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A great bundle of resources and lessons, including quizzes and games.

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Ancient.eu
Roman Economy and Trade
Lesson Pack

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We have prepared three lesson plans including classroom activities, assignments, homework, and keys as well as:

Glossary of keywords and concepts in an excel format

Open questions adaptable for debates, presentations, and essays

Recommended resources to provide you and your students with a comprehensive list of trustworthy references on the topic (includes all media types: videos, texts, primary resources, maps, podcasts, 3D models, etc.)

Quizzes and games for easy revision or an engaging way to start your class

Do also check out our tips to give your students on how to write a great essay and other tools to make your life easier, such as marking grids for open questions, debates, and presentations.

All our education material is varied and built to develop middle and high-school students' skills to succeed in social studies. You will also find several alternatives in the lesson plans to allow for differentiation and adaptation to your students' level of ability.

Check out our other resources on Ancient Rome:

We are a non-profit organization and it is one of our goals to provide quality material to teachers by building engaging courses and finding reliable sources. If you want to join our team of volunteers, please contact us.

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We have prepared three lesson plans including classroom activities, assignments, homework, and keys as well as: Glossary of keywords and concepts in an excel format Open questions adaptable for debates, presentations, and essays Recommended resources to provide you and your students with a comprehensive list of trustworthy references on the topic (includes all media types: videos, texts, primary resources, maps, podcasts, 3D models, etc.)

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Explain how and why monetary systems evolved from bartering

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This Homework Helper is chalk full of info about the different civilizations studied in this unit.

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Britannica Kids
Ancient Civilization

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The term civilization basically means the level of development at which people live together peacefully in communities. Ancient civilization refers specifically to the first settled and stable communities that became the basis for later states, nations, and empires.

The study of ancient civilization is concerned with the earliest segments of the much broader subject called ancient history. The span of ancient history began with the invention of writing about 3100 bc and lasted for more than 35 centuries. Humankind existed long before the written word, but writing made the keeping of a historical record possible ( see human origins).

The first ancient societies arose in Mesopotamia and Egypt in the Middle East, in the Indus valley region of what are now Pakistan and India, in the Huang He (Yellow River) valley of China, on the island of Crete in the Aegean Sea, and in Central America. All these civilizations had certain features in common. They built cities and invented forms of writing. They learned to make pottery and use metals. They domesticated animals, and they created fairly complex social structures with class systems.

Apart from written records and carved inscriptions, the knowledge about ancient peoples is derived from the work of archaeologists. Most of the significant archaeological findings have been made in the past 200 years. The Sumerian culture of Mesopotamia was discovered in the 1890s, and some of the most important archaeological digs in China were made after the late 1970s.

The single, decisive factor that made it possible for humankind to settle in permanent communities was agriculture. A turning point in human history, the invention of farming and the tremendous changes it brought about have been called the agricultural revolution. After farming was developed in the Middle East about 6500 bc, people living in tribes or family units did not have to be on the move continually searching for food or herding their animals. Once people could control the production of food and be assured of a reliable annual supply of it, their lives changed completely.

People began to found permanent communities in fertile river valleys. They settled around rivers for a number of reasons. Rivers were an important source of fresh water for drinking. They could be used for transportation. Settlers also learned to use the water supply to irrigate the land for farming. Sedentary settlement, or being settled in one place, made it possible to domesticate animals in order to provide other sources of food and clothing.

Farming was indeed a revolutionary discovery. It not only made settlements possible-and ultimately the building of cities-but it also made available a reliable food supply. With more food available, more people could be fed. Populations therefore increased. The growing number of people available for more kinds of work led to the development of more complex social structures. With a food surplus, a community could support a variety of workers who were not farmers. The agricultural revolution thus resulted in a division of labor, with some people farming, while others worked at various crafts, such as making pottery, cloth, or tools. Craftspeople traded the goods they made to farmers for food.

Farming the world over has always relied upon a dependable water supply. For the earliest societies this meant rivers and streams or regular rainfall. The first great civilizations grew up along rivers. Later communities were able to develop by taking advantage of the rainy seasons.

All the ancient civilizations probably developed in much the same way, in spite of regional and climatic differences. As villages grew, the accumulation of more numerous and substantial goods became possible. Heavier pottery replaced animal-skin gourds as containers for food and liquids. Cloth could be woven from wool and flax. Permanent structures made of wood, brick, and stone could be built.

The science of mathematics was an early outgrowth of agriculture. People studied the movements of the Moon, Sun, and planets to calculate seasons. In so doing they created the first calendars. With a calendar it was possible to calculate the arrival of each growing season. Measurement of land areas was necessary if property was to be divided accurately. Measurements of amounts-for example, of seeds or grains-was also a factor in farming and housekeeping. Later came measures of value as commodity and money exchange became common.

The use of various ways of measuring led naturally to record keeping, and for this some form of writing was necessary. The earliest civilizations all seem to have used picture-writing-pictures representing both sounds and objects to the reader. The best known of the ancient writing systems is probably Egyptian hieroglyphics, a term meaning "sacred carvings," since many of the earliest writings were inscribed on stone.

All the major ancient civilizations-in Mesopotamia, Egypt, the Indus valley, and China-emerged in the 4th millennium bc. Historians still debate over which one emerged first. It may well have been in the Middle East, in an area called the Fertile Crescent. This area stretches from the Nile River in Egypt northward along the coast of the historical region of Palestine, then eastward into Asia to include Mesopotamia. In this area people settled along the riverbanks and practiced field agriculture. This kind of farming depended on the reproduction of seed, normally from grain crops.

Mesopotamia (from a Greek term meaning "between rivers") lies between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, a region that is today part of Iraq. By about 5000 bc, small tribes of farmers had made their way to the river valleys. On the floodplains they raised wheat, barley, and peas. They cut through the riverbanks so that water for their crops could flow to lower lying soil.

These early irrigation systems were more fully developed by the Sumerians in Mesopotamia. They drained marshes and dug canals, dikes, and ditches. The need for cooperation on these large irrigation projects led to the growth of government and law. The Sumerians are thus credited with forming the earliest of the ancient civilizations.

The land of the Sumerians was called Sumer (Shinar in the Bible). Their origins are shrouded in the past. They were not Semites, like most of the peoples of the region. The Sumerians spoke a language unrelated to other known tongues. They may have come to southern Mesopotamia from Persia before 4000 bc.

Sumerian towns and cities included Eridu, Nippur, Lagash, Kish, and Ur. The cities differed from primitive farming settlements. They were not composed of family-owned farms but were ringed by large tracts of land. These tracts were thought to be "owned" by a local god. A priest organized work groups of farmers to tend the land. The farmers provided barley, beans, wheat, olives, grapes, and flax for the community.

These early cities, which existed by 3500 bc, were called temple towns because they were built around the temple of the local god. The temples were eventually built up on towers called ziggurats (holy mountains). The ziggurats had ramps or staircases winding up around the exterior. Public buildings and marketplaces were built around these shrines.

The temple towns grew into city-states, which are considered the basis of the first true civilizations. At a time when only the most basic forms of transportation and communication were available, the city-state was the most governable type of human settlement. City-states were ruled by leaders called ensi s. They were probably authorized to control the local irrigation systems. The food surplus provided by the farmers supported these leaders as well as priests, artists, craftsmen, and others.

The Sumerians contributed to the development of metalworking, wheeled carts, and potter's wheels. They may have invented the first form of writing. They engraved pictures on clay tablets in a form of writing known as cuneiform (meaning "wedge-shaped"). The tablets were used to keep the accounts of the temple food storehouses. By about 2500 bc these picture-signs were being refined into an alphabet.

The Sumerians developed the first calendar, which they adjusted to the phases of the Moon. The lunar calendar was adopted by the Semites, Egyptians, and Greeks. Trade increased between Sumerian cities and between Sumer and other, more distant regions. This led to the growth of a merchant class.

The Sumerians organized a complex mythology. It was based on the relationships among the various local gods of the temple towns. In Sumerian religion, the most important gods were seen as human forms of natural forces-sky, Sun, earth, water, and storm. Each of these gods was originally associated with a particular city. The gods were worshiped not only in the great temples but also in small shrines in family homes.

Warfare between cities eventually led to the rise of kings, called lugals, whose authority replaced that of city-state rulers. Sumer became a more unified state, with a common culture and a centralized government. This led to the establishment of a bureaucracy and an army. By 2375 bc, most of Sumer was united under one king, Lugalzaggisi of Umma.

The Sumerians were conquered by their Semitic neighbors. But their civilization was carried on by their successors-the Akkadians, Babylonians, Assyrians, and Chaldeans.

The Babylonians made distinct contributions to the growth of civilization. They added to the knowledge of astronomy and mathematics. They built the first great capital city, Babylon. The Babylonian King Hammurabi set forth the Code of Hammurabi in the late 18th century bc. This was the most complete compilation of Babylonian law and one of the first great law codes in the world.

Egyptian farmers had settled in the long and narrow valley of the Nile River by 5000 bc. Within 2,000 years Egyptians had invented writing and built massive irrigation works. They had established a culture that bequeathed the pyramids and other magnificent monuments to posterity.

The ancient Egyptians depended heavily on the Nile River. The river created an oasis in the surrounding desert, providing water for drinking and for farming. Each year, the river rose, flooded, and fell. Its flooding deposited sediments along the riverbank, making the land good for farming. The fertility of the land and the general predictability of the Nile's flooding ensured farmers a high yield from a single annual crop. Eventually, the Egyptians could store large surpluses of grain, to trade and to keep in reserve in case of crop failures. Surplus crops would form the chief basis of ancient Egypt's great wealth. The Nile was also the society's most important transportation route.

Most of the ancient Egyptians lived in the Nile valley and delta, and nearly all were farmers. The primitive farming settlements of Egypt were concerned with the raising of grains, fruits and vegetables, and animals. These settlements slowly gave way to larger groupings of people. Probably the need to control the Nile floodwaters through dams and canals eventually led to the rise of government in the region.

By the end of the prehistoric period before about 2925 bc, Egypt was divided into two kingdoms. Lower Egypt had its capital at Buto, while Upper Egypt was centered at Hierakonpolis. In this period travelers brought in ideas from Sumer, including the concepts of writing and the pottery wheel.

Egyptian civilization began with the unification in the 3rd millennium bc of the upper and lower regions by King Menes. He established a new capital at Memphis. In this era the Egyptians developed the first 365-day calendar. They invented the plow and made use of copper. They developed hieroglyphic writing and began to build with stone. Trade and exploration flourished.

The Egyptians were ruled by kings known as pharaohs who claimed to be descended from the god Horus. These kings, supported by a priestly class, lived in splendor, and they saw to it that after their deaths they would be buried in splendor. The tombs built for them were designed as storehouses to hold all the things that the kings would need in the afterlife.

The earliest royal tombs foreshadowed the later great monuments, the pyramids. By about 2700 bc the first pyramid was built, in Saqqarah. The three great Pyramids of Giza still standing near Cairo were built in the 26th and 25th centuries bc.

Early Egyptian history is divided into three major eras: the Old Kingdom (about 2575-about 2130 bc), the Middle Kingdom (1938-about 1630 bc), and the New Kingdom (about 1539-1075 bc). By the dawn of the Old Kingdom, the characteristics of Egyptian civilization had already been firmly established. The periods not accounted for by the dates are believed to be times of decline known as the Intermediate periods.

The valley of the Indus River is considered to be the birthplace of Indian civilization. Located on the Indian subcontinent, largely in what is now Pakistan, the Indus valley civilization was not discovered by archaeologists until 1924. The ancient history of this region is obscured by legend. It appears, however, that by 4000 bc primitive farmers were raising vegetables, grains, and animals along the riverbank. By 2700 bc two major cities, Harappa and Mohenjo-daro, and numerous smaller towns had emerged.

There is some evidence that Mesopotamian traders reached the early people of the Indus valley by sailing there from Sumer. The Indus valley people shared some developments-such as complex irrigation and drainage systems and the art of writing-with the people of Sumer. However, the people of the Indus valley also developed a unique cultural style of their own.

What little is known of the Indus civilization suggests that it had large cities that were well laid out and well fortified. There were public buildings, palaces, baths, and large granaries to hold agricultural produce. The many artifacts and artworks found by archaeologists indicate that the residents of the Indus had reached a fairly high level of culture before their civilization was destroyed.

The Vedic people, who were nomads from the Eurasian steppes, migrated to the Indus valley beginning about 1500 bc. They introduced a caste system, which persists to the present day. The caste system divides all people into social classes with differing rights and obligations. It was a formal expression of the interdependent labor division seen in all civilizations. By the 6th century bc at least 16 states had been established on the Indian subcontinent.

By about 2500 bc a civilization had emerged on the island of Crete in the Aegean Sea. Excavations in 1900 at the site of Knossos revealed the existence of a culture named by archaeologists as Minoan after a mythical king, Minos. Minoans probably settled in Crete before 3000 bc.

There is evidence of outside influence in Crete; apparently Egyptian traders reached the Aegean Sea soon after the Minoans did. Nevertheless, Minoan civilization developed its own unique features. By about 2000 bc, great cities with elaborate and luxurious palaces were built, and sea trade was flourishing.

The Minoans had a picture-writing system, as had other ancient peoples. The Minoan religion seems to have centered on a mother goddess and on the figures of the bull and the snake. The Minoans are known for their beautiful and colorful wall paintings and their fine pottery. About 1400 bc Minoan civilization began to decline. The end was hastened by invasions from mainland Greece. ( See also Aegean civilization.)

The Chinese had settled in the Huang He, or Yellow River, valley of northern China by 3000 bc. By then they had pottery, wheels, farms, and silk, but they had not yet discovered writing or the uses of metals.

The Shang Dynasty (1600?-1046 bc) is the first documented era of ancient China. The highly developed hierarchy consisted of a king, nobles, commoners, and slaves. The capital city was Anyang, in what is now north Henan province. Some scholars have suggested that travelers from Mesopotamia and from Southeast Asia brought agricultural methods to China, which stimulated the growth of ancient Chinese civilization. The Shang peoples were known for their use of jade, bronze, horse-drawn chariots, ancestor worship, and highly organized armies.

Like other ancient peoples, the Chinese developed unique attributes. Their form of writing, probably developed by 2000 bc, was a complex system that used characters that stood for words or parts of words. Such early forms of Chinese became known through the discovery by archaeologists of oracle bones, which were bones with writings inscribed on them. They were used for fortune-telling and record keeping in ancient China.

The Zhou Dynasty (1046-256 bc) saw the full flowering of ancient civilization in China. During this period the empire was unified, a middle class arose, and iron was introduced. The sage Confucius (551-479 bc) developed the code of ethics that dominated Chinese thought and culture for the next 25 centuries.

Meso-America is the term used to describe the ancient settlements of Mexico and Central America. The earliest elaborate civilization known in the Americas is that of the Olmec of central Mexico. The Olmec lived in the lowlands of what are now Veracruz and Tabasco states from about 1200 bc. They left artifacts ranging from tiny jade carvings to huge monuments such as the volcanic rock statues at San Lorenzo. These monuments suggest the existence of an organized and diverse society with leaders who could command the work of artisans and laborers. Among the many other complex pre-Columbian civilizations in Central and South America were the Chavín, Nazca, Moche, and Inca of Peru, the Chibcha and Tairona of Colombia, the Marajoara and Tapajó of Brazil, the Maya of the Yucatán Peninsula, and the Aztec of Mexico. ( See also American Indians; Middle American Indians; Central American and Northern Andean Indians; Central Andean Indians; Rainforest Indians; South American Nomadic Indians.)

Only four ancient civilizations-Mesopotamia, Egypt, the Indus valley, and China-provided the basis for continuous cultural developments in the same location. After the Minoan society on Crete was destroyed, its cultural traditions and legends passed into the life of mainland Greece. As for Meso-America and South America, their cultures were submerged by the Spanish conquerors of the 16th century.

Brier, Bob, and Hobbs, Hoyt. Daily Life of the Ancient Egyptians (Greenwood, 2008).Chrisp, Peter. Atlas of Ancient Worlds (DK, 2009).Connolly, Sean. The Americas and the Pacific (Zak, 2009).Croy, Anita, ed. Ancient Aztec and Maya (Brown Bear, 2010).Dalal, Anita, ed. Ancient Egypt; Ancient Mesopotamia (Brown Bear, 2009).Fletcher, Joann. Exploring the Life, Myth, and Art of Ancient Egypt (Rosen, 2010).Grant, Neil. Ancient Egypt and Greece (Zak, 2009).Hazen, W.A. Everyday Life: Ancient Times (Good Year, 2006).Hurdman, Charlotte, and others. Life in the Ancient World (Lorenz, 2008).Long, C.J. Ancient America (Lucent, 2002).McNeill, W.H. The Rise of the West (Univ. of Chicago Press, 2001).Martell, Hazel. The Kingfisher Book of the Ancient World (Kingfisher, 2006).Morris, Neil. Asian Civilizations; Mesopotamia and the Bible Lands (Zak, 2009).Nardo, Don. Ancient Egypt; Ancient India (Lucent, 2007; 2008).Nemet-Nejat, K.R. Daily Life in Ancient Mesopotamia (Hendrickson/Roundhouse, 2003).Shaughnessy, E.L. Exploring the Life, Myth, and Art of Ancient China (Rosen, 2010).

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The term civilization basically means the level of development at which people live together peacefully in communities. Ancient civilization refers specifically to the first...

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Compare various social roles within a selected ancient culture in terms of daily life and how people met their basic needs (e.g., work, family structures, gender roles, class systems)

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In this Jigsaw activity students compare technologies from different civilizations. This would be an easy lesson to modify and add current day as well.

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UEN
Jigsaw Ancient Technology and Writing Systems

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Summary

Jigsaw Philosophy The new core curriculum in World Civilizations can be challenging. We are expected to teach Stone Age to A.D. 2000 in a one semester class. The jigsaw teaching tool is something we all learned in college. It can help to get information across quickly and the student can retain the knowledge, because they are teaching to their fellow students. This lesson is one example.

Objective: The student will learn and compare the technology and writing systems of ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, the Indus Valley and the Yellow river region. They will use a Jigsaw format to research their assigned topic and share that information with other students in the class. The data collected by the student will be used in a testing format.

Enduring Understanding: Students will gain an understanding of early civilizations and their contributions to the foundations of human culture.

What are the technologies and writing systems developed by ancient river valley civilizations.

When was the time period these technologies and writing systems were used?

How was the technology and writing systems used to benefit the people in their region?

Materials

pencil/pen and paper.

Graphic organizer chart. (Check background for teachers)

The currant textbook you are using for World Civilizations.

Background for Teachers

Graphic organizer: Make a chart with two columns. Put "Technology" above one, and "Writing Systems" above the other. Make four rows on the left hand side of the paper and write in "Egypt", "Mesopotamia", "Indus Valley", and "Yellow River". On the top of the paper write the following Socratic questions as a guide for what the students are supposed to find while researching the topic. The students will put the information in the boxes of the graphic organizer.

What are the technologies and writing systems used by this civilization?

What was the time period when the technology or writing system was used?

How was the technology and writing system used?

Why was this technology and writing system important to this civilization?

Jigsaw method.For those who have not used a this lesson before, here is a basic format. This can be used for many topics.

1. Divide the class into expert teams of 4 to 5.

2. Assign the expert team a topic. Give the team 15 to 30 minutes (depending on the length of topic) to research the topic using textbook or other resources, working individually or as a team.

3. The expert team will then decide on what is most important about the topic and each member will write the information down.

4. Give each member of the expert team an assigned letter (ie. A,B,C). These will be the teaching group.

5. Divide the class into their assigned teaching teams.

6. The students from the expert teams will then teach the topic to the other students, while the others write the information down.

7. After the Jigsaw is completed, the teacher may collect all the data from the students or one final product from each expert team. The information can be used to make tests or written assignments.

Student Prior Knowledge

The student will need to know how to find subjects in a World Civilizations textbook. Such as using a table of contents, index, main headings, vocabulary words, etc.
Students will need to know what you mean by technology. Define the meaning in the context of ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia and so forth.

Instructional Procedures

The following is a format I use. Feel free to modify the lesson to fit your classes personality.

1. Introduce the idea of jigsaw research and teaching to the students (for help check the Background for Teachers section in this lesson)

2. Divide the class into expert teams of three or four. (depending on the size of your class.)

3. Pass out the graphic organizers for each member of the expert team, and one extra for the final product to be given to the teacher at the end of the lesson.

4. Assign a topic to each expert team. Such as Egypt and Technology, Egypt and Writing system and so forth.

5. Have the students quietly research the information from their World Civilizations textbook.

6. Then have the expert teams work together to decide what is the most important information to know. An idea from each team member must be on the final paper that will be taught to the other students, and handed in to the teacher.

7. Now assign each member of the expert team a letter. A, B, C, and D. These will be the teaching groups.

8. Divide the class into the teaching groups.

9. The experts for each topic will now share their information with the members of the teaching group. The students will then fill in their graphic organizer.

10. Now the students have the data they need to prepare for however you choose to assess the information.

Strategies for Diverse Learners

For ESL students have them look a maps or charts in the book to find information on their topic.

Assessment Plan

The information the students have collected can be used to assess the students understanding in many different ways. Listed below are some examples or come up with your own.

Put together a poster or diorama on technology and writing systems.

Make a brochure advertising early inventions from Egypt and Mesopotamia.

Make a map showing how these civilizations shared technology.

Make a timeline of when the technology and writing systems developed.

Write an editorial on the usefulness of an ancient invention.

Learn to write their name, and a letter to a friend in Egyptian Hieroglyphics. Have the friend decipher the letter.

Test the students on the information using M/C, true/false, matching or essay questions.

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Jigsaw ancient technology and writing systems

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Jigsaw Philosophy The new core curriculum in World Civilizations can be challenging. We are expected to teach Stone Age to A.D. 2000 in a one semester class. The jigsaw teaching tool is something we all learned in college. It can help to get information across quickly and the student can retain the knowledge, because they are teaching to their fellow students.

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Compare selected technologies from selected ancient cultures in terms of materials, purpose, and impact on society and daily life

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Resource 1 is an encyclopedic entry that covers the belief system and creation story of Canadian Indigenous Peoples, while Resource 2 is a Scholastic lesson plan that directs students to compare creation stories around the world. Using both resources would allow students to include a First Peoples' Perspective.

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Scholastic
Myths from Around the World: A writing with Writers Activity

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In the "Myths from Around the World" (grades 6-10) reading activity, author Sheila Keenan shares myths from 15 geographical regions from her book, Gods, Goddesses and Monsters. Reading these myths offers students a unique look at the cultures and people from these regions:

Each myth is accompanied by a brief factual paragraph that situates the story within its cultural context.

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Myths from Around the World: A Writing With Writers Activity | Scholastic

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In the "Myths from Around the World" (grades 6-10) reading activity, author Sheila Keenan shares myths from 15 geographical regions from her book, Gods, Goddesses and Monsters. Reading these myths offers students a unique look at the cultures and people from these regions: Each myth is accompanied by a brief factual paragraph that situates the story within its cultural context.

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The Canadian Encyclopedia
Religion and Spirituality of Indigenous Peoples in Canada

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Huron Beliefs of the afterlife.

Definition

There is no definitive and overarching "Indigenous religion." Spiritual beliefs vary widely, as do the cultural practices of contemporary Indigenous peoples in Canada. However, there are commonalities among Indigenous spiritual traditions, including the presence of creation stories, the role of tricksters or of supernatural beings in folklore and the importance of sacred organizations. Additionally, traditional ways of life are often intermingled with religion and spirituality. Activities such as hunting, clan membership and other aspects of daily life may often be imbued with spiritual meaning. This article attempts to discuss broadly similar themes and practices, but is by no means exhaustive or authoritative. More specific information may be found through further reading, or the guidance of community elders.

Creation Stories

Creation stories describe the origins of the cosmos and the interrelations of its elements. Among these tales is what scholars often refer to as the "Earth Diver myth." This is a story where a Great Spirit or cultural hero dives, or orders animals to dive, into the primeval water to bring back mud, out of which the Earth is fashioned. In some versions of the story, Earth is formed on the back of a turtle; Turtle Island is a popular name used by certain Indigenous peoples for the land of North America.

Creation stories also tell about the origin of the moon, the sun, the stars and human beings. These tales can act as histories and/or lessons about the environment, the heavens and human's relationship to the world and to one another. In many of these stories, tricksters and transformers - beings with superhuman powers - often play an active role, as they help to create the world as we know it and to guide humanity.

Tricksters, Transformers and Culture Heroes

Tricksters take on a variety of forms in Indigenous cultures. They can be male or female, foolish or helpful, hero or troublemaker, half-human-half-spirit, old or young, a spirit, a human or an animal, depending on the area and the specific nation. Some examples of tricksters include Coyote ( Mohawk), Nanabush or Nanabozo ( Ojibwe) and Raven ( Haida, Tsimshian, Tlingit, Inuit and Nisga'a).

Transformers or shape-shifters are beings that can change shape, from human to animal to inanimate object. One example of a transformer is Glooscap of the Mi'kmaq, Wolastoqiyik, Abenaki and Algonquian peoples. Glooscap formed the sun, moon, fish, animals and humans, whereas his brother Malsum (another transformer) created snakes, mountains, valleys and anything else he thought would make life difficult for humans.

Some Indigenous folklore also includes culture heroes, prominent figures in a particular nation's spiritual beliefs. In some tales, these beings make a perilous journey to the realm of the dead to bring back a deceased loved one. These stories contain detailed characterizations of the land of the dead, and are important to an understanding of diverse phenomena, such as concepts of the soul and many aspects of shamanism. ( See also Shaman.)

Religious Institutions and Practices

Different Indigenous nations have their own religious institutions and sacred practices. Many Plains Indigenous peoples participate in the Sun Dance, while Coast Salish peoples typically engage in sacred winter ceremonies. The Haudenosaunee celebrate the Green Corn Ceremony, and some follow the False Face Society. Among the Ojibwe, the Midewiwin is a spiritual society and essential part of the Anishinaabe world view. Medicine bundles - objects of ritual that are specific to the person carrying them - are common among the spiritual traditions of various Indigenous peoples, including the Siksika, Cree and Ojibwe.

Institution stories tell about the origins of these cultural practices. Ritual tales, on the other hand, serve as detailed texts for the performance of institutions, ceremonies and rituals. Fertility, birth, initiation and death rites are often clearly stipulated in spiritual traditions. Shamanic performances may also be described. Such ceremonies are often preceded by stringent purification rites, such as sweat lodges or baths (common for Salish, Siksika and Eastern Woodlands peoples), fasting and sexual abstinence. Feasting is also a common feature of these ceremonies.

Great Spirit and Worldviews

Many Indigenous peoples subscribe to the idea of a Creator, Great Spirit or Great Mystery - a power or being that has created the world and everything in it. These beings are often described as good or well-intentioned, though dangerous if treated carelessly or with disrespect.

Great spiritual power is also found in the spirits of all living things, natural phenomena and ritually significant places. In general, supernatural mystery or power is called Orenda by the Haudenosaunee, Wakan by the Dakota and Manitou by the Algonquian peoples. This power is a property of the spirits, but also belongs to transformers, tricksters, culture heroes, or other spirit figures, as well as shamans, prophets and ceremonial performers. Ritual objects such as the calumet, rattles, drums, masks, medicine wheels, medicine bundles and ritual sanctuaries are filled with spiritual power.

Various Indigenous oral histories tell of contacts made between humans and the world beyond. Ceremonially, columns of smoke, central house posts or the central pole of the Sun Dance lodge represent such connections. Many nations tell of a primeval sea or great flood. Northwest Coast peoples, such as the Kwakwaka'wakw, divide the year into two major seasons: the summer time and the winter time, in which most religious ceremonies take place. Historically agricultural societies such as the Haudenosaunee have ceremonial calendars organized around the harvest times of various food plants, with a life-renewal ceremony usually held in midwinter.

A key concept among many societies is the notion of guardians. Among the Abenaki, for instance, Bear is considered one of six directional guardians (west), representing courage, physical strength and bravery. Among the Inuit, the sea goddess Sedna is the guardian of sea mammals and controls when stocks are available to be hunted. Shamans may visit Sedna and coax her into releasing the animals by righting previous wrongs or presenting offerings.

Shamans

Shamans are the most notable of the multiple religious figures present in traditional Indigenous religion. They function as healers, prophets, diviners and custodians of religious mythology, and are often the officiants at religious ceremonies. In some societies, all these functions are performed by the same person; in others, shamans are specialists. Healing practitioners may belong to various orders, such as the Midewiwin or Great Medicine Society of the Ojibwe, while other groups had secret societies, such as the Kwakwaka'wakw and Siksika. Members of such societies were not necessarily shamans but did practice religious ceremonies and rituals.

Shamans were associated with powers generally thought to be beneficial to the community but were believed in some cases to use their powers for sorcery. Shaman-prophets and diviners were concerned with predicting the outcome of the hunt, relocating lost objects and determining the root causes of communal discontent and ill will. Siksika, Cree, Ojibwe and other societies had diviners who made their prophecies (perhaps in trance states) in the dramatic Shaking Tent ceremony. Shamans in these societies were custodians of the sacred medicine bundles containing objects and materials endowed with great mystery and power. Innu shamans divined game trails by burning a caribou shoulder blade, then reading the cracks and fissures created by the fire.

As healers, shamans typically recognized natural causes for many diseases, especially physically curable ones; other illnesses were commonly believed to be the result of intrusion into the body of objects placed there by sorcerers. The shaman-healer's treatment of such diseases was dictated by his guardian spirit, but usually consisted of the shaman ritually sucking the disease agent out of the body, brushing it off with a bird 's wing, or drawing it out with dramatic gestures. Illness could also result from "spirit loss" - the loss of the soul and/or guardian spirit power. The shaman-healer's action was then directed to recovering the patient's spirit and reintroducing it to the body.

Guardian Spirit and Vision Quests

Vision quests (sometimes referred to as guardian spirit quests) once occurred throughout most Indigenous cultures in Canada; it has undergone a revival in many communities. Males, especially at puberty but also at other times of life, make extended stays in remote areas while fasting, praying and purifying themselves by washing in streams and pools. The goal is to seek a vision of, or an actual encounter with, a guardian spirit - very frequently an animal, but possibly a mythological figure. Contact with a guardian spirit is believed to make an individual healthy, prosperous and successful, particularly in hunting and fishing.

The individual focus of the quest is also present in common celebration of life events. Among these rituals are ceremonies at birth or the giving of a name, at puberty, marriage and death, all of which are normally accompanied by some solemnity. Life-event ceremonies, though individual, had some level of communal integration. For example, the 17th-century Huron-Wendat Feast of the Dead may have incorporated features of both seasonal and life-crisis rituals.

European and Christian Influence

Contact with European religious systems - through settlers, missionaries, church- and government-sponsored residential schools, and direct and indirect government policy - brought change to all Indigenous religious forms.

In areas where sustained contact occurred relatively early - in the 16th and 17th centuries - many Indigenous peoples were baptized into Catholicism by French missionaries. The Mi'kmaq, for instance, began their conversion to subjects of the Vatican after the conversion of Grand Chief Membertou in 1610. Mi'kmaq religion incorporates many traditional aspects in fusion with Christianity, even the flag for the Mi'kmaq Grand Council features a large cross.

The adaptability of Christianity to Indigenous spirituality is evident in the Huron Carol - a Christmas carol purportedly written for the Huron-Wendat by Jesuit missionary Jean de Brébeuf in the 17th century. The song fuses Indigenous imagery and mythology - including Kitchi Manitou - onto the Christian Nativity story. Wise men bearing gifts become grand chiefs bearing pelts, and the manger becomes a lodge of birch bark. The stories of saints, and of Jesus, closely resembled familiar culture heroes, and were readily adapted in many Indigenous communities.

Intermarriage was a more literal merging of religious and spiritual traditions, and Métis religious practices typically combine traditional spirituality with either Protestant or Catholic customs. Some unique belief systems combine traditional Indigenous forms with European observances, such as the Shaker Religion of the Coast Salish area.

Adaptation to European religion and ways of life was not smooth or without consequence. While some Indigenous peoples rejected early conversion attempts, generations suffered under destructive government policies such as residential schools and the outlawing of the potlatch and Sun Dance under the in 1885.

Some First Nations rejected European forms and turned to traditional spirituality to revive previous religious practices and beliefs (e.g., the Haudenosaunee Handsome Lake Religion). Other religious movements radically opposed European forms, such as the 19th-century Ghost Dance of the Dakota and other Plains communities.

The divide between Christian and non-Christian peoples remains an issue of tension. In 2011, the Cree First Nation of Oujé-Bougoumou, headed by an all-Christian council, outlawed all expressions of Indigenous spirituality, including sweat lodges, which prompted backlash and division within the community. In 2015, it was reported that Ouje-Bougoumou held its first powwow event, a type of gathering not typically encouraged in the past.

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Religion and Spirituality of Indigenous Peoples in Canada

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First Nation, Métis and Inuit religions in Canada vary widely and consist of complex social and cultural customs for addressing the sacred and the supernatural...

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inter-relationships and influences among selected ancient cultures (e.g., Egyptian adaptation of chariots from the Hyksos; Roman adaptation of Greek gods and mythology; adaptations of Sumerian writing system, Babylonian code of law, Sumerian irrigation system)

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This resource provides 3 lessons to teach trade among ancient civilizations

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Geography, Economy & Trade in Ancient Egypt

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We have prepared three lesson plans including classroom activities, assignments, homework, and keys as well as:

Multiple choice quiz questions in an excel format.

Glossary of keywords and concepts in an excel format.

Open questions adaptable for debates, presentations, and essays.

Recommended resources to provide you and your students with a comprehensive. list of trustworthy references on the topic (includes all media types: videos, texts, primary resources, maps, podcasts, 3D models, etc.).

Tools to give your students such as tips to write a great essay.

Tools to make your life easier, such as marking grids.

Make sure to check out our games and quizzes on this topic too!

All our education material is varied and built to develop middle and high-school students' skills to succeed in social studies. You will also find several alternatives in the lesson plans to allow for differentiation and adaptation to your students' level of ability.

This pack includes all of the following topics:

We are a non-profit organization and it is one of our goals to provide quality material to teachers by building engaging courses and finding reliable sources. If you want to join our team of volunteers and help us create great teaching resources, please contact us.

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Geography, Economy, & Trade in Ancient Egypt

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We have prepared three lesson plans including classroom activities, assignments, homework, and keys as well as: Multiple choice quiz questions in an excel format. Glossary of keywords and concepts in an excel format. Open questions adaptable for debates, presentations, and essays. Recommended resources to provide you and your students with a comprehensive.

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What is the impact on language of increased trade and interactions between civilizations and cultures?

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A story map highlighting the inventions made by civilizations throughout history.

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Story Map
Technological Advances Since Early Civilization

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Compare selected technologies from selected ancient cultures in terms of materials, purpose, and impact on society and daily life

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Students are able to follow the evolution Ancient Civilizations through this interactive journal accompanied by maps.

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Story Map
Religious Beliefs of Early Civilizations

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Representations of the world according to the religions, spiritual beliefs, myths, stories, knowledge, and languages of past civilizations and cultures

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4 lessons to choose from for students to learn about civilizations.

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Scholastic
Teaching Tools

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One of the most effective ways to teach middle school students about ancient civilizations is by connecting history to the present day.

Featuring engaging stories and enriching lessons, Junior Scholastic is a great way to make teaching about ancient civilizations exciting and relevant to your students.

·With Junior Scholastic, you'll not only capture your students' attention, you'll reach every learner through a variety of differentiation tools, such as multiple reading levels, and videos with closed-captioning.

Make teaching about ancient civilizations exciting and relevant to today's middle school students with these engaging free resources from Junior Scholastic magazine. Made specifically for grades 6-8, Junior Scholastic builds knowledge, skills, and engagement with high-interest nonfiction stories that bring your social studies curriculum to life. Plus, every issue comes with flexible, timesaving print and digital teaching tools to help you meet your instructional goals.
Try print and digital resources from Junior Scholastic, the social studies magazine for grades 6-8, for free in your classroom! Teen Queen
Introduce your students to a real-life teen queen, Cleopatra.

"She was young and bold, but could she save her once-mighty empire?" That's the theme of our read-aloud play, " Egypt's Last Queen." Your class will love the juicy roles and dramatic dialogue as they reenact one of the most important stories from ancient history.

"The play's the thing," as Shakespeare wrote, but it's not the only thing in this lesson. Junior Scholastic gives you a step-by-step lesson plan, four language arts activities, a map, and an answer key.
Bling King
Ask your students to name the richest person who ever lived and you'll probably hear the names of current athletes, entertainers, and business founders. You're sure to surprise and amaze them when you introduce Mansa Musa as the wealthiest person of all time.

This 14th-century African emperor and natural-resources magnate is the subject of our story " The Bling King." It touches on everything from economic and religious history to leadership and world geography-with a few fun celebrity facts to add teen appeal. It's a great way to explore how ancient and modern civilizations are similar. Along with the story, you'll receive a lesson plan, map activity, vocabulary worksheet, quiz, a lower-level version, and more.
Secret Jungle
Next, you can take your class on an expedition into the remote tropical rainforests of Central America for history-making discoveries about the Maya. " Jungle of Secrets " tells the story of how archeologists recently used lasers, a high-tech plane, and 3D maps to uncover new revelations about this American Indian people. Your students will learn the Maya were far more interconnected and numerous than anyone knew before!

With our original video, "The History of the Maya," you'll transport your class to the site of this rich civilization. With our lesson plan, activity on citing text evidence, and more, you'll turn students' fascination into learning progress!
Frozen City
Another topic that always fascinates students is natural disasters. One of the most historically significant is the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, which destroyed-and then preserved the ruins of-the Roman city of Pompeii in 79 A.D. It's still "the most dangerous volcano in the world," a scientist tells Junior Scholastic. It's also still yielding incredible findings about life in ancient Rome.

Our lesson " Pompeii's Secrets " features:

A vivid description of the eruption and its destructive impact-ash and gas flowed at 100 miles per hour!

The 19th-century archeologist's discovery of the ruins, which included intact eggs and loaves of bread, as well as, famously, skeletons inside outlines of townspeople "frozen" in time.

New historical insights-made possible by cutting-edge science-on the Pompeiians' diet, ethnicities, and occupations.

The race by present-day experts to save the ruins from the ravages of time and tourism.

Rounding out our exploration of Pompeii are a lesson plan, knowledge-building video, map activity, "Know the News" worksheet, an activity about analyzing a primary source, and more.
Try Junior Scholastic Free
Once you and your students try all these amazing resources, you'll know why so many teachers use Junior Scholastic in their middle school classrooms. With each issue, we help create learning excitement about curricular topics from history to civics, geography, science, social-emotional learning, and more. Plus, Junior Scholastic Digital gives you unlimited access to multiple reading levels, knowledge-building videos, and more, all with Google Classroom integration.

Try Junior Scholastic in your classroom and make history relevant to today's teens. Start a FREE 30-Day Trial!

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4 Exciting Lessons on Ancient Civilizations

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One of the most effective ways to teach middle school students about ancient civilizations is by connecting history to the present day. Featuring engaging stories and enriching lessons, Junior Scholastic is a great way to make teaching about ancient civilizations exciting and relevant to your students.

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What similarities can be identified among cultures around the world throughout time?

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In this 25 min video students learn how Homo Sapiens settled the 5 main continents.

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PBS Learning Media
Video

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How did Homo sapiens Succeed? | First Peoples | PBS LearningMedia

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How were Homo sapiens successful in settling each of the five major continents by 13,000 to 14,000 years ago? See evidence of interactions between Homo sapiens and other early human groups (such as Neanderthals and Denisovans), including the cultural artifacts that these groups produced, in these clips drawn from the documentary First Peoples.

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What types of strategies have different civilizations used to respond to similar challenges imposed by the physical environment?

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Looking like a National Geographic Article, this informative page provides students with facts about Hunter-gatherer Culture as well as further links to a collections of articles, videos, and photographs about hunter-gatherers, agriculture and the current state of both.

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National Geographic
Resource Library
Encyclopedic Entry

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Hunter-gatherer culture was the way of life for early humans until around 11,000 to 12,000 years ago. The lifestyle of hunter-gatherers was based on hunting animals and foraging for food.

Subjects

Anthropology, Social Studies, World History

Image

Hunting for Game

The Hadza people of Tanzania rely on hunting wild game for meat, a task that requires great skill in tracking, teamwork, and accuracy with a bow and arrow.

Photograph by Matthieu Paley

Hunter-gatherer culture is a type of subsistence lifestyle that relies on hunting and fishing animals and foraging for wild vegetation and other nutrients like honey, for food. Until approximately 12,000 years ago, all humans practiced hunting-gathering.

Anthropologists have discovered evidence for the practice of hunter-gatherer culture by modern humans ( Homo sapiens) and their distant ancestors dating as far back as two million years. Before the emergence of hunter-gatherer cultures, earlier groups relied on the practice of scavenging animal remains that predators left behind.

Because hunter-gatherers did not rely on agriculture, they used mobility as a survival strategy. Indeed, the hunter-gatherer lifestyle required access to large areas of land, between seven and 500 square miles, to find the food they needed to survive. This made establishing long-term settlements impractical, and most hunter-gatherers were nomadic. Hunter-gatherer groups tended to range in size from an extended family to a larger band of no more than about 100 people.

With the beginnings of the Neolithic Revolution about 12,000 years ago, when agricultural practices were first developed, some groups abandoned hunter-gatherer practices to establish permanent settlements that could provide for much larger populations. However, many hunter-gatherer behaviors persisted until modern times. As recently as 1500 C.E., there were still hunter-gatherers in parts of Europe and throughout the Americas. Over the last 500 years, the population of hunter-gatherers has declined dramatically. Today very few exist, with the Hadza people of Tanzania being one of the last groups to live in this tradition.

Media Credits

The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit. The Rights Holder for media is the person or group credited.

Director

Tyson Brown, National Geographic Society

Author

National Geographic Society

Production Managers

Gina Borgia, National Geographic Society

Jeanna Sullivan, National Geographic Society

Program Specialists

Sarah Appleton, National Geographic Society, National Geographic Society

Margot Willis, National Geographic Society

other

Last Updated

October 19, 2023

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Hunter-gatherer culture was the way of life for early humans until around 11,000 to 12,000 years ago. The lifestyle of hunter-gatherers was based on hunting animals and foraging for food.

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What advantages did agriculture have over the hunter-gather way of life?