The New York Times has a new feature called Harriet Tubman’s Path to Freedom. The feature is a presented in scrolling map format. The map is combined with a timeline format that shows the sequence of and locations of significant moments of Tubman’s work in freeing herself and helping other slaves escape. Harriet Tubman’s Path to Freedom is part of a larger series of stories about the Underground Railroad.

Looking at the presentation of Harriet Tubman’s Path to Freedom reminded me an excellent storytelling tool called StoryMap JS. StoryMap JS comes from the same people that offer Timeline JS. On StoryMap JS you can create mapped stories. On StoryMap JS you create slides that are matched to locations on your map. Each slide in your story can include images or videos along with text. As you scroll through your story there are simple transitions between each slide.

StoryMap JS integrates with your Google Drive account. To get started with StoryMap JS you have to grant it access to your Google Drive account. StoryMap JS will create a folder in your Google Drive account where all of your storymap projects will be saved. With StoryMap JS connected to your Google Drive account you will be able to pull images from your Google Drive account to use in your StoryMap JS projects.

Applications for Education
StoryMap JS can be a great tool for students to use to tell stories that have strong geographic connections. One of the best examples of StoryMap JS for classroom use is found in the Manifest Destiny storymap featured on the StoryMap JS homepage.

H/T to Larry Ferlazzo for the link to Harriet Tubman’s Path to Freedom.