EnglishFreePrintable

Visual History Timeline

A free english worksheet ready for your classroom. Open in Kuraplan to grab the print-ready PDF, customize it for your students, or generate a fresh version in seconds.

Download now

Name:Date:

Visual History Timeline

Read the story and use its details to explore how a timeline can show the order of events. Then complete the activities. Events in this story are fictional.

The Lantern on the Headland

In a small coastal settlement in Aotearoa New Zealand, Maia and her cousin Wiremu were helping prepare for a winter gathering. Their grandmother asked them to carry a lantern to the headland before sunset, so people returning by waka could see the shore. First, Maia inspected the lantern and put an extra wick in her bag. Next, the cousins followed the track above the beach. Halfway up, a gust of wind blew the lantern out. Wiremu sheltered it while Maia replaced the wick. After they reached the headland, they hung the lantern on a sturdy post. At dusk, they saw a waka approaching. Its crew followed the light safely into the bay. Last, the cousins returned home and told their grandmother what had happened.

Build the story timeline

A timeline makes the order of events easy to see. Use the story details to answer each question.

1.Which event happened first in the story?

The cousins hung the lantern on a post.
Maia checked the lantern and packed a spare wick.
The waka followed the light into the bay.
The cousins returned home.

2.Put these four events in the order they happened. Write 1–4 beside each: ___ the lantern went out; ___ the waka entered the bay; ___ Maia packed a spare wick; ___ the cousins hung the lantern.

3.Which time connective signals that the cousins had reached the headland before hanging the lantern?

Halfway
After
Before
Last

4.Why did Wiremu shelter the lantern while Maia replaced the wick?

5.What was the effect of the cousins hanging the lantern on the headland?

6.Which sentence best explains why the story is suitable for showing on a timeline?

It describes several events in a clear sequence.
It explains how to make a lantern.
It gives a list of people who live by the sea.
It repeats the same event several times.

7.Imagine the story is retold with the cousins returning home before the waka arrives. How would that change the ending’s meaning?

Choose four important events from the story. Draw a small symbol for each in order, and add a short caption below each one. Include a beginning and an ending.

8.Rewrite the final two events as one sentence using the connective “before”.

9.The story does not give a calendar date. Can you still place its events in chronological order? Explain your answer.