Chronozoom

Chronozoom is a digital timeline tool allowing users to create multilayer, interactive timelines. Starting at the beginning of time and continuing to present day, this tool allows students to view events at a much larger scale than normal. It also allows videos, sounds, animations, images, and text to be anchored to the timeline that is then presented in a way similar to Prezi.

Getting Started

For your first time using Chronozoom, you will need to create a free account. After you create your account, view the introductory tour to learn how to use Chronozoom. To become familiar with Chronozoom’s interface, try clicking the magnifying glass to bring up the search feature. Try searching for ideas such as “American Civil War” or “Slavery in the New World” and see how the timeline displays these events. Notice how each event also has several photos, descriptions, and videos attached to it. You can also search these multimedia sources using the same search function.

To create your own timeline, click “create” then “create timeline.” From here, you will have full control over the timespan of your timeline, what goes on it, and how it is displayed. You are able to create your “full” timeline, which may be from the start of time to the present day. Then, inside that timeline, you can create sub-timelines for specific events that took place, such as the French Revolution. On these sub-timelines, you can include videos and texts detailing the events and their significance. These timelines-in-timelines allow for students to grasp how events overlapped in ways they may not have expected before. After finishing your timeline, you can embed or export it to share it with students or the world.

Examples

Chronozoom can be fun alternative to having students create a regular paper timeline. Since they are able to include videos and photos, it makes their timelines more interactive and informative. Chronozoom offers three free lesson plans for teachers on how to use their tool in the classroom. Included is a timeline of WWI, Atlantic Encounters, and a guide on how to make your own lesson based on a timeline.

You could also create your own lesson using the information already in Chronozoom. For example, have your students focus on a certain span of years and choose what they think is the most important event to happen in that span and view the sources attached to that event.

You could also have multiple students working on the same span of years (1990-2010) but creating timelines for different locations on the globe. This exercise could demonstrate how two seemingly unrelated historical events took place at the same time. For additional uses, check out how these history teachers are using Chronozoom in the classroom.