Texas History Chapters 1 and 2 Maps, Graphs, Charts, Vocabulary

Why study History? History is the study of the past. It tells us about our historical roots and how events long ago have shaped our world. So what? Studying history helps us develop the knowledge and skills needed to participate in public life as informed and responsible citizens.

Era An era is a span of years that might be named for a particular trend or pattern of events. Example: Coach Larry Hill has spent the last 21 years coaching at SVHS. During his era, he has led the Rangers to the State Title game three times. This is one of the reasons why he was inducted into the Texas High School Coaches Hall of Fame.

Century A century is a time span lasting 100 years. Example: The 19th century happened during the time period from 1800-1899.

Decade A decade is a span of ten years. Example: The 1920s is often called the Roaring Twenties and lasted from 1920-1929.

Tools of History Understanding the chronology, or the time order, in which events occurred helps us to understand historical events better. Relative chronology tells “when” in relation to other events, such as what occurred before and after an event or time period. For example: I brought home my dog a week after we moved into our new house. Absolute chronology assigns a specific dtate to an event or time period. My brother was born on June 11, 1980.

Charts, Graphs, and Diagrams Charts and graphs are used to show large amounts of information at once. They use a combination of words, numbers, and visuals to make the information easier to look at. Charts organize facts and make them easier to compare and contrast. A table is a simple type of chart that presents info in rows and columns. Diagrams and models show the parts of something, the steps in a process, or how something works.

Circle graph Shows how a whole of something is divided

Bar graphs Uses bars of different lengths to represent numbers or percentages for comparing information about different places or time periods

Line graphs Graph that indicates a trend or pattern over time, such as whether something is increasing, decreasing, or staying the same

Time Line Chart showing a sequence of events

Analyzing Bar and Line graphs Horizontal Axis—the line across the bottom of the graph (x-axis) Vertical Axis—is the line along the side (y-axis)

Using Graphs Vertical Axis Horizontal Axis

Populations of Texas’ 4 largest cities Houston: 1.95 million Dallas: 1.18 million San Antonio: 1.14 million Austin: .0657 million

What would be the easiest way to view the populations of Texas information? Draw a map showing the information.

Statistics 27% 3/5 Information in the form of numbers Houston: 1.95 million Dallas: 1.18 million San Antonio: 1.14 million Austin: .0657 million 27% 3/5

Bias Statistics can be manipulated to show a bias, or an unreason, emotional judgment about people and events. Example: J.J.Watt is the best football player in the world because he plays for my favorite team!