Year 1 · History · Historical skills
Sequencing time: days, weeks and timelines
Children use time words such as before, after, yesterday and last year, and place events from their own life on a simple timeline.
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Learning goals
Learners will
- Use time words to describe when events happened.
- Place events from their own life on a simple timeline.
Success looks like
- I can use the words before and after correctly.
- I can put events from my life in order on a timeline.
- I can name the days of the week in order.
The big idea
Historians care about when things happened. Putting events in order is called sequencing.
We use time words to talk about order: before, after, first, next, then, last, yesterday, today, tomorrow, last week and last year.
There are seven days in a week: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. There are twelve months in a year.
A timeline is a line that shows events in order. The earliest event goes at the start (on the left) and the latest event goes at the end (on the right).
Your own life can go on a timeline: being born, learning to walk, starting school and today.
Worked examples
My life timeline
Put these events on a timeline: starting school, being born, learning to walk, today.
- Find the earliest event. Being born happened first.
- Learning to walk happened next, when you were about one.
- Starting school happened after that.
- Today is the latest, so it goes at the end.
Answer: Born → learned to walk → started school → today.
Before and after
Is breakfast before or after lunch?
- Breakfast is eaten in the morning.
- Lunch is eaten in the middle of the day.
- Morning comes earlier.
Answer: Breakfast is before lunch.
Practice check
Have a go, then check your answers. Each answer comes with an explanation.
Answer guide for parents
Which day comes after Monday?
Tuesday — The days go Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday…
On a timeline, where does the earliest event go?
At the start — Timelines start with the earliest event.
Which happened first in your life?
Learning to walk — Most children learn to walk at about one year old, before the other events.
Which word means 'earlier than'?
before — Before means earlier than something else.
Which is the correct order?
Yesterday, today, tomorrow — Yesterday came first, then today, then tomorrow.
How many days are in a week?
7 — There are seven days in a week.
How many months are in a year?
12 — There are twelve months in a year.
Which day comes before Saturday?
Friday — Friday comes before Saturday.
Watch out for
- Children may think a timeline must be evenly spaced from the start. At this age, order matters more than spacing; spacing can come later.
- Some children mix up 'before' and 'after'. Act it out: 'Clap before you jump' and 'Clap after you jump'.
Tips for parents
- Use a washing line and pegs to make a timeline the child can rearrange.
- Talk about the order of daily routines, such as getting dressed before going outside.
- Point to the calendar each morning and say the day, date and month together.
Go further
- Make a timeline of a family member's life with their help.
- Make a 'my week' chart showing one activity each day.
- Sing a days-of-the-week or months-of-the-year song.