Library Guides: EDT 411/413/511/544: Social Studies Methods: Historical Thinking and Skills

Timeline Tools

Tiki-Toki
An interactive timeline tool. With a free account, users can create one timeline and share the link to that timeline published online.
Knight Lab Timeline JS
A free interactive timeline tool. Build the points on the timeline in the provided spreadsheet template.
Canva
Create static infographic timelines by using a template or starting from scratch.

World Book Timelines
Hundreds of customizable, interactive timelines of important events throughout history.
Explore customizable, interactive timelines of important events throughout history. Create an account to personalize the platform, save content, and utilize any add-on features. Browse notable Americans, Europeans, explorers, inventors, and musicians; gather information on authors and poets, drama, and children's literature; research continents, countries, and regions, the arts, systems and institutions, sports and games, and science and technology as you build your timeline.

Primary Sources

Primary sources are the "raw materials" of history, which might include:

original documents
art
photographs
maps
statistics

These are important sources for students to use as they practice the work of historians and social scientists and build their understandings of compelling and supporting questions.

Libraries, archives, museums, and government organizations often have high quality primary sources which could be used in the classroom. The research guides linked below have suggestions for where to look for primary resources and images online.

Secondary Sources

Secondary sources retell, analyze, discuss, or interpret events. Secondary sources for K-5 students might include developmentally appropriate books and articles.

The Curriculum Materials Center (CMC) on the sixth floor of Fitz Hall includes a diverse collection of children's books that could be great disciplinary sources for K-5 students.

Find articles about a topic from credible children's magazines and encyclopedias. The databases and encyclopedias below are suggested resources for these types of sources.

Primary Search
This full-text database offers curated content for elementary school children, including popular magazines, e-books, and encyclopedia entries. Effective May 13, EBSCO databases will debut new features and an updated design. Learn more.
This full-text database of carefully curated content for elementary school libraries includes the most popular children's magazines, e-books, and easy-to-read encyclopedic entries written specifically for kids. Magazine titles include: Ask, Click, Cobblestone, Cricket, Faces, Ladybug, Muse, Spider, Fun for Kidz, Highlights, Ranger Rick, Ranger Rick, Jr., Scholastic News, Scout Life, Sports Illustrated Kids, Stone Soup, TIME for Kids, and Zoobooks. Additional content in Primary Search includes reference e-books from top children's publishers including: Abdo Publishing Company, Cherry Lake Publishing, Crabtree Publishing, Cricket Media, Lerner Publishing Group, and Sleeping Bear Press.
World Book Kids
The primary school edition of the World Book Encyclopedia. Educator Tools are included.
This resource is designed to encourage young learners to be curious, with unique visual engagements, rich multimedia content, an abundance of educational games and activities, and a collection of biographies and articles. Primary school students can learn by playing games, exploring maps, watching videos, or find guidance in preparing a science fair project.
World Book Student
Articles and multimedia to meet the research needs of students in middle and high school.
This resource aims to meet the research needs of students in Middle and High School. Resources include thousands of articles and multimedia. Users can play Legends of Learning games focused on beginner and intermediate science and math; they can explore interactive maps and the World Book's Atlas; they can browse and even create their own timelines visualizing the history of countries, notable people, the arts, and science and technology. For further research, students may browse Encyclopedia articles by subject, including business, industry, geography, mythology, religion, sports, and society. Educator tools and a citation builder are available.