A draft product of the Geo-History curriculum project,
administered by the Michigan Geographical Alliance,
with support from the National Geographic Society.
Copyright 2008, NYCGL.
The
GeoHistory
Diagram
History-Geography Project
Michigan Geographic Alliance
Mississippi Geographic Alliance
New York Center for Geographic Learning
Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education
(San Marcos, Texas)
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The
GeoHistoGram
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The
GeoHistoGram
a tool to fit
how the human brain
actually organizes knowledge
----in a space-time context.
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My Dad’s
pictures
The
Mongols
Rationale for the GHG
The more engaging we make
our “educational experiences” –
field trips, games, role-playing,
songs, videos, websites, etc.
(it’s, like, lifechanging!!)
the more crucial it is
to help students
put information
into context.
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This is the basic form
of the GeoHistoGram –
seven vertical bars.
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Space goes across the diagram,
Space goes
from the west on the left
from
onthe
theright.
left
to thewest
east on
to east on the right.
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Time goes up the side,
goes
uponthe
from the distant
past
theside,
bottom
fromtothe
onatthe
the past
present
the bottom
top.
Time
to the present at the top.
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GEEK NOTE
The scale is logarithmic
to match what research says
about how the brain processes
space, time, and quantity.
Each curve in each bar
represents 1000 years
of history in that region.
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The
Eachbars
curverepresent
in each bar
represents
years
major
world1000
regions,
of history in that region.
from Americas in the west
to Polynesia in the east.
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Here is a simple use
of the GeoHistoGram:
to show ancient empires
in Mesopotamia.
(before the Common Era,
and roughly in the middle
of the world’s land).
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Here is a simple use
of the GeoHistoGram:
to show ancient empires
in Mesopotamia.
(before the Common Era,
and roughly in the middle
of the world’s land).
Students can write
their names in order
It’s better than
reading a list !
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By varying the width
of the empire “blob”,
you can show how
its power expanded
at different times.
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Adding a shape
in northeast Africa
can show how Egypt
lasted a long time but
varied in importance.
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Adding a shape
in northeast Africa
can show how Egypt
lasted a long time but
varied in importance.
Another shape
in South Asia
shows a civilization
that flourished for
a thousand years,
then mysteriously
disappeared.
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Meanwhile, every time,
the diagram reinforces
the main points:
when? - long ago,
where? - near the middle,
what? – Egypt, west, long
Indus Valley, east, short.
Removing names
can turn the graph
into a quiz/review
at any time.
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A more complex shape
shows ancient Greek history:
- scattered villages,
- an early democracy,
- a Mediterranean empire,
- then out to central Asia.
Greek
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A more complex shape
shows ancient Greek history:
- scattered villages,
- an early democracy,
- a Mediterranean empire,
- then out to central Asia.
Greek
But what Alex did was
basically to lead his army
around an existing empire !!!
Several Persian rulers had already
done the hard work to build it
over several centuries.
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And both ran into
a barrier in South Asia some powerful city-states that
became the Mauryan Empire.
Students seldom see that connection,
because their textbooks usually treat
“West” and “East” separately.
Greek
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We could keep
adding empires all day –
here’s Rome, a large area
that lasted a long time.
But the GeoHistoGram
can do other things.
So, two comments,
then something
completely different.
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1. The GeoHistoGram
can help us see
what else was happening
elsewhere in the world
at the same time.
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2. The GeoHistoGram
can help us see
how things changed
in the same area
through time.
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The Hittites ruled
west of Mesopotamia
about 1400 BCE.
They were among
the first people
to make iron tools.
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The handout shows
the first evidence of iron
in the archaeological record
of different regions.
The Hittites ruled
west of Mesopotamia
about 1400 BCE.
They were among
the first people
to make iron tools.
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Why did it take
POINT
so long to BIG
get here?
Technology does not exist
in a vacuum – it happens
in specific places.
When you do that,
Those places have conditions
you can see how
and connections that affect
iron technology
how things spread.
spread outward
You needinother
inventions
all directions.
– sails, compass, storage –
to help carry iron
across the ocean.
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When you add
the Greek Empire
to the diagram,
there seems to be
a connection with
the spread of iron.
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When you add
the Greek Empire
to the diagram,
there seems to be
a connection with
the spread of iron.
Other Activity Topics
already in your packet:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Agriculture, plant domestication
Writing
Important Inventions
Great Buildings
Famous Works of Art
Movers and Shakers
Great Journeys
Religions
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Let’s go back
to the Greeks
one more time.
You could show
Alexander’s trip with
a completely different
“graphic language.”
You could think
of Alexander’s trip
as a kind of “bridge”
between distant
world regions.
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Let’s go back
to the Greeks
one more time.
You could show
Alexander’s trip with
a completely different
“graphic language.”
This activity is based
on one teacher’s list
of 12 great bridges
in world history.
You could think
of Alexander’s trip
as a kind of “bridge”
between distant
world regions.
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This is what it looks like
after students have put
all the bridges in place.
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Adding information
about major empires
can make the bridges
easier to understand.
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Removing the names
can make this a good
“test-prep” activity.
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One final example:
These symbols show
the spread of Buddhism.
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And these show
the spread of Islam
from its origin
in Arabia.
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Question: Why did Islam
spread faster and farther
than Buddhism?
(at least four reasons).
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One could add easy-to-remember
symbols for other major religions Judaism, Confucianism, Shintoism,
the Protestant Reformation, etc.
The graph, however, is rapidly becoming
cluttered and confusing.
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The origins
of major religions,
however, often appear
on state assessments.
PS. This also is
a printed activity
in your packet.
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A GeoHistoGram-based
quiz on world religions
can therefore be a good
test-prep activity.
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Too much, you say?
This graph has
less than a tenth
of the information
on the wall posters
that well-meaning
parents, school boards,
and principals often buy.
Here is everything
you’ve seen so far,
plus agriculture
and writing.
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Even a cluttered diagram,
however, can have
pedagogical value.
For example, it can show
that American history
is quite a small part
of the global whole!
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SUMMARY
A geo-history diagram like this
is a way to organize knowledge.
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SUMMARY
A geo-history diagram like this
is a way to organize knowledge.
It is not a way to transmit knowledge,
except through hands-on activity.
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SUMMARY
A geo-history diagram like this
is a way to organize knowledge.
It is not a way to transmit knowledge,
except through hands-on activity.
It is valuable to use for just a few minutes,
as a recurring part of other lessons.
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SUMMARY
A geo-history diagram like this
is a way to organize knowledge.
It is not a way to transmit knowledge,
except through hands-on activity.
It is valuable to use for just a few minutes,
as a recurring part of other lessons.
Another good use is as a means
of reviewing (e.g., “test-prep”).
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Remember the Rationale:
The more engaging/memorable
the field trip, film, simulation,
video, website, etc. is,
the more important it is
to help students
put new information
into context.
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The Geo-History Diagram
will be available
in 8-1/2x11 color pages,
11x17 color desk mats,
bulletin-board posters,
reproducible masters,
and an interactive
electronic “laboratory”
suitable for projection.
Please contact the
Michigan Geographical Alliance
for more information.
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