Download The Spread of Agrarian Civilizations

Grade 6 World History, Quarter 2, Unit 2 of 3
The Spread of Agrarian Civilizations
Overview
Overall days: 8
(1 day = 50-55 minutes)
Purpose
In the later third and the second millennia BCE, dense agricultural societies also began to appear in places
other than these three river valleys. One center was the Yellow River (Huang He) valley of northern
China, an arid region like the others. Students will investigate early Chinese civilization by comparing
and contrasting its major features with those of the river valley societies farther west. They will consider
what evidence we have for social classes, central government, writing, and technological achievement in
China’s early complex society. In the second part of this unit, students will focus on how and why
complex farming societies began to appear in regions far from irrigated river valleys. They will focus on
the small but culturally rich Minoan civilization on the Mediterranean island of Crete.
Content to be learned
Processes to be used

Describe the rise of an early river valley
civilization in northern China.


Compare the origins and major characteristics
of civilization in China’s Yellow River valley
with that in Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the Indus
valley.
Interrogate historical data to describe the
geographical and environmental setting in
which civilization arose in the Yellow River
valley in northern China.

Compare and contrast differing sets of ideas,
behaviors, and institutions in the development
of distinctive cultures in Mesopotamia, Egypt,
the Indus valley, and northern China.

Examine historical data from a variety of
sources, including visual images of historic
sites, to analyze the characteristics of agrarian
societies on Minoan Crete.

Understand how a new center of agrarian
society arose in the third and second millennia
BCE on the island of Crete.
Essential questions students should be able to answer by end of unit

What was distinctive about the cultural styles
of each of the river valley civilizations of
Mesopotamia, Egypt, the Indus valley, and the
Yellow River valley?
Providence Public Schools, in collaboration with the
Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin

How was agrarian society on Minoan Crete
different from the early river valley
civilizations?
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Grade 6 World History, Quarter 2, Unit 2
Version 2
The Spread of Agrarian Civilizations (8 days)
Written Curriculum
Grade-Span Expectations
HP 1: History is an account of human activities that is interpretive in nature.
HP 1 (5-6) –1 Students act as historians, using a variety of tools (e.g., artifacts and primary and secondary
sources) by…
b. using sources to support the stories of history (How do we know what we know?)
HP 2: History is a chronicle of human activities, diverse people, and the societies they form.
HP 2 (5-6) – 2 Students chronicle events and conditions by…
a. placing key events and people of a particular historical era in chronological sequence
National Standards for History (World History, Grades 5–12)
Era 2 Early Civilizations and the Emergence of Pastoral Peoples, 4000-1000 BCE
Standard 2: How agrarian societies spread and new states emerged in the third and second millennia BCE.
2A The student understands how civilization emerged in northern China in the second millennium
BCE. Therefore, the student is able to

Compare the climate and geography of the Huang He (Yellow River) valley with the natural environments
of Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the Indus valley. [Clarify information on the geographic setting]

Describe royal government under the Shang Dynasty and the development of social hierarchy, religious
institutions, and writing. [Appreciate historical perspectives]

Infer from archaeological or written evidence the character of early Chinese urban societies and compare
these centers with cities of Mesopotamia or the Indus valley. [Formulate historical questions]
2B The student understands how new centers of agrarian society arose in the third and second
millennia BCE. Therefore, the student is able to

Analyze how an urban civilization emerged on Crete and evaluate its cultural achievements. [Marshal
evidence of antecedent circumstances]
Common Core State Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies
Key Ideas and Details
RH.6-8.3
Identify key steps in a text’s description of a process related to history/social studies (e.g.,
how a bill becomes law, how interest rates are raised or lowered).
Production and Distribution of Writing
WHST.6-8.4
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Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style
are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
Providence Public Schools, in collaboration with the
Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin
The Spread of Agrarian Civilizations (8 days)
Grade 6 World History, Quarter 2, Unit 2
Version 2
Research to Build and Present Knowledge
WHST.6-8.7
Conduct short research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated
question), drawing on several sources and generating additional related, focused
questions that allow for multiple avenues of exploration.
Notes, Clarifications, and Prerequisites
Continue to model how events and peoples evolve in a chronological sequence and have a general cause
and effect from one event to a subsequent event. Continue to show how stories are formed from the
sources that yield information about the era or event.
These units include Common Core Literacy standards in reading and literacy and Historical Thinking
Standards. The impact on instruction of these new and additional standards is noted in the Planning and
Instructional Delivery Considerations and Assessment sections.
The resource, “The Minoans,” Calliope: Exploring World History, vol. 11, no. 4 (Dec 2000) is available
to all grade six teachers. Contact your district content coordinator if you do not have this resource.
A local resource is Dr. Thomas Strasser of Providence College. He is an authority on Minoan art. More
about Dr. Strasser can be found at: http://www.providence.edu/art/History/Dr.+Thomas+F.+Strasser.htm.
Taught Curriculum
Learning Objectives
Resources
Students will be able to:
History of Our World, Pearson, Teacher’s Edition,
2010 (pp. 23-24, 136-141,156-160, 168-179)



Demonstrate ways in which human–
Assessment Rubrics (p. 36)
environmental interaction in the Yellow River
valley in China was similar to or different from Step Up to Writing, Sopris West, 2008
that during the emergence of the civilizations in
 Planning with an Informal Outline (p. 150)
Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the Indus valley.
(3 days)
Tools 4-5c and 4-7a
Describe distinctive characteristics of
World History for Us All,
civilization in China during the Shang Dynasty, http://worldhistoryforusall.sdsu.edu
drawing on evidence from archaeology.
 Big Era 3, Introductory Essay
(3 days)
Analyze factors that made the Minoan
civilization on the small island of Crete
distinctive. (2 days)

Big Era 3, Panorama Teaching Unit 3.0,
Lesson 3

Big Era 3, Landscape Teaching Unit 3.3: River
Valleys and the Development of Complex
Societies in Afroeurasia
“The Minoans,” Calliope: Exploring World
History, vol. 11, no. 4 (Dec 2000)
Providence Public Schools, in collaboration with the
Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin
D-33
Grade 6 World History, Quarter 2, Unit 2
Version 2
The Spread of Agrarian Civilizations (8 days)
Instructional Considerations
Key Vocabulary
chariot
oracle bone
goods
trade routes
Planning and Instructional Delivery Considerations
Students will investigate early Chinese civilization by comparing and contrasting its major features with
those of the river valley societies farther west. Students will also focus on how and why complex farming
societies began to appear in regions far from irrigated river valleys. They will focus on the small but
culturally rich Minoan civilization on the Mediterranean island of Crete. Students will engage in
comparative forms of analysis and recognize the significance of archeological evidence for our
understanding of the ancient past. Materials to support instruction for this unit can be found in World
History for Us All, Big Era 3.
The strategies listed below represent a menu of choices and possibilities to support each learning
objective. The following teaching strategies are aligned to the order of the learning objectives. Select
from the activities and readings in the Pearson text to provide students with background information and
critical thinking opportunities that align to the learning objectives.

To ensure that students will be able to demonstrate ways in which human–environmental
interaction in the Yellow River valley in China was similar to or different from that during the
emergence of civilization in Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the Indus valley (3 days):
Present students with primary and secondary sources in addition to the text to enable them to
compare, contrast, and illustrate the four river valley civilizations.
Have student groups create a map of the geographical features of the Yellow River valley. Have them
fill out a graphic organizer that compares these features and human modifications of the environment
to those in the other river valleys.

To ensure that students will be able to describe distinctive characteristics of civilization in
China during the Shang Dynasty, drawing on evidence from archaeology (3 days):
Have students read and analyze primary and secondary sources concerning the Shang Dynasty in
China.
Create a relief map illustrating the natural environment of the Yellow River valley civilization.
Analyze how the environment influenced the development of civilization there, as compared with
how it influenced the development of the Mesopotamian, Egyptian, and Indus valley civilizations.
Examine illustrations of early Chinese inscriptions on oracle bones and accounts of what the
inscriptions said. Pose questions such as: Why did people write on these bones? How has the
deciphering of these inscriptions enriched our knowledge of Chinese history during the Shang period?
How reliable do you think these inscriptions might be as a source of knowledge?
Construct a chart showing evidence scholars have found that tells us that a central government with a
monarch existed in the Yellow River valley region in the mid-second millennium BCE. Draw on
evidence from both archaeology and language.
Have students work in groups to identify what types of artifacts they might find in an archeological
dig at a Shang Chinese site. As independent practice, have each student write a report of the
archeological findings.
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Providence Public Schools, in collaboration with the
Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin
The Spread of Agrarian Civilizations (8 days)

Grade 6 World History, Quarter 2, Unit 2
Version 2
To ensure that students will be able to analyze factors that made the Minoan civilization on the
small island of Crete distinctive (2 days):
Students will read and analyze secondary sources of the Minoan civilization.
Have students create an account of a hypothetical Egyptian merchant who goes to Crete in the time of
the Minoan civilization. The merchant will explain ways in which Minoan society differs from
Egyptian civilization in its size, government, and economic life.
Drawing on illustrations of Minoan art, have students analyze the characteristics of relations between
men and women in Crete.
Assessed Curriculum
Formative Assessments
Provide feedback to students through daily monitoring of student understanding using a variety of
methods. For example, use exit cards. Have students answer questions on paper before they leave the
class. Keep the activity prompt specific and brief to check for understanding of the day’s concepts. For
instance, to check students’ comprehension of the role the Huang River plays in providing fertile
farmland, ask students to respond to the following question: “What is the nutrient-rich soil called that is
deposited by the Huang River?”
To assess the progress of understanding:

how to demonstrate ways in which human–environmental interaction in the Yellow River valley
in China was similar to or different from that during the emergence of civilization in
Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the Indus valley, have the students construct a writing piece that
compares and contrasts the civilizations of Mesopotamia, Egypt, Indus, and Yellow River valley. In
teaching students how to write this assignment, it is a good opportunity to implement writing standard
WHST.6-8.4. Historical Thinking Standard 3: Historical Analysis and Interpretation

how to describe distinctive characteristics of civilization in China during the Shang Dynasty,
drawing on evidence from archaeology, have the students create a diagram depicting the
characteristics and symbolic evidence of the Shang Dynasty, including the technology used during the
time period. In teaching students how to prepare for this assignment, it is a good opportunity to
implement reading standard RH.6-8.3. Historical Thinking Standard 4: Historical Research

how to analyze factors that made the Minoan civilization on the small island of Crete
distinctive, have the students create an outline that they will use in the Summative Assessment to
construct a brochure depicting the geography, contributions, myths, and so on, of the Minoan
Civilization. Use the Step Up to Writing “Planning With an Informal Outline” Tools 4-5c and 4-7a to
help students create their outlines. In teaching students how to write this assignment, it is a good
opportunity to implement writing standard WHST.6-8.7. Historical Thinking Standard 3:
Historical Analysis and Interpretation
Summative Assessment
Have students construct a travel brochure advertising trips to Minoan Crete and Shang China for
Mesopotamian readers. Make sure the brochures address what is similar and what is different about Crete
and China, as compared with Mesopotamia. Historical Thinking Standard 3: Historical Analysis and
Interpretation
Providence Public Schools, in collaboration with the
Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin
D-35
Grade 6 World History, Quarter 2, Unit 2
Version 2
The Spread of Agrarian Civilizations (8 days)
Provide Pearson Assessment Rubrics (p. 36) to help students plan their work, and use the same rubric to
assess.
Notes
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Providence Public Schools, in collaboration with the
Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin