MESOPOTAMIA: THE
LAND BETWEEN THE
RIVERS
A Study of the Fertile Crescent and Its
People
Laura Orlowski
ED 629.01
Unit 1: 7th grade Social Studies
Early Civilizations

Objective: To teach students about the
importance of the early river valley
civilizations. To teach students about the
historical facts and the characteristics of
early civilizations and how those early
civilizations impacted later cultures and
people.
 Materials Needed: Power Point presentation
 Student Activities: Students will take notes
from the slides in their notebooks and we will
play a review game at the end of the
presentation.
History of Mesopotamia: the
Land
Why is it called the land between the
two rivers?
 Tigris & Euphrates
 Civilization sprang up in this area over
6000 years ago because of the two
rivers.
 The area is sometimes nicknamed the
fertile crescent because the land is so
fertile.

Mesopotamia’s early settlers

Rains were seasonal in this area, which
meant that the land flooded in the winter and
spring and water was scarce at other times.
 Mesopotamian farmers learned how to
control the ebb and flow of water by
constructing a complex irrigation system of
dams and dykes.
Agriculture in Sumer



Farmers had to work together cooperatively in order
to keep the dykes and irrigation ditches free from
the build-up of dirt, sediment, and vegetation.
The fruits of the farmers’ labors were plenty…
Sumerian farmers were able to grow more wheat
and barley than what they needed and so they
traded their surplus grains for needed supplies
and/or other resources.
The Rise of the Sumerians
In 3500 BC, Sumerians invaded the
existing settlements of the Ubaidians,
in southern Mesopotamia.
 The southern section of Mesopotamia
came to be known as Sumer.
 Sumerians erected city-states
throughout the region. Each city-state
was ruled by its own king.

Sumer’s Success

The Sumerian empire grew wealthy from
farming and the vast amount of trade that
took place.
 One of the greatest accomplishments of the
Sumerian people was the invention of the
earliest known system of writing-cuneiform.
Sumer’s Lasting Impact

The Sumerians impacted later civilizations and
empires, with their skilled abilities in the areas of:
1.) Engraving
2.) Bleaching and Dying Fabrics
3.) Development of Measuring and Surveying
Equipment
4.) Innovation of Corals and Dams for the purpose of
Irrigation.
Conflict and Divisiveness in
Sumer

Due to the vast number of city-states
throughout the Sumerian empire, conflict
and dissension became more and more
prevalent.
 Because of the Sumerians inability to
adequately unify under one leader, they
were eventually conquered by King Sargon
of Akkad in 2000 BC.
The Fall of Sumer and the Rise
of Baybylon
King Sargon swept into the region and
established his Babylonian empire.
 The Sumerian empire was overrun and
its people either moved on or were
absorbed into the Babylonian society.

Web Sites
“Collapse:Why do Civilizations Fall?” © 1997-2007 Annenberg
Media. Access
date:9/27/07>http://www.learner.org/interactives/collapse/meso
potamia.html
“Sumer” Access date:
9/27/07>http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/prehistory/middle_eas
t/middle_east.html
“Mesopotamia” The British Museum. Access
date:9/27/07>http://www.mesopotamia.co.uk
“Ancient Mesopotamia” Access date: 9/27/07>www.shrewsburyma.gov/schools/Central/Curriculum/ELEMENTARY/SOCIALST
UDIES/Mesopotamia/ancient_mesopotamia.htm
Internet Ancient History Sourcebook:Mesopotamia. Access date:
9/27/07>www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/asbook03.html