Then and now for the youngest historians: study cards a grown-up can read aloud, the tricky ones, a practice quiz at three levels — Foundation, On-Level, and Challenge — and a lab where you sort then from now, put a family timeline in order, label a classroom from a hundred years ago, and tag a grandma's story for what changed, what didn't, and how she felt. Work here, or print it and use a crayon — both count.
A line with years on it. 1965 is over here, and 1990 is over there.
A SMALLER year means OLDER. Someone born in 1965 is older than someone born in 1990. And on a timeline the oldest goes on the LEFT and the newest on the right — never the other way round.
Two things people get wrong
⚠️People often think…
The way things were done long ago was worse.
Different is not the same as worse. Playing marbles instead of a video game is just a different game. Some old ways were harder, some were better, and most were simply different.
Different is not worse.
⚠️People often think…
A bigger year number means a person is older.
It is backwards. A bigger year is more RECENT, so that person is younger. 1990 is a bigger number than 1965, and the person born in 1990 is the younger one.
Bigger year, younger person.
Worth knowing cold
Where the past is kept
The past is not gone. Here is where you can go find it.
Old photosYou can see the clothes, the cars, the buildings. Ask who is in the picture and what year it was.
Old tools and thingsA rotary phone, a typewriter, a butter churn. Each one tells you what a job used to take.
People who rememberThe best source you have. Ask a grandparent or a neighbor what school was like. They will tell you things no book has.
What stayed the sameA teacher, recess, learning to read, friends. Some things are in school then AND now — those matter too.
Clues, changes, and what stayed
1Watch one
Two people: one born in 1965, one in 1990. Who is older?
Put the two years on a line, smallest on the left.
1965 is on the left, so it happened first.
Someone who was born first has been alive longer.
So the person born in 1965 is older. Smaller year, older person. ✓
2Do one with me
Fill in the answers.
On a timeline, the oldest thing goes on the
A smaller year means the person is
The best person to ask about long ago is someone who was
💬One sentence, then you move on
Why is a smaller year older?
3Try one
Name one thing that is in school then AND now.
I want a hint first
Somebody has to be at the front of the room, and kids still go outside in the middle of the day.
Where this goes
Where this lives
Looking at a family photo and asking about it, noticing an old building on your street, understanding why a grandparent tells a story the way they do.
What this feeds
Next unit is needs, wants and work.
Name one thing you would ask someone who was a kid long ago.
One card at a time — tap “Show me” to check yourself, then Next. Start at Foundation; when those feel easy, climb.
Helpful Hints
🪜 Then to now — the ladder
“Then” is long ago and “now” is today → we know about then from old photos, old tools, old buildings and the stories older people tell → the tools changed a lot: slate to screen, horse to car, well to faucet, icebox to fridge → the people changed less: kids still learn, families still eat together, neighbors still help → a timeline puts it all in order, oldest on the left.
Clues, changes, and what stayed.
🤝 The whole idea
The past is not gone. It is in old photos, in old tools, and in the people who remember. Ask, and it talks back.
Ask someone who was there.
⚠️ Tricky ones
Different is not the same as worse. Marbles instead of a video game is just different.
A smaller year means OLDER. Someone born in 1965 is older than someone born in 1990.
On a timeline the oldest goes LEFT, the newest RIGHT — never the other way.
A teacher, recess, and learning to read are in school then AND now.
You have a “then” too — your baby photos are your history.
🔧 Same job, new tool — the chart
The job
Then
Now
writing at school
a slate and chalk
paper, a pencil, a screen
getting to town
walking, a horse, a wagon
a car, a bus, a train
light at night
a candle, an oil lamp
a light switch
water
a bucket from a well or pump
a faucet
keeping food cold
an icebox with a block of ice
a refrigerator
talking far away
a letter that took days
a phone in your pocket
Read across a row: the job stays, the tool changes.
🎯 How the test will ask
Two pictures — “which one is then, and how do you know?” (the clues).
An old tool — “what do we use today for the same job?”
Three events out of order — “put them on the timeline.”
“Name one thing that is the same then and now.”
“How can we find out about long ago?” (photos, tools, stories).
✅ Can you…
Say what “then” and “now” mean?
Name three clues that tell us about long ago?
Match an old tool to the new one that does its job?
Name one thing that stayed the same?
Put four family events on a timeline in order?
Pick your level
Look back at anything you missed — the hint that appeared is exactly what to reread tonight.
How sure did you feel?
Workshop
Work like a history detective: sort then from now, put a family timeline in order, label a classroom from long ago, then find what changed and what stayed.
Your practice never leaves this device. There is no account and no sign-in. Your work is saved in this browser only, and you can erase it whenever you want.
Your practice record — saved on this device
This is your record of the module on screen — it stays here and goes nowhere. Independent means you got it right on the first tap; supported means you got it after the explain-and-retry, or marked ‘I had it’ on a revealed answer. Both count, and neither is a grade. If your teacher asks, copy the row or show them this screen.
Date
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Topic
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Level
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Independent
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Supported
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Hints used
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Cards studied
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Lab
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Traps met
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Explained in own words
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Confidence
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The answer key is for a teacher: it prints only from here, for the unit on screen. Print the study packet prints the study pages and a blank quiz — never the answers.