ABSTRACT
The phrase ‘spatial thinking’ refers simply to the idea that matters concerning space, the patterns of places, objects, or people on the surface of the Earth, are not only interesting but also critical to guiding a variety of avenues of research and daily life. Thinking about such patterns, at the outset, can guide results. The set of sample studies that follow all employ some digital tool that permits the simultaneous capture of maps, archives, and timelines. The four tools, or perhaps more appropriately ‘methods’, are animated maps, online 3D maps (such as Google Earth), Geographic Events Ordering Maps, Archives, and Timelines (GEOMATs), and story maps (primarily Esri). They are arranged into four sections, one for each method. A simple animated map shows a succession of images that come into view one after another. One might think of flipping through the pages of an atlas as an animated map, although generally one thinks of them as digital files.
