■ Essential Question:
–What were the important
characteristics of the civilizations
in Mesopotamia?
■ Warm-Up Question:
–Why was the Neolithic Revolution
such a big deal?
–Which of the 5 characteristics of
civilizations do you think is most
important?
River Valley Civilizations
The discovery of farming during the
Neolithic Revolution allowed nomadic
people to settle into civilizations
The world’s first civilizations
all began in river valleys
The first civilization
began in an area known
as Mesopotamia
Class Activity:
Examine the placard provided &
generate 2 conclusions about the
geography of Mesopotamia &
its impact on the people of this region
Mesopotamia means
Thethe
“land between Tigris and Euphrates
rivers” & is Rivers
flooded
often called the once
“Fertile per year, leaving
Crescent”
behind of
or as the “Cradle fertile soil ideal for farming
Civilization”
The first civilization developed
in the Fertile Crescent: Sumer
But, surrounding deserts & the lack of natural
barriers attracted outsiders to Mesopotamia
made the Sumerians vulnerable to attack
What were the important characteristics
of the civilizations of Mesopotamia?
■ Working in groups, examine each of the
placards examining the characteristics of
civilization in Mesopotamia
■ Fill in the chart…
Lasting Contributions
■ Advanced cities:
– Sumerian city-states were
protected by high walls
– At the city center was a
temple called a ziggurat
Lasting Contributions
■ Specialized Workers:
– At the top of society were
priests, and then kings
– In the middle were skilled
workers, like merchants
– At the bottom, were
common farmers & slaves
Lasting Contributions
■ Religion:
– Sumerians & Babylonians
were polytheistic
– The Hebrews in Palestine
were the 1st monotheistic
faith in history (Judaism)
– The holy book of Judaism is
the Torah; God gave Moses
the Ten Commandments
which serve as moral laws
Lasting Contributions
■ Government:
– Babylonian King Hammurabi
created the first legal code
– Hammurabi’s Code had 282
laws based on justice &
retaliation (an eye for an eye)
– The code had different
punishments for the various
levels of society
Lasting Contributions
Lasting Contributions
■ Writing:
–Sumerians made the world’s
1st writing called cuneiform
–Phoenicians simplified
cuneiform to a 22 letter
alphabet
–Phoenician merchants spread
the alphabet throughout the
Mediterranean world
–The alphabet influenced
Greek, Latin, & English
Lasting Contributions
■ Technology:
– Sumerians inventions
include the wheel, sail,
plow, & bronze metalwork
Closure Activity
■ Develop a “Hammurabi’s Code” for
Flower Mound High School:
–Your code should include at least
3 laws and consequences
–Think about things that are
important to keep order in a school
■ Essential Question:
–What were the important
characteristics of ancient Egypt?
■ Warm-Up Question:
What is a theocracy and how did it
effect Egypt’s development?
Ancient Egypt
Class Activity:
Examine the placards provided &
generate 3 conclusions about the
geography of ancient Egypt &
its impact on the people of this region
Egypt began along
the Nile River in
North Africa
Egypt was
bordered on both
sidesNile
The by desert
River’s
which isolated
annual floods
&
were protected
predictable
The Nile
Egyptians flooded
from
& provided
so predictably fertile
that
outsiders
soil for farming
the Egyptians
designed their
calendar around it
What were the important
characteristics of the Egyptian
civilization?
■ Working in groups, examine each of
the placards examining the
characteristics of civilization in Egypt
■ Fill in the Chart…
Lasting Contributions
■ Advanced Cities:
– Cities
developed
along the
Nile River
in “Upper
Egypt” &
“Lower
Egypt”
Lasting Contributions
■ Specialized Workers:
–?
Lasting Contributions
■ Government :
– Pharaohs ruled Egypt as
“king-gods” & were thought
to control nature
– Egyptians constructed
pyramids & elaborate tombs
for the pharoahs
Lasting Contributions
■ Religion:
– Egyptians were polytheistic
& believed the gods
controlled all aspects of life
Lasting Contributions
■ Writing:
– Egyptian hieroglyphics
was both pictograms &
a phonetic alphabet
– Hieroglyphics were translated
using the Rosetta Stone
Lasting Contributions
■ Technology:
– Egyptian ideas included a
365-day calendar, geometry,
astronomy, & pyramids
WATCH THESE VIDEOS ON
MUMMIFICATION (3:06) &
HIEROGLYPHICS (2:22)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwiYnzfLUwI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqyjoaPUXAI
