Penn Museum
Ancient History Math Mystery
Through several organized and attractive worksheets, your learners will make a deduction about tally marks and hieroglyphics to determine what they represent in the ancient numeral system. This is a well-designed, interdisciplinary...
Penn Museum
Maya Ball
Sure the ancient Mayan civilization had an advanced calendar and mathematical system, but did you know that they also played a great team sport like basketball? Invite your learners to discover the great ballcourt at Chichen Itza and...
Core Knowledge Foundation
Maya, Aztec, and Inca Civilizations
A 10-lesson unit explores the Maya, Aztec, and Inca civilizations. Over the course of two weeks, scholars read nonfiction excerpts, discuss their findings, and complete activities. An assessment equipped with multiple choice and matching...
Curated OER
Be That As It Maya
Creative projects are a great way to engage your class and can be a fun way to assess mastery! Learners create brochures and postcards that might have been created by and for travelers to ancient Mayan cities. They read and discuss the...
Curated OER
The Ancient Maya
Students explore the culture of the Mayans through a variety of activities. For this lesson about Maya, students analyze pictures in books and on websites, produce scale models of Maya architecture, and create Maya mosaics. Students...
Curated OER
Mystic Lands: Maya: Messages in Stone
Students explore an ancient Mayan city. In this world history lesson, students watch a video about the ancient Mayan civilization, discussing information prior to and after watching the video. Students then come to understand more about...
Curated OER
Will America Fall Apart Like the Maya?
High schoolers work in teams to research ancient Mayan civilization as they simulate working for the President of the United States. He is concerned that if a civilization as technologically advanced as the Maya's could disappear, could...
Core Knowledge Foundation
Early American Civilizations Tell It Again!™ Read-Aloud Anthology
Bridge subjects ancient history and English language arts together with a unit all about the Maya, Aztec, and Inca civilizations. Eleven lessons begin with a read-aloud followed by a whole-class discussion in preparation for practice by...
Curated OER
Sky Watchers: Ancient Astronomers
Students close their eyes and picture the sky. They are asked to brainstorm things they may see in the course of a night and day, such as the movement of the sun, moon, and stars. Students work in groups to coduct their research. They...
Curated OER
El Misterio del los Mayas (The Mystery of the Mayas)
Young scholars, working in groups, research different aspects of the Mayan society of the classical period. They study the rise and fall of the civilization and present the information in multimedia presentations.
Core Knowledge Foundation
Unit 2: Early American Civilizations
Fifth graders explore early American civilizations in a four-week ELA unit. Every lesson offers an opportunity to read and discuss a selected passage followed by word work that covers vocabulary, grammar, and morphology. Learners write...
Curated OER
Maya Lesson Plans
Mayan cities may have mysteriously disappeared, but the culture still thrives today. Maya lesson plans bring the culture alive.
Curated OER
Inside The Pyramids
High schoolers research the use of pyramids in different cultures. In this ancient civilizations lesson, students watch "Inside the Pyramids." High schoolers conduct further research on the topic and create...
Curated OER
Understanding Mayan Culture
Students study an ancient culture in Mexico whose people were called the Mayans. They compare certain aspects of Mayan culture with Ancient Egypt. They discuss why some other ancient cultures (Egypt and China) were able to survive for...
Curated OER
The Mayan Empire
Students study vocabulary associated with the Mayan Empire; its art, daily life, inventions, and religious beliefs. They examine why the Mayan culture is considered to be one of the most advanced of the ancient civilizations by...
Curated OER
Meso-America
Students will identify and locate Central and South America and their countries and features, as well as Meso-American civilizations. Students will compare civilizations and discuss voyages of relevant explorers.
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: Writings of the Ancient Maya
Students are introduced to the ancient Mayan civilization through their writings. They explore a social studies focus on the destruction of many Mayan writings by the Spanish and what archaeologists have learned from the writings that...
Incredible Art Department
The Incredible Art Department: Ancient Mayan Civilization Art & Culture
Looks at the art and culture of the Maya civilization including history, forms of art, recent discoveries, and some art lessons. There is also a lengthy list of web resource links.
Canadian Museum of History
Canadian Museum of History: Maya Civilization
Lots of information about many facets of the Maya civilization. Covers the history, people, geography, languages, cities, society, cosmology, the calendar, and lots more. Includes a glossary and a timeline.
Other
Ancient Scripts: Writing Systems
History and definition of writing, plus extensive information on the types, families, and regions of written languages. For each language, you'll find information on when and where it was used, the people who used it, and what it looked...
Mex Connect
Mexconnect: The Ancient Maya: A Commercial Empire
This article discusses the implications of trade and commerce during the Mayan Period. The principles of resource allocation and specialization are discussed. (Published January 1, 2006)
Other
Mesoweb: The Temple of the Inscriptions Tablets
Wonderful PDF files of various tablets found at the Temple of the Inscriptions in the ancient Maya city-state of Palenque.
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Learner: Collapse: Why Do Civilizations Fall?
Why did great civilizations fall? War, disease, overpopulation or natural disasters? Interactive content and activities allow you, by sifting through archaeological evidence, to investigate the collapse of the Mayan civilization, the...
Scholastic
Scholastic: Junior Scholastic: Jungle of Secrets
Check out this site to discover more about the Ancient Maya culture. An article and video are provided. [2:19]