Curated OER
Lesson: Nimble Symbols
Comparative thinking is one way to build critical analysts. Budding artists discuss symbols and how they represent concepts, beliefs, or ideas. They compare the symbols found on an ancient Egyptian mummy case to those found in...
Curated OER
Help Wanted! Jobs in Ancient Mesopotamia
Students explore life in early Mesopotamia through a list of jobs that people taken from an ancient clay tablet found in Mesopotamia. The list is compare to jobs still performed in today's society.
Curated OER
Writing Exercise: Ancient Sumer
When summer is over, it's time to get started on Sumer! Get your scholars writing about Ancient Sumer civilizations in this exercise, which features five short-answer prompts. Writers will describe Fertile Crescent Geography, compare and...
Curated OER
Ancient Mesopotamia
In this geography worksheet, students read about ancient Mesopotamia and respond to five short answer questions that follow. They identify what part of the country was the heart of Mesopotamia. Then students compare the given map with a...
Curated OER
Hammurabi's Code of Laws
Students explore why the need arose for laws to govern society, comparing and contrasting hunter/gatherer societies vs. agrarian societies. They write letters to the editor of the Babylonian Times, discussing their opinion of Hammurabi's...
Curated OER
Daily Life and Schooling
Students compare the ancient Greek method of schooling and writing to contemporary methods and learn the Greek alphabet on wax tablets.
Curated OER
Hands-On! The Invention of Writing
Students are introduced to the way writing was invented in Mesopotamia. In groups, they participate in re-creations of events that occured in a traditional Mesopotamian school. They practice writing in cuneiform script on clay using...
Curated OER
Ancient Mesopotamian and Egyptian Writing
Students research cuneiform and hieroglyphics from the internet and use educational software to create their own cuneiform tablet in this excellent World History instructional activity. The use of the computer software program...
Syracuse University
Ancient World Writing System
Most twenty-first century pupils don't know how to interpret cuneiform. Examining images of cuneiform and papyrus writing and using a chart and Venn diagram, young historians extrapolate what life may have been like for people who lived...
Curated OER
Ancient River Valley Civilizations
Ziggurats, cuneiform writing, the Tower of Babel, hieroglyphics, pyramids, the Great Wall. Launch a unit on ancient cultures, with a presentation that introduces viewers to ancient Mesopotamia, Babylonia, Sumer, Egypt, Indus, and China....
Curated OER
Inuktitut
Students explore Inuit language. In this Inuktitut lesson, students listen to a lecture about the history and phonology of the Inuit language. Students create Inuktitut-English dictionaries with illustrations for...
Curated OER
Making Maps
In this map making worksheet, students learn about the science of making maps, which is cartography. They then answer the 11 questions on the worksheet. The answers are on the last page.
Curated OER
Global News: The Changing Face of Reading
A current and engaging informational text with some superb scaffolding activities, this six paragraph article discusses the release of the iPad from Apple, eBooks, and the history of reading and writing materials. After reading the...
Curated OER
Help Wanted! Jobs in Ancient America
Middle schoolers are introduced to the various occupations in Mesopotamia. In groups, they discuss the reasons for occupations changing over time. They use the internet to research the ancient jobs of their choice and write a paper...
Curated OER
Remains of the Day
Learners consider how archaeologists discovered and pieced together artifacts that indicate a Celtic presence in ancient Turkey. They research ancient civilizations and create archaeological digs containing items representative of these...
Curated OER
Learning Lesson: Its a Gas, Man
Students participate in a demonstration in which they examine the effect on temperature by carbon dioxide. They discuss the effects of carbon dioxide on the environment. They also examine summer safety rules to end the lesson.
Library of Congress
Loc: Global Gateway: Cuneiform Tablets
View clay tablets, cones, and brick fragments inscribed using the ancient Sumerian pictographic writing system known as cuneiform and read about the ancient writing system.
BBC
Bbc: Ancient History in Depth: Mesopotamia
A look at many aspects of the Mesopotamian culture. Click through the slide show to see the image and additional information and resources. A good overview of the contributions of an early civilization. Archived.