Download Roman Towns and Homes

Roman Towns and
Homes
8B History
Background Information
Roman Towns
In Ancient Roman towns and cities streets
were narrow and space was limited so
houses were usually small.
They tried to make a limit to how high a
building could be, and how much space
there was between buildings. Roofs had
to be flat and go between buildings to
help when fire fighting.
Roman Towns cont.
Towns in Rome
were made up of
streets and blocks
- called insulae which contained
houses, shops,
workshops and
bars.
Roman Insulae
Roman Towns – cont.
At the centre of the town there was usually
a forum, or market place, where people
went to conduct business and gossip.
Next to the forum was the basilica or
town hall, dedicated to the old Roman
Gods. Other temples around the town
were dedicated to a variety of Gods.
Roman Towns cont.
Bath houses
were another
type of
building
important to
the life of
town dwellers.
Roman bathhouse
Roman Towns cont.
Most Roman towns were smaller than
modern cities, with populations ranging
between a few thousand people to
perhaps 30,000. Only great trading cities
and capitals of the Empire were bigger
than this. Rome was home to a million or
more.
Task 1
In your history
books, draw an
aerial view of a
typical Roman
city, using the
information
provided in the
notes above.
Task 1 cont.
Include:
 Streets
 Insulae – apartments, shops, bars
 Forum/ market place
 Basilica/ temple – to the old Roman Gods, and
to others
 Bath houses
 The city wall
Task 1
Make sure you label your maps.
 Colour code the buildings and write a
key. In your key, explain in 1-2
sentences what each building was
used for.

Task 2
Divide into groups of 4.
Allocate each group member a task to find
out about:
 Where the rulers lived
 Where rich people lived.
 Where poor people lived.
 Where slaves lived.
Task 2 cont.


Separate and go to expert groups. Work
together, using the links on the next slide,
to find out information about where your
people lived.
Record the information in dot points in
your books.
Task 2 – cont.


Return to your original group. Each
member has 3 minutes to share their
information with the rest of the group.
Use this information to draw up a table in
your books comparing the way rich
people lived and the way poor people
lived.
Helpful Links
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Ancient Roman Homes
Roman Houses and Villas
Roman Houses
Roman Slave’s Homes
Roman Apartments
Roman Domus
Roman Villas
Roman Palaces
Roman Homes
Roman Insulae
A Roman House
Homework

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Draw a floor plan of a typical Roman
House.
Label each room.
Choose 3 rooms and describe what they
were used for.