ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS
The Fertile Crescent
Land Between Two
Rivers
Students will:
•Find out how geography
made the rise of civilization in
the Fertile Crescent possible.
•Learn about Sumer‘s first
cities.
•Learn about the two most
important empires in
Mesopotamia.
Land Between Two Rivers
Essential
Question:
• What were
the
beginnings
of human
society?
• How has
geography
shaped the
patterns of
history?
Farming in Mesopotamia
You’re going to create a Mesopotamian Farming
manual
• You will have a total of 6 steps, describe the
steps in order and next to each description
draw a picture that represents the step.
• Take 15 minutes to find steps and draw an
illustration
Steps to Farming in Mesopotamia
1. Local officials decided when to open flood
gates
2. Animals grazed in soil to trample ground and
eat weeds
Steps
1. Local officials decide when to let water flow
onto crops
2. Farmers let animals graze in soil to trample
and eat weeds.
3. Farmers break up the soil using hand tools
4. Spread seeds and plow
5. Plant seeds
6. Harvest the plants
Vocabulary
Mesopotamia: The Development of Written Language
city-state
Definition: A self-governing state consisting of a city and
surrounding territory
Context: Nippur was the most important city-state in Sumer.
demon
Definition: An evil spirit
Context: According to Sumerian legend, Gilgamesh killed the
demon Huwawa with the help of the sun god.
Vocabulary
Mesopotamia: The Development of Written Language
epic
Definition: A long poem telling the deeds of a hero and often
centering on the ideals of a nation or culture
Context: The Epic of Gilgamesh teaches us to enjoy the time we have
on Earth.
immortality
Definition: The quality or state of having an endless life
Context: Gilgamesh was unable to achieve immortality, but he was
able to leave behind a legacy through the work he had done during
his lifetime.
Mesopotamia
Definition: An ancient land located where we find the modern country
of Iraq
Context: Mesopotamia means, “land between the rivers” and got its
name because it was located between the Tigris and Euphrates
rivers.
Vocabulary
Mesopotamia: The Development of Written Language
scribe
Definition: A person paid to write, especially in ancient times
Context: Mesopotamian scribes worked closely with the priests
and kings.
stylus
Definition: A hard, pointed writing tool cut from a reed
Context: Sumerian scribe wrote with styluses they made from
reeds.
Sumerians
Definition: Residents of Sumer, a region of the ancient land of
Mesopotamia
Context: The Sumerians developed many inventions, such as the
wheel and the plow.
Vocabulary
Mesopotamia: The Development of Written Language
Nippur
Definition: A major city-state in the ancient Sumerian region of
Mesopotamia
Context: Nippur was a busy trading center in Sumer and its most
important religious city.
tablet
Definition: A flat slab – often of clay or stone – suitable for an
inscription
Context: The Sumerians etched symbols into wet clay tablets to
create a permanent document of their activities.
Ancient Mesopotamia
Writing
• The Sumerians developed the first form of writing.
• As Sumerian towns grew into cities, the people needed a way
to keep track of business transactions, ownership rights, and
government records.
• Around 3300 BC the Sumerians began to use picture symbols
marked into clay tablets to keep their records
Ancient Mesopotamia
Writing
• Clay Tablets
• Writing was inscribed on clay tablets.
• Scribes would take a stylus (a stick made from a reed) and
press the lines and symbols into soft, moist clay.
• Once they were done, they would let the clay harden and they
had a permanent record.
Ancient Mesopotamia
Writing
• Cuneiform
The initial writing of the Sumerians utilized simple
pictures or pictograms.
• The writing of the Sumerians further developed to
include sounds and meanings.
• Scribes would use the stylus to make wedge shaped
marks in the clay.
• This type of writing is called cuneiform writing, which
means "wedge-shaped".
Write Like a Babylonian
Questions
Mesopotamia: The Development of Written Language
1. What was the importance of scribes in
Mesopotamia?
2. Why did the scribes have greater access to the
priests and kings than other people in the citystates?
3. How long did it take to train a scribe?
4. What is the name of the training school where
scribes learn how to write?
Vocabulary
Mesopotamia: From Nomads to Farmers
.ancestors
Definition: People in one’s family, from whom one is descended
Context: Your ancestors include your grandparents, great
grandparents, and great-great grandparents.
domestication
Definition: The taming of wild animals to use for farming or to be
kept as pets
Context: The domestication of sheep and goats helped the
Mesopotamians become farmers.
Vocabulary
Mesopotamia: From Nomads to Farmers
. journal
Definition: A record of personal experiences and thoughts kept on a
regular basis
Context: Writing a journal can help you understand yourself.
levee
Definition: Earthen dams constructed to hold back floodwaters
Context: A levee system helped the Mesopotamians farm their most
fertile land.
Mesopotamia
Definition: An ancient land located where we find the modern
country of Iraq
Context: Mesopotamia means, “land between the rivers” and got its
name because it was located between the Tigris and Euphrates
rivers.
Vocabulary
Mesopotamia: From Nomads to Farmers
Sumerians
.
Definition:
Residents of Sumer, a region of the ancient land of
Mesopotamia
Context: Sumerians developed a culture whose members farmed
and traded instead of hunting and gathering to make a living.
Tigris River
Definition: One of the rivers that borders what was the land of
Mesopotamia
Context: The Tigris River bordered Mesopotamia to the east.
Euphrates River
Definition: One of the rivers that borders what was the land of
Mesopotamia.
Context: The Euphrates River bordered Mesopotamia to the west.
Questions
Mesopotamia: From Nomads to Farmers
1. Why did the ancient Sumerians look for new
ways to produce their food?
2. How did growing crops and domesticating
animals like sheep and goats allow the
Sumerians to build cities and live in one place all
year long?
3. What does the word “Mesopotamia” mean?
4. Between which rivers did Mesopotamia lie?
5. Why did the soil of the Mesopotamian region of
Sumer grow such good crops?
6. What problem at first made farming difficult
there and how did the Sumerians solve it?
Questions
Mesopotamia: From Nomads to Farmers
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
In what other way did the Sumerians control the rivers?
What important farming tool did the Sumerians invent?
What else did the Mesopotamians invent?
What do we call their system of writing?
What tools did the Mesopotamians use for writing?
What did the Sumerians put into writing before any
other society?
13. What was the name of the temple where Sumerians
believed their gods lived?
14. Of what material were the houses in Sumerian cities
made?
Babylonia and Assyria
Students will:
•Find out how geography made the
rise of civilization in the Fertile
Crescent possible.
•Learn about Sumer‘s first cities.
•Learn about the two most
important empires in Mesopotamia.
Babylonia and Assyria
Have the students create a Venn Diagram
• List appropriate details in the
“Babylonia” circle.
• List appropriate details in the “Assyrians”
circle.
Babylonia and Assyria
In your own words define the following words –
Empire, Caravan, Bazaar
• Have the students create a Venn Diagram
• List appropriate details in the “Babylonia” circle.
• List appropriate details in the “Assyrians” circle.
Babylonia v. Assyria Venn Diagram
Mesopotamia Empires
Babylonia
Assyria
The Legacy of Mesopotamia
Essential Question:
• What were the beginnings of human
society?
• How has geography shaped the
patterns of history?
The Legacy of Mesopotamia
In this section you will learn of the advances
made by the Mesopotamians, including the art
of writing.
Think about how your lives would different
without writing.
Writing Activity
Mediterranean Civilizations
Essential Question:
• What were the beginnings of
human society?
• How has geography shaped the
patterns of history?
Mediterranean Civilizations
What happens to a story as it is retold over a
long period of time?
What important development changed the way
stories were told?
The Fertile Crescent
Summary
• Stretching from the coast of the
Mediterranean Sea in present day Israel to the
Persian Gulf, the Fertile Crescent was the
birthplace of many early civilizations.
• The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers provided ideal
conditions for human settlement, with the
first civilizations rising in Mesopotamia, or the
land between the rivers.
Land Between Two Rivers
• Mesopotamia lay between the Tigris and
Euphrates rivers. These two rivers and the
rich, fertile soil drew people to the region.
• The early people of Mesopotamia became
farmers and then builders of cities. The most
successful and advanced cities were the citystates of Sumer.
Babylonia and Assyria
• After the fall of Sumer, the biggest and most
important civilizations were the empires of
Babylonia and Assyria.
• These civilizations built grand cities
where culture and learning were
highly valued.
The Legacy of Mesopotamia
• The Mesopotamians were probably the first to
develop two of the key components of almost
all civilizations—a system of writing and a set
of written laws.
Mediterranean Civilizations
• Phoenicia developed into a great sea power
with trade routes throughout the
Mediterranean region.
• These trade routes brought great wealth and
knowledge to the Phoenicians.
• The Phoenicians developed a system of
writing with an alphabet of 22 letters. This
alphabet formed the basis of the alphabets
that many nations use today.
Review
The Fertile Crescent
Students will:
•Found out how geography made the
rise of civilization in the Fertile
Crescent possible.
•Learn about Sumer‘s first cities.
•Learn about the two most important
empires in Mesopotamia.
Review
The Fertile Crescent
Essential Question:
• What were the beginnings of
human society?
• How has geography shaped
the patterns of history?