Timeweaver: Learning history by building networks

Timeweaver is a map-based tool for building and visualizing historical understanding. By actively connecting events in a semantic web, high school history students create multiple entry points into their knowledge of major historical concepts. Timeweaver is intended for use in a U.S. history course and plots standardized data sets that correspond with U.S. history curricula. As students connect historical events, they explain their thinking within the tool and their work is stored. The teacher and the class can then view aggregated and individual data and explanations, using Timeweaver either as a formative evaluation tool or as an avenue to stimulate discussion.