Lasting Accomplishments of the Roman Empire
TEACHER NOTES | RESOURCES
INTRODUCTION
Many ancient civilizations have made major contributions to the modern-day world.
The Roman Empire was one of the most advanced cultures of its time. The grandeur of Rome has
had long-lasting effects on the societies of the entire world. Evidence of the brilliance and creativity
of the Romans can be found in many modern countries: remains of roads, walls, baths, basilicas,
amphitheaters, and aqueducts. These show the technological advances made by the engineers and
architects of the Roman Empire. Many modern civic buildings have been built using the Romanesque
styling. Perhaps the most important and far-reaching contributions were their administrative
institutions - the legal codes and government systems - that have influenced western political life.
SCENARIO AND TASK
The Mayor of Rome, The Honorable Francesco Rutelli, is hosting a symposium of mayors who will
gather in his beautiful and exciting city. He plans to present a short history of Rome, including the
lasting contributions of the Ancient Roman Empire and how they have affected worldwide
civilizations. Your task, "should you choose to accept it," is to create a short presentation with visuals
on the lasting accomplishments of Rome using your area of expertise.
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What are the major contributions?
What makes these achievements so important?
Which ones have had the most impact on societies of the world?
What evidence of the Roman influence can you find in our society?
You have just received the following memo from the Mayor.
Francesco Rutelli
Mayor of Rome
To: My Fellow Romans
Re: Accomplishments of Rome
In the Fall of 2001, I will be hosting a symposium of mayors from major cities all over the world
here in this beautiful city of Rome. Most people never realize how much their everyday lives are
influenced by past civilizations. Yet we know that the ancient Roman Empire has had a very great
influence on many of today's societies. What a great opportunity to show the world the affect the
Roman Empire has had on the world today!
I wish to create a presentation on the lasting accomplishments of the Roman Empire. I need your
expertise in accomplishing this task. As experts in the many areas that are still influenced by the
ancient Romans, I am asking you to prepare s short presentation with visuals highlighting these
contributions.
Since there are many accomplishments in every area, I am asking you to choose the ones from your
area of knowledge that have had the most impact on modern-day civilizations. Please be creative in
presenting those you choose.
Thank you for your time and effort in assisting me with this task.
Respectfully,
Mayor Francesco Rutelli
VOCABULARY
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symposium - a group of people gathered together; a large meeting or convention where
several speakers discuss a topic
accomplishments - a skill or idea that has lasted through time
expertise - an area, field or subject in which a person is well-informed and highly skilled
THE PROCESS
1. You will be working on this project in teams of "experts"-artists, architects, literary experts,
lawyers and judges, historians.
2. Divide the research among the members of the team.
3. After researching, make a list of accomplishments in your area of expertise.
4. For each accomplishment, describe how they have had an influence on or changed society.
5. Decide which of these accomplishments are the most important and/or had the most impact
on modern societies.
6. As a group, decide how you will present this information to the Mayor.
7. Prepare your presentation.
8. Present to the Mayor and his advisors.
9. After the conclusion of the presentation, each student must answer the questions in the
Reflection portion of the lesson. Write the answers to each question on notebook paper to turn
in.
LEARNING ADVICE
Be sure to research the accomplishments completely. To determine those that are the most important;
you might eliminate those for which you find very little information. Research those that have had
the most influence on the world.
Brainstorm, as a group, ideas for your presentation. Use appropriate visuals: pictures, a video,
posters, costumes, drawings, chart, model, museum display, pamphlet, photos, computer softwares.
Remember that each person must do his/her part of the assignment in order to successfully create the
presentation and earn the best possible grade.
Don't forget to follow-up with your report.
ASSESSMENT
The grade earned for the presentation will be a combination of group mark and individual marks.
Your grade will be given in three areas:
Quality of Presentation
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proper length (5-10 min)
all students participated
visuals were used
information was organized and easy to understand
Appropriateness of the Visuals
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do the visuals explain the information
are the visuals, clear, neat and well-done
CONCLUSION
Once your presentation is prepared, discuss what you have learned as a group. Using the information
you gathered, write the answer to the following question :
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What evidence of the Roman accomplishments do you see in our (North American) society
today?
REFLECTION
Looking back over this activity, think about what you had to do to complete this assignment. Please
answer the following questions and explain by telling why you gave these answers. Each student
must answer these questions on notebook paper to turn in.
1.
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3.
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5.
What was the best thing about doing this assignment?
What was the hardest thing about doing this assignment?
What was the most important thing you learned about working together?
What would have made this activity easier?
If you had to do this activity over again, what would you do differently?
TEACHER NOTES | RESOURCES