Download Ancient Cultures Introduction Lesson for Rome, Greece and Mali

Ancient Cultures Time Capsule Project
Students will be creating a time capsule to house artifacts
that they will be “collecting” during our ancient cultures unit
of study. A parent letter is included on the next slide, with
examples of items that can be used to create individual
student time capsules. All materials (maps, ancient culture
note taking sheets, artifacts, etc.) can be kept in the time
capsules.
Ancient Cultures Time Capsule Project
Ancient Cultures Time Capsule Project
Dear Parents,
We will be traveling back in time to visit the ancient
cultures of Egypt, China, Greece, Rome and Mali!
During our time travel we will be collecting artifacts
to share at the end of our travels. To stow all of our
artifacts during our travels, we will be making
individual time capsules. Listed below are ideas of
items to send in for your child to create his/her own
time capsule. Please send in these items by
____________. Thank you for your help in helping
us create an exciting tool to aid us in our artifact
collection!
Dear Parents,
We will be traveling back in time to visit the ancient
cultures of Egypt, China, Greece, Rome and Mali!
During our time travel we will be collecting artifacts
to share at the end of our travels. To stow all of our
artifacts during our travels, we will be making
individual time capsules. Listed below are ideas of
items to send in for your child to create his/her own
time capsule. Please send in these items by
____________. Thank you for your help in helping
us create an exciting tool to aid us in our artifact
collection!
o
o
o
o
o
o
2 2-liter bottles
Oatmeal container
Pringles can
2 2-liter bottles
Oatmeal container
Pringles can
Ancient Cultures Artifact Project
At the conclusion of the study of each ancient culture, each student will be decorating
an artifact that represents the civilization studied. Students should decorate their
artifact to demonstrate their understanding of the civilization in at least two of the
following categories:
o
o
o
o
o
Geography of the Land
Human Activities
Government
Architecture
Arts and Sports
In 2 or more sentences, students will state which categories they chose and give a
description of how their design applies to the culture.
Artifacts will be collected in the students’ time capsules to use during the Ancient
Cultures Culminating Activity.
A checklist and rubric are provided on the next slide. This should be used for each
artifact activity.
*Artifacts for each unit are included on a slide at the end of each culture.
Name _________________________
Ancient Culture Artifact Project
Ancient Culture Artifact Rubric
You will be decorating your artifact to demonstrate
an understanding of the following categories for the
ancient civilization of ___________________.
Design and draw a picture that shows that you
understand two of the categories listed below.





Geography of the Land
Human Activities
Government
Architecture
Arts and Sports
 In 2 or more sentences, state which categories
you chose and give a description of how your
design applies to the culture.
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
Total Number of Points
Grade ________
Comments:
____________
Ancient Cultures Lessons for
Ancient China and Egypt
History
3.2
The student will explain how the contributions of ancient China and Egypt
have influenced the present world in terms of architecture, inventions, the calendar,
and written language..
Geography
3.5
The student will develop map skills and an understanding of change over
time by locating major ancient world cultures on world maps
a) at the beginning of their culture;
b) during their period of greatest influence; and
c) today.
3.7
The student will describe how people in ancient world cultures adapted to
their environment.
Economics
3.8
The student will demonstrate an understanding of different cultures and the
natural, human, and capital resources they used in the production of goods and
services.
Are you ready to travel back in
time?
Where are we going?
Here is CHINA!
Are you ready to time travel
back to Ancient China?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4eOn1P3Tj8
Welcome to
Ancient China!
What do you know about the geography of
Ancient China?
• On which continent would you find China?
• What main waterway is important to the
citizens of China?
Map of Ancient China at the
Beginning of their Culture
Ancient China was located in eastern Asia
centered around the Huang He River.
Map of Ancient China during the
period of its greatest influence
Ancient China spread southward to Yangtze
River.
Map of Modern Day China
China includes most of East Asia westward into the deserts of
Central Asia.
After looking at the 3 maps of China, how would you describe
how the land area of this ancient world culture has changed
over time?
China is located on the continent of Asia.
What do you notice on the map?
What do you see?
Geography of China
• Located on a large land mass on the
continent of Asia
• Land consisted of forests, hills, mountains
• Land was centered around the Huang He
River
Farm Land
Now that you have seen the land of
China….
Turn and talk:
What might they be good
at or specialize in? Why?
Human activities developed in response to the physical
environments. When the environment did not meet their
needs, the Ancient Chinese had to adapt to meet their
needs.
What did the Ancient Chinese specialize in?
•
•
•
•
•
Farming in the fertile soil along the rivers
Fishing in the river and seas
Mining natural resources
Making pottery
Trading goods
Turn and talk:
1. Explain why you think that
the soil was fertile along the
rivers.
2. Why was their location
along the river so important?
Adaptations to their Environment
How did use their environment to survive?
• Fished along the river and seas
• Farmed in the fertile soil along the rivers
• Mined for natural resources
Summary
Discuss as a class!
• How did the geography and environment
of China impact the way that the citizens
survived and lived?
Architecture
The Great Wall of China was built to keep
out invaders.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpYRZdw0UpA
Inventions
Many inventions of ancient China are still used
today!
o Kite
o Silk cloth
o Compass
o Fireworks
Written Language
The Chinese used characters and
symbols to communicate through writing.
Design the lantern to
show what you learned
about Ancient China?
It is time to travel back in time to
our next destination!
Hold On Tight!
Where are we going?
EGYPT
Are you ready to travel back in
time to ancient Egypt?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4eOn1P3Tj8
Welcome to Ancient Egypt!
What do you know about the
geography of Ancient Egypt?
• On which continent would you find Egypt?
• What is the major source of water for Egypt?
Map of Ancient Egypt
at the Beginning of their Culture
Ancient Egypt was located along the Nile
River in northeast Africa.
Map of Ancient Egypt during the
Period of its Greatest Influence
Ancient Egypt spread southward along the Nile River
and east and west along the Mediterranean coast.
Map of Modern Day Egypt
Egypt is located in the northeastern corner
of Africa along the Nile River.
After looking at the 3 maps of Egypt, how would you
describe how the land area of this ancient world culture has
changed over time?
Geography of Egypt
Ancient Egypt was….
• Located along the Nile River
• Located in the northeast corner of the
continent of Africa
• Located in the Sahara Desert
• Rich soil along the Nile River
Think about it….
Turn and talk
• How is the geography of Egypt similar and
different to China?
Human activities developed in response to the physical
environments. When the environment did not meet their
needs, the Ancient Egyptians had to adapt to meet their
needs.
What did the Ancient Egyptian specialize in?
•
•
•
•
Farming along the Nile River
Fishing
Trading goods
Making crafts
Turn and talk:
1. What goods did the Egyptians produce?
2. What natural resources did they have?
3. How did they use the Nile River?
Adaptations to the Environment
How did the Egyptians use their environment
to survive?
• Farmed in the fertile soil along the Nile River
• Created irrigation systems to water crops
• Traded along the Mediterranean coast
Summary
Discuss as a class!
• How did the geography and environment
of Egypt impact the way that the citizens
survived and lived?
• How are the human activities of Egypt and
China similar and different?
Architecture
The Egyptians built pyramids as tomb for
their pharaohs.
Inventions
Many inventions of ancient Egypt are still used
today!
o Paper made from papyrus
o 365-day calendar
o Clock
Written Language
The Egyptians used a series of pictures
called hieroglyphics to communicate through
writing .
Decorate the pyramid to
show what you learned about
Ancient Egypt?
Leveled Postcard Alternative
Assessment
• The following slides include the three levels
for the postcard assessment.
• 1= low
• 2= average
• 3= high
• This activity can be used for each ancient
culture.
• The writing portion here is used as an
assessment grade. You are welcome to
combine the two as one assessment grade,
or separate for two grades.
Print on cardstock. 1
Checklist for Postcard
Directions: Cut out the postcard. On
back draw a picture of what you think
Rome looked liked. Use the checklist
below to help you complete the picture.
Has the name of the
location
Has a picture of 1 geographical
feature.
Has 1 sentence about
the 1 geographical feature.
Picture is neat and clear to see
Picture uses at least 5 different
colors
Print on cardstock. 2
Checklist for Postcard
Directions: Cut out the postcard. On
back draw a picture of what you think
Rome looked liked. Use the checklist
below to help you complete the picture.
Has the name of the
location
Has a picture that includes 2
geographical features.
Has 2 sentences about the
2 geographical features.
Picture is neat and clear to see
Picture uses at least 5 different
colors
Print on cardstock. 3
Checklist for Postcard
Directions: Cut out the postcard. On
back draw a picture of what you think
Rome looked liked. Use the checklist
below to help you complete the picture.
Has the name of the location
Includes the name of the continent
Includes a name of a body of water
near the location.
Has a picture that includes 2
geographical features.
Has 2 sentences about the 2
geographical features.
Picture is neat and clear to see
Picture uses at least 5 different
colors
Postcard 1
Postcard 2
Rubric for Postcard
Name: ________________
Has the name of the location.
Has a picture of 1 geographical
feature.
Has 1 sentence about the 1
geographical feature.
Picture is neat and clear to see.
Picture uses at least 5 different
colors.
1 point per box.
_____/5
Grade:
Rubric for Postcard
Name: ________________
 Has the name of the location
 Picture shows 1 geographical feature.
 Picture shows 2nd geographical
features.
 1st sentence about the geographical
feature.
 2nd sentence about the geographical
feature.
 Picture is neat and clear to see.
 Picture uses at least 5 different
colors.
1 point per box.
_____/7
Grade:
Postcard 3
Rubric for Postcard
Name: ________________









Has the name of the location.
Includes the name of the continent.
Includes a name of a body of water near
the location.
Picture shows 1 geographical feature.
Picture shows 2nd geographical feature.
1st sentence about geographical feature.
2nd sentence about geographical feature.
Picture is neat and clear to see.
Picture uses at least 5 different colors.
1 point per box.
_____/9
Grade:
Postcard Writing Alternative
Assessment
• There are two assignments. They are
leveled to best fit your students’ needs.
Choose the appropriate activity for your
students.
• This activity can be used for each ancient
culture.
Name: ____________________________________
Date: ____________________
Postcard Writing Assessment
After traveling for the last two days in social studies class, it is time to reflect on what you saw and learned about the culture
studied.
Using the back of the postcard that you created in class, write a letter home to someone you live with describing the things you
saw and learned. Complete the questions below to plan and guide your writing. Then neatly write your letter, and if needed,
have a family member help you fill out the address. If you are writing the letter to someone in your house, then the address
should be your home! Be sure to include proper capitalization and punctuation in the address.
Where did you go? _______________________________.
What continent did you visit? _________________________________
Tell two things about the land:
___________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
What jobs did the people of this land specialize in? (Name 2)
___________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
What was the most interesting thing you learned?
__________________________________________________________________
Now use the answers to these questions to complete your writing. It should include:
 4-6 sentences
 Proper capitalization, punctuation and spelling

Proper friendly letter format
Name: ____________________________________
Date: ____________________
Post Card Writing Assessment
After traveling for the last two days in social studies class, it is time to reflect on what you saw and learned about the culture
studied.
Using the back of the postcard that you created in class, write a letter home to someone you live with describing the things you
saw and learned. Complete the letter below and then copy it onto the back of your postcard.
Dear ________________________,
Today I visited ___________________________. It is located on the continent of
_______________________________________. The land here is ______________________________
and ________________________________. The people in this land specialize in
_____________________________ and _________________________. One interesting I learned about
this place was
______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________.
Love,
_________________
Address: Fill out the address on the lined part of the postcard. Use your address. The person you are writing is named first.
Here is a sample:
Dr. Shandor
302 Dare Road
Yorktown, Virginia 23692