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Interactive Skills
for Students
How to Sequence Events
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How To Sequence Events
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Why Learn This Skill?
 To sequence events means to list facts or events in the order in which they occurred.
 Sequencing events will help you remember important facts and details.
 Recognizing how events are related across time is an important skill.
 Understanding how events are related across time will help you recognize cause- and-effect relationships.

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How To Sequence Events
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Learn It!
 When you sequence events, you will look for dates when events occurred.
 Note signal words that show order or relate to time, such as before, after, first, next, second, then, last, finally, and at last.
 You can show the sequence on a diagram, such as on a flowchart or a time line. Add arrows, numbers, or dates to show the order of events.

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How To Sequence Events
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Apply It!
Look for information that describes when events occurred.
Look at the historical eras shown below.
How would they appear on a time line?
3500 B.C. to A.D. 500
Ancient History
After A.D. 1400
Modern History
Up to 3500 B.C.
Prehistory
500 to A.D. 1400
Middle Ages

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How To Sequence Events
Apply It!
What information is provided in the form of a date?
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3500 B.C. to A.D. 500
Ancient History
Up to 3500 B.C.
Prehistory
After A.D. 1400
Modern History
500 to A.D. 1400
Middle Ages

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How To Sequence Events
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Apply It!
What other word clues provide information about where and when the event would occur in a sequence?
3500 B.C. to A.D. 500
Ancient History
Up to 3500 B.C.
Prehistory
After A.D. 1400
Modern History
500 to A.D. 1400
Middle Ages

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How To Sequence Events
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Apply It!
In this example, the name of the era serves as a clue about where it will appear on a time line.
3500 B.C. to A.D. 500
Ancient History
Up to 3500 B.C.
Prehistory
After A.D. 1400
Modern History
500 to A.D. 1400
Middle Ages

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How To Sequence Events
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Apply It!
Now, let’s sequence the eras by placing them on the time line below.

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How To Sequence Events
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Apply It!
We added some additional information to the time line for you.
This will help you make decisions about placing the eras on the time line.
Notice that this time line also shows a distinction between B.C. and A.D.

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How To Sequence Events
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Apply It!
Use information you learned from reading the dates and time spans.
Also use word clues.

11. The date on this era means that we can place it here on the time line.
How To Sequence Events
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Apply It!
Because the eras have dates already identified, it is easy to sequence them on a time line.
The date on this era means that we can place it here on the time line.

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How To Sequence Events
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Apply It!
The date on this era means that we can place it here on the time line. We could also infer that the use of the word “Ancient” suggests that it will come before an era with “Modern” in its name.

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How To Sequence Events
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Apply It!
In order to place this on the time line, we could use the date information. However, we could also infer that the term “Middle Ages” means that it comes between two other ages, or eras.

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How To Sequence Events
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Apply It!
For this event, we can see that it uses the word “after” in the date information. Therefore, we know that it must belong here at the end of this time line.

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How To Sequence Events
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Apply It!
Sequencing Events
In order to sequence events, I will need to read the information presented to me. Then I will use that information, as well as context clues, to make decisions about how to sequence, or order, events.
Information about the relationship between events across time could be presented in date format. Information could also be presented with words such as before, after, first, next, second, then, finally and at last.

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How to Sequence Events
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Remember
 To sequence events means to place events in the order in which they occurred.
 Sequencing events is an important skill that will help you remember details, as well as understand the relationship between events over time.
 Understanding how events are related also helps you recognize cause-and-effect relationships.