Download HAYNES ACADEMY FOR ADVANCED STUDIES Sixth Grade Social

HAYNES ACADEMY FOR ADVANCED STUDIES
Sixth Grade Social Studies Midterm Exam Review Guide
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Review the ICS sheets and vocabulary from chapters 1 – 6 (The World). Study daily challenges and notes
you have taken throughout the semester on documentaries. All ICS are posted as attachments on my Wiki
for your convenience. We will review for your social studies exam during class and will have daily
quizzes two weeks prior to your exam. Come prepared to class for these sessions!
Be able to identify the beliefs and holy books of the religions we have studied this semester.
 What religions are monotheistic? Which ones are polytheistic?
 Know the resources of each civilization. Give examples of cultural diffusion from each civilization.
 Be able to identify and/or locate rivers of ancient civilizations on a map including: (Tigris-Euphrates,
Huang He (Yellow River), Indus River, Ganges River, Nile River.
Be able to identify and explain the importance of the major contributions from each of the civilizations we
have studied in chapters 1 – 6.
Chapter 1
Early Man
 Paleolithic – Early man - Early clothing (animal hides) – DISCOVERY of FIRE
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Neolithic – From hunting and gathering to agriculture - Agricultural Revolution
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Establishment of the early civilizations around the Tigris/Euphrates, Nile, and Indus River
Valleys. All provided a good source for water and fertile soil for a steady food supply.
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Primary sources - first hand (photograph, document, artifact, diary) and secondary sources
(textbook, encyclopedia, article written by historian)
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Be able to find the longitude and latitude of a location.
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Prime Meridian (Imaginary 0 Longitude line)
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Be able to identify latitude (Equator 0 ) and Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn on a map.
Chapter 2
Mesopotamia – The Fertile Crescent – First Emperor – Sargon - Assyria – Babylon
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Tigris-Euphrates River (Fertile soil and water)
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Sumer - The invention of wheel and the plow to help farmers
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Sumerians - System of writing – Cuneiform
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Importance of written language (Prehistory is the time before writing.)
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King Nebuchadnezzar - Hanging Gardens of Babylon
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Hammurabi (Babylonian leader) – Code of Hammurabi First written laws for order and taxationBelieved in equal justice (fair treatment)
Phoenicians – First alphabet for records and trade -Lumber and ship building, sailing technology
for trading purposes – Purple Dye
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Israelites – First to believe in monotheism – Torah - Worship in a synagogue
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Monotheism – Belief in one God - Judaism (Jewish), Christians (All Christian religions), Islam
(Muslims) - All three religions claim Jerusalem as their holy land.
Know the seven traits of all civilizations.
Barter and money economy – Know the differences – Benefits of one over another
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Cultural Diffusion – Merchant traders were responsible for spreading ideas from one culture to
another.
Chapter 3
Africa (Longest river in the world is the Nile River)
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Egypt – The Nile Valley – Fertile Soil – Flooding of the Nile led to oldest known calendar with
365 days to track the flooding of the Nile River (Opet Festival) – Silt (made soil fertile)
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Upper and Lower Egypt Uniting – Importance: Unification marked the beginning of organized
government representing one group of people.
Papyrus - Made from reeds and used to write on a paper-like material
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Hieroglyphics – Ancient Egyptian writing ( Be able to recognize difference ancient writing.)
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Rosetta Stone- Found in the Nile Delta by a French soldier – Two Egyptian forms of writing and
one Greek
Khufu – Built Great Pyramid of Giza
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Amon-Re – Sun god – most important to the Egyptians –
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Pharaohs: Hatshepsut (Thutmose II) Amenhotep IV or Akhenaton (Nefertiti)-
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King Tutankhamen’s - Last pharaoh to lead in New Kingdom where Egyptians ruled. Following
his death, leaders of Egypt were from conquering lands.
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Kushites – Meroe was one of the earliest centers for ironworking in Africa due to the rich iron ore
found beneath the rocks. Iron was used for weapons and tools.
Chapter 4 - Very Early India and China
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Indus Valley – Monsoon winds out of the Indian Ocean
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Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa –Two of the largest cities in Indus Valley – Advanced sewer system
and drainage system
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Seals used for marking trade goods for early civilization including Sumer and Indus Valley
Huang He River known as the Yellow River or River of Sorrows (Loess gave the Huang He its
yellow color.)
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Civilization developed around the Huang He River Valley because of fertile soil/water.
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Silk – Highest product in demand from the Chinese. Recognize Chinese writing. (p145)
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Ancient civilizations in the Americas (Middle America) - Mayans, Aztecs, Incas, Olmecs –
Believed in many gods (polytheistic)
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Slash and burn farming used to clear heavy forests to grow crops
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Intercropping – Growing two or more types of crops together –
Olmecs used intercropping to make the best possible use of the small amount of fertile soil they
had.
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Tikal – The largest Mayan city deep in the jungle of Guatemala.
Chapter 5
China (Comes from the word, Qin (pronounced Chin)
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Importance of Silk and The Silk Road to the Chinese people and for trade
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Shang Dynasty – First Chinese Dynasty – Farming – Jade- Yu the Great
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Zhou Dynasty - Ruled under Feudal System
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Mandate of Heaven - Confucianism (Analects) Filial Piety
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Social Structure - Feudal System (Trading land for loyalty and protection)
Qin Shi Huangdi - Ruled using Legalism
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Great Wall of China- Kept invaders from the North out and warned of upcoming invasions
Unification of China - The Road System and standardization of weights and measures
helped to unify China.
Han Dynasty – Liu Bang (Changed named to Han Gaozu)
 Paper, Printing (not the printing press)
 Seismograph
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Silk Road was created to enhance trade with India and central Asia and ended at the shores
of the Mediterranean Sea.
Wu Di – Took over after the Han Gaozu died in battle – Used a combination of Confucian and
Legalist ideas to enforce respect and need for a strong central government for China.
 Golden Age of China – Peace – Daoism – Civil Service
Chapter 6 India and Persia
Aryans brought horses to India. Spices, major resource for trading and gold
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Hinduism – Language is Sanskrit – Vedas (Holy Book) - Reincarnation - Caste System
Three main gods: Brahma, the Creator, Vishnu, the Preserver, and Shiva the Destroyer
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Buddhism - Siddhartha Gautama Buddha, the Enlightened One –Noble Eight Fold PathNirvana – Buddha spread his ideas through fables. (Examples on pages 198 – 202)
Chandragupta united India – Harsh Rule – Religion, Hinduism (Polytheistic – many gods)
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Ashoka (grandson) – Adopted Buddhism, a more peaceful way of living after the bloody
Battle of Kalinga.
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Inventions during the Golden Age of India – Chandra Gupta –Math (Arabic numerals),
Medicine (Inoculation)
Persian Empire – Aryans who settled further west of India (Iran) – Powerful land and sea warriors
Religion – Zoroastrianism – Belief in two gods – Arabs conquered the region and brought the
religion of Islam to the area (Monotheistic – Allah – Mosque – Holy book, Qur’an)
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Persians - Conquered Babylonians and Egyptians and formed a huge empire. Fought the
Greeks and Byzantines and eventually were defeated by the Arab people.
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Cyrus the Great (Cyrus the Empire Builder) – Lost only one battle – his last
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Darius the Organizer – Improved travel and trade (Linked the Red Sea and the Nile R.)
Couriers – Mail delivery system for communication because his empire was so large