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...
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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...
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Ancient Tablets, Ancient Graves: Accessing Women's Lives in Mesopotamia
Students explore the role of women in ancient Mesopotamia. Several excerpts from the Mesopotamian cuneiform tablets and artifacts are analyzed to determine the treatment, rights, and powers of women in this era.
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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....
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Mesopotamian Tablet, Egyptian Art
First graders examine cuneiform writing from a stone tablet, then write a simple sentence using pictographs. They analyze various examples of Egyptian art, construct a model of an Egyptian boat, and create a class painting using glyphs...
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Hands-On! The Invention of Writing
Young scholars 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...
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Ancient Mesopotamian and Egyptian Writing
Middle schoolers research cuneiform and hieroglyphics from the internet and use educational software to create their own cuneiform tablet in this excellent World History lesson. The use of the computer software program Inspiration 7.5...
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Ancient Mesopotamia
In this geography activity, 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...
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Words into Pictures
Students discover the history of writing through images, and the universal themes that are still relevant. In this communications lesson, students analyze a group of symbols on the black board and must translate them into a complete...
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Reading Comprehension: Counting
In this informational text comprehension worksheet, 3rd graders read the passage about counting and answer 10 multiple choice questions about the passage.