Timelines are powerful tools for visually making connections over a long period of history. They map out an abstract concept, time, in a way that is easy to follow but can contain a wealth of information. Timelines do carry the risk of becoming very complex quickly, but careful use of color-coding can clear that up as well.
Instructions
Brainstorm and Design
1. Make a list of the events you wish to mark. Brainstorm anything, even putting events you don't think will make it onto the final product. For example, a timeline of Victorian literature can include major works, historical context and authors' relationships.
2. Group these events together on a separate sheet of paper. Try a few different groupings until you have one that feels right. For the Victorian lit example, you could have a group of historical events, a group of major works and a group of times when the authors met--a more concise view would be one group for historical events, and a group each for three or four major authors.
3. Assign a color to each of these groups. Use colors that are distinct and vibrant.
4. Draw a thick, straight line across the center of your poster board. Hold the poster with the long edge facing you, then find the center points of both sides.
5. Draw arrows at both ends of this line, pointing away from the center of the board. Make them about 1/2 inch each.
6. Write a title on your timeline. Place this at the top in large, easily readable letters.
7. Select a group to set the scale of your timeline. For the Victorian example, this is the Historical context. Calculate the amount of time between the first and last events. Divide that by 1 inch less than the width of the poster board (usually 28 inches). This tells you how much time each inch of your timeline represents.
8. Calculate, measure and mark the points on the line where these first events will go, using a marker that corresponds to their color group. Write in their descriptions about 3/4 inches above the line. You can print out small pieces of paper with these descriptions on them, cut them to size and paste them onto corresponding-colored construction paper.
9. Repeat step 8 for the other groups of colors, completing one at a time.
Tags: your timeline, events group, group historical, group historical events, groups colors, historical events
