TimeRime is a fantastic Web 2.0 tool that allows you to create digital time lines and add pictures, movies / clips, brief information and an in depth posting of the event.
This is a great Social Studies tool for an interactive, digital History time line that students can keep adding to throughout the year (as a revision tool) or even just for the students to be able keep a portfolio of learning. It can be set up as a private or public so the student can limit the view or show everyone their work.
This tool is very easy to set up and all you need to create a FREE account is a unique User name, a valid email address and a password. Simple!
Apart from the free version, there are other levels of membership which do involve a fee, but you get extra functions and access privileges with different packages.
You can just create hyperlinks to the actual Joan Miro time line you would like your audience to view and this will take you straight to the public access for this time line.
If you open the hyperlink above, try clicking on 1975 – The opening of the Miro Foundation and you will see that there is extended commentary underneath the time line and a comment that I left as well (same data). You can comment on any date and this feature is great for giving feedback to students. It is possible to embed movies into the time line from sources such as Youtube in order to make the acquisition of information more interesting. If you click 1992, the movie will appear under the time line and you can watch it.
Alternatively, you can embed the time line in your blog. It still highlights the key events in the life of the Spanish painter, Joan Miro. As you can see, there are photos for some events and information for each post. If you scroll along the time line with your mouse, you can click on each date, read the information, and view the photos bu tit does not let you read any deeper information or watch any of the multi-media like movie clips. You have to go to the time line’s actual site for that.
When creating this timeline, I did encounter a few problems with the Internet. If you have a slow or unstable connection, it can sometimes be frustrating trying to post dates and save them. Another consideration is that if you have many events and pictures, overlap occurs and the presentation can look cluttered.
Otherwise, a great tool that I fully intend to use with all my history students this year!