mistakes of the past?

3. Have student's view the historical photo collection online to show the impact photography has on everyday life as well as history.

4. Encourage students to note various time periods, people, and events.

5. Once students have searched through the collection, have students decide on what information they would like to focus on in their timeline.

• Students should try to find 1 - 2 photos that would be appropriate for that time. If the students want to work on this as more of a class project, they could choose the same decade and compare their product and ideas at the end of the activity.

6. Students will now need to gather information and pictures to represent the events they have chosen.

7. Once students have gathered information, they should begin creating their timeline. They should complete the following for each entry on the timeline:

• Date (as exactly as they can get it)

• A photo that is historically significant

• A 2 paragraph description of the photo that explains who took it, where it was taken, when it was taken, and why the photo has historically significance.

8. After the timelines are completed, have students display them. In addition, they can share what they learned in the form of a short presentation or tour of their timeline.

Extension Activities:

• Use technology to expand the project by using a presentation program such as Power Point to create individual slides for each entry on the timeline. Students can then present their timeline on a large screen. This would encourage and develop public speaking skills.

• Assign each student/group in the class a specific time period to cover/specific aspect of research. They can present their timeline to the class. Once all timelines are presented, they could be posted in a central location for others to see.

• Have students create a timeline of their own over the course of an entire school year. They could gather/take the photos they think shaped life for them during the school term.

Photography Unit

Lesson 5: Photographic History Timeline

Students create an historically accurate timeline.

Photograph Collections:

Glenbow Archives Photographs
http://ww2.glenbow.org/search/archivesPhotosSearch.aspx

Louise Mckinney Riverfront Photo Gallery
(not available at this time)
http://www.louisemckinneyriverfront.com/sub_pages/
Flood of 1915, Ice making, Coal & gold mining, Brickyards, Other industries, Bridges, Boats & boat building, First Nations People, Recreation and Louise McKinney

National Archives of Canada
http://www.archives.ca/
Living Memory, Places, People, and Aboriginal Peoples

Alberta Home, Home on the Plains 
http://www.abheritage.ca/pasttopresent/
Land of Opportunity, Settlement History or Rural Life

Alberta How the West Was Young
http://www.abheritage.ca/alberta/
Archaeology & Pre-Contact, First Nations & Métis, or Fur Trade & Mission History

Canadian Museum of Civilization Corporation
http://civilization.ca/
Archaeology, Civilizations, Cultures, First Peoples, History, and Military History

[Top]

Lesson 1: Using Historical Photographs

Lesson 2: Using Historical Photographs 2

Lesson 3: Using Specific Historical Photographs

Lesson 4: Using Photographs to Time Travel

Lesson 5: Photographic History Timeline

Lesson 6: Manipulating Photographs

Lesson 7: To Censor or Not? The Power of War Photographs

Download Lesson 5 in Word Document format.