Social Studies Home Page
Mesopotamia
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= easiest, = at approximate grade level, = advanced, = most difficult | 2009-2010 | |||
Update in progress until November 10, 2009. |
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| Table of Contents | |||
| 1. From the Prehistoric to the Rise of Civilizations | 7. Mythology and Religion | ||
| Prehistoric, Neolithic Revolution, Development of Civilization | Mythology, Religion | ||
| 2. Mesopotamia - Maps, History and Legacy | 8. Trade and Conflict | ||
| History, Legacy | Trade, Conflict | ||
| 3. Daily Life | 9. Videos, Images, PowerPoints and Podcasts | ||
| Daily Life, Education and Culture, Medicine | Videos, Images, PowerPoints, Podcasts | ||
| 4. Geography and Farming | 10. Webquests and Tasks | ||
| Geography, Farming | WebQuests, Tasks | ||
| 5. Government, Law, and the Different Kingdoms | 11. Fun and Museums | ||
| Government and Rulers, Law, History of the Different Kingdoms | Fun, Museums | ||
| 6. Technology | 12. Miscellaneous Resources | ||
| The Wheel, Writing and Mathematics, Architecture, Working with Metal | Doing Research, Translate, Misc., Folktales and Stories | ||
1. From the Prehistoric Through the Neolithic to Early Civilization
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Prehistoric |
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1. Prehistory (mr.dowling .com) |
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2. Prehistory explained (simple.wikipedia.org) |
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3. 10,000 years ago (edunetconnect.com) |
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4. Prehistory to 3000 BCE: PowerPoint (Pearson Education, USA) |
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5. Forensic Detectives - Archaeology at Work: 55 min video requires password (United Streaming/Discovery Education) |
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The Neolithic Revolution |
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1. "Join the Neolithic revolution" graphic comic (Science Museum of Minnesota) |
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2. Neolithic (Archaeolink Prehistory Park, UK) |
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3. Neolithic Age (Answers.com) |
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4. The Neolithic Revolution - farming changes the world (the BBC, United Kingdom) |
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5. Neolithic Age - the New Stone Age (ancientanatolia.com) |
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6. Neolithic - first farmers (gallica.co.uk) |
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7. The Neolithic Revolution (wikipedia.org) |
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8. The earliest cities (Saudi Aramco World magazine, Saudi Arabia) |
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The Development of Civilization |
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1. What is civilization? (Mr. Dowling .com) |
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2. Dictionary definitions (factmonster.com) |
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3. What are the characterizes of civilization? (Emory University, GA, USA) |
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4. The first civilizations (Ministry of Education, Spain) |
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5. Start of civilization (Ithica City School District, NY, USA) |
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6. The rise of a Near East civilization (Emory University, GA, USA) |
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7. Virtual tour of an ancient Turkish comminity (Science Museum ofMinnesota, USA) |
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8. What is Civilization (wikipedia.org) |
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9. What characterizes civilization? (wikipedia.org) |
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10. The first civilizations: Mesopotamia, Egypt, India and China: PowerPoint presentation (Mrs. Bradley, Ker H.S., Texas Education Network, USA) |
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11. Traders and empire builders: PowerPoint presentation (Mrs. Bradley, Ker H.S., Texas Education Network, USA) |
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12. Why do civilizations fail? (learner.org) |
2. Mesopotamia History, and Legacy |
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Geography |
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1. Map of Mesopotamia over time (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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2. Chronology of Mesopotamia (gatewaystobabylon.com) |
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3. Geography of Mesopotamia (Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY, USA) |
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4. Mesopotamia - from Nomads to farmers: 20 min videorequires password (United Streaming/Discovery Education)\ |
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5. Overview of Mesopotamian history: PowerPoint presentation (Niles West HS, Illinois, USA) |
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6. History of Mesopotamia (gatewaystobabylon.com) |
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7. Mesopotamis: PowerPoint presentation (Eastern Tennessee State University, USA) |
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8. Ancient river valley civilizations: PowerPoint presentation (worldofteaching.com) |
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Legacy |
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1. What is a legacy? (simple.wikipedia.org) |
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2. Mesopotaman achievements (Buhler School District, Kansas, USA) |
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3. Achievements (ablemedia.com) |
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4. Sumerian achievements as a flowchart (Watertown Public Schools, MA, USA) |
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5. Legacy of Fertile Cresent Civilizations (Harker Heights High School,Texas, USA) |
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6. Overview of Iraq (National Geographic, USA) |
3. Daily Life |
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Daily Life |
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1. Daily life in Ancient Sumer (mrdonn.org) |
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2. Daily life - food (Emory University, GA, USA) |
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3. Mesopotamian menus (Saudi Aramco World magazine, Saudi Arabia) |
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4. Daily life (Emory University, GA, USA) |
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5. Sumerian people (Minnesota State University, USA) |
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6. Role of women (womininworldhistory.com) |
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7. Daily life (University of Chicago, USA) |
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8. Mesopotamian foods (foodtimeline.org) |
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9. Jobs in Mesopotamia: pdf file (National Endowment for the Humanities, USA) |
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10. Clothing #1 (Shrewsbury Public Schools, USA) |
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11. Clothing #2 (ablemedia.com) |
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Education and Culture |
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1. Schools and schooling (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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2. Education |
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3. Festivals (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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4. Oldest song in the world? (greenwych.ca) |
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Medicine |
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1. Medicine (Hamid Medical Corporation, Qatar) |
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2. Medicine and the law (Hamid Medical Corporation, Qatar) |
4. Geography and the Development of Farming |
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Geography |
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1. Geographic features: click on map to see pop-ups (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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2. Geography of Mesopotamia (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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3. Map of the Fertile Cresent (fsmitha.com) |
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4. Where was Mesopotamia? (ablemedia.com) |
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Farming |
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1. The Fertile Cresent (Mr. Dowling .com) |
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2. Irrigation (ablemedia.com) |
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3. Agricultures heritage: 26 minute video (archeologychannel.org) |
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4. From farming to civilization: PowerPoint presentation (Tarleton State University, Texas, USA) |
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5. The farming year (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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6. The start of agriculture (Washington State University, USA) |
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7. Domestic animals (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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8. History of agriculture (Rice University, Texas, USA) |
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9. Social consequences of argiculture (Washington State University, USA) |
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10. The first farmers (University of Chicago, USA) |
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11. Agricultural technology (Washington State University, USA) |
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12. Marshes of Iraq: modern picutres of marsh life (travel.webshots.com) |
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13. When farming fails (learner.org) |
5. Government, Law, and the History of the Different Kingdoms |
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Government and Rulers |
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1. Kingship (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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2. Start of government scroll down to "First small kingdoms" |
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3. Power and politics in Sumeria (fsmitha.com) |
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4. Rulers of Mesopotamia (Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY, USA) |
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5. Hammurabi #1 (mrdowling.com) |
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6. Hammurabi #2 (thenagain.info) |
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7. Hammurabi #3 (lexicorient.com) |
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8. Hammurabi #4 (infoplease.com) |
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9. Nebuchadnezzar I (wikipedia.org) |
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10. Nebuchadnezzar II (infoplease.com) |
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11. Nebuchadnezzar II (lexicorient.com) |
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12. Nebuchadnezzar II: contains video link (formerthings.com) |
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13. Sargon the Great #1 (historycentral.com) |
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14. Sargon the Great #2 (lexicorient.com) |
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15. Sargon the Great #3 (historyguide.org) |
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16. Sargon the Great #4 (infoplease.com) |
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17. Sargon the Great #5: podcast - available as MP3 (Military History Podcast, USA) |
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The Development of Law |
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1. Hummurabi's code (mr.dowling.com) |
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2. The laws of Hammurabi (University of Chicago, USA) |
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3. The code of Hammurabi (historyguide.org) |
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4. Code of Hammurabi (encarta.msn.com) |
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5. Hummurabi's code: scroll to bottom for actual laws (University of Evansville, Indiana, USA) |
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History of the Different Kingdoms |
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1. Change in Ancient Mesopotamis 3000 - 1000 BCE: requires Shockwave (University of Oregon, USA) |
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2. Assyria, Babylonia, Sumer (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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3. History of the region (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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4. History of Mesopotamia (crystalinks.com) |
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5. Sumeria (mrdowling.com) |
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6. Sumer I (Encyclopedia of the Orient) |
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7. Sumer II (Minnesota State University, USA) |
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8. Sumer - a review: PowerPoint (Scott Moore, University of Washington, USA) |
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9. First Summerians: PowerPoint (Chris Guthrie, Tarelton State University, Fort Worth, Texas, USA) |
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10. Sumeria (answers.com) |
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11. Babylon #1 (simple.wikipedia.org) |
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12. Babylon #2 (Encyclopedia of the Orient) |
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13. Babylon #3 (Minnesota State University, USA) |
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14. Babylon #4 (crystalinks.com) |
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15. Babylon #5 (answers.com) |
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16. The Assyrians (mrdowling.com) |
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17. Assyria #1 (Encyclopedia of the Orient) |
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18. Assyria #2 (Minnesota State University, USA) |
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19. Assyria #3 (web.archive.org) |
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20. Assyria #4 (answers.com) |
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21. An Assyrian palace (Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY, USA) |
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21. Hittites #1 (Encyclopedia of the Orient) |
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22. Hittites #2: only take notes from top sections I-III (web.archieve.org) |
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23. Hittites #3 (wikipedia.org) |
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24. Hittites #4 (Washington State University) |
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25. Hittites #5 (answers.com) |
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26. Persia (answers.com) |
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27. Achaemenid Dynasty (Encyclopedia of the Orient) |
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28. Persian Empire #1 (crystalinks.com) |
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29. Persian Empire #2 (wikipedia.org) |
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30. Mesopotamia - a review: PowerPoint (Niles H.S. Il, USA) |
6. Technology |
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The Wheel |
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1. The development of the wheel (ideafinder.com) |
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2. Ancient and medieval pottery (historyforkids.org) |
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3. The potter's wheel (ceramicstudios.me.uk) |
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4. Traditional potter's wheel (wikipedia.org) |
| http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/pottery.htm | |
| http://www.ehow.com/about_5403867_ancient-history-old-potters-wheel.html | |
| http://media.wiley.com/product_data/excerpt/90/04713953/0471395390.pdf | |
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5. Making a modern pot on a electric pottery wheel: video (video.google.com) |
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6. Making Greek vases: Real Player video (The Getty Museum, Los Angeles, USA) |
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7. Potter's wheel and wagon wheel (historyworld.net) |
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8. History of invention - the transportation wheel (CBC) |
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9. Invention of the wheel (thinkquest.org) |
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10. The sledge in the Stone Age: 3 minute video (archeologychannel.org) |
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11. Spinning (historyworld.net) |
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12. History of spinning (historyforkids.org) |
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13. Archimedes' screw (wikipedia.org) |
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14. How flour is made (dovefarms-organic.co.uk) |
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15. Wheel and axle (bookrags.com) |
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Writing and Mathematics |
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1, Writing (The British Museum, United Kingdom) |
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2. The development of writing (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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3. The beginnings of writing (Shrewsbury Public Schools, USA) |
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4. Writing (mr.dowling.com) |
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5. Where writing developed: requires Flash (Historiasiglo, Spain) |
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6. Mesopotamia - the development of written language: 20 min video requires password (United Streaming/Discovery Education) |
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7. Writing (Emory University, USA) |
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8. Cuneiform writing (Washington State University, USA) |
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9. Cuneiform numbers (St. Lawrence University, NY, USA) |
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10. Mesopotamian mathematics (St. Lawrence University, NY, USA) |
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11. Mathematics in Babylonia: pdf file (Texam A&M University, USA) |
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12. Mathematics (University of Virginia, USA) |
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13. Mathematics and measurement (University of Chicago, USA) |
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14. Babylonian mathematics (University of St. Andrews, U.K.) |
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Architecture |
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1. West Asian architecture (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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2. Ziggurats (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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3. Assyrian palaces (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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4. Hanging Gardens of Babylon (cleveleys.co.uk) |
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5. Tower of Babel - gallery (Hope College, Michigan, USA) |
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6. Mesopotamian Architecture: pictures at bottom (Fairfield University, USA) |
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Working with Metal and Other Inventions |
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1. Technology - background (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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2. Copper in ancient times (dragonseedcave.com) |
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3. Early smelting and metallurgy (University of Nevada, Reno, USA) |
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4. Metal work: examples of axes (University of Edinburgh, U.K.) |
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5. Copper history (rameria.com) |
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6. Copper in ancient times (copper.org) |
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7. Science and inventions (University of Chicago, USA) |
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8. Plumbing (plumber.com) |
7. Mythology and Religion |
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Mythology |
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1. Three myths (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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2. Elements of an Epic Hero cycle: pdf file or interactive file (National Endowment for the Humanities, USA) |
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3. Mythology in Babylonia (Emory University, GA, USA) |
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4. Mythology of the Near East (Humbolt State University, California, USA) |
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5. The epic of Gilgamesh: 20 min video requires password (United Streaming/Discovery Education) |
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6. Gilgamesh (Washington State University, USA) |
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7. The epic tale of Gilgamesh (University of Evansville, Indiana, USA) |
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8. Gilgamesh: full text |
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9. The discovery of the tale of Gilgamesh (Saudi Aramco World magazine, Saudi Arabia) |
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Religion |
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1. Religion in Mesopotamia (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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2. Gods, goddesses, demons, and monsters (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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3. Ziggurats, gods and goddesses (ablemedia.com) |
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4. Role of astronomers (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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5. Astronomy - background (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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6. Astrology and astronomy (astrologycom.com) |
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7. Sumerian religion (Minnesota State University, USA) |
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8. The gods of Sumer |
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9. Sumerian gods and goddesses (crystalinks.com) |
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10. Agriculture and fertility gods (fsmitha.com) |
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11. Royal tombs (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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12. Royal tombs - background (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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13. Death and burial (Emory University, USA) |
8. Trade and Conflict |
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Trade |
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1 Natural resources map (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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2. Trade and transport (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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3. Travel (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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4. Trade and commerce (Shrewsbury Public Schools, USA) |
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5. The economy in the Bronze Age (historyforkids.org) |
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6. The Sumerian economy (Minnesota State University) |
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7. The secrets of trade (ablemedia.com) |
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8. Ancient ships (artsales.com) |
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9. Stone anchors (University of Edinburgh, U.K.) |
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10. Mesopotamia - trade routes and transportation: 20 min video requires password (United Streaming/Discovery Education) |
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11. Chronology of money (University of Exeter, U.K.) |
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12. Invention of coins and banks (University of Exeter, U.K.) |
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Conflict |
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1. Warfare (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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2. Warfare - background (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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3. Early Sumerian warfare |
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4. Warfare and Empire (University of Chicago, USA) |
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5. History of warfare on land (historyworld.net) |
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6. Battle of Hamoukar (University of Chicago, IL, USA) |
9. Videos, Images, PowerPoints and Podcasts |
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Videos |
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1. Explore the land of UR: quicktime file - slow to load - at bottom of the page (Maricopa Community College, Arizona, USA) |
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2. Agriculture's heritage: 26 minute video (archeologychannel.org) |
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3. The sledge in the Stone Age: 3 minute video (archeologychannel.org) |
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Images |
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1. Art - the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit Institute of Art, MI, USA) |
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2. Mesopotamian clip art #1 (Phillip Martin) |
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3. Mesopotamian clip art #2 (classroomclipart.com) |
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4. Ancient Iraq artifacts (British Museum, U.K.) |
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5. Sumerian artifacts (xfacts.com) |
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6. Images from modern Iraq (Oberlin College, Ohio, USA) |
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7. Art - the Louvre (Paris, France) |
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8. Archaeological images (archaeology.org) |
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9. Timeline of art history (art-and-archaeology.com) |
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PowerPoints |
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10. WebQuests and Tasks |
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WebQuests |
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1. Mesopotamia webquest (Seekonk Public Schools, MA, USA) |
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2. Hammurabi's code - you be the judge (philipmartin.info) |
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3. The Metropolitan Museum is empty (Fairfax County Public Schools, VA, USA) |
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4. Dr. Evil and the civilization destroyer (Kara Dawson, Courtenay Middle School, BC, Canada) |
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5. Exploring Mesopotamia (Maryland Technology Academy, USA) |
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Tasks |
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11. Fun and Museums |
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Fun |
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1. Write like a Babylonian (University of Pennsylvania Museum, USA) |
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2. Never ending puzzle (British Museum, U.K.) |
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3. Mesopotamia games (quia.com) |
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4. Printable crossword puzzles (eduplace.com) |
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5. Mesopotamia word search (studystack.com) |
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6. Medicine through time (Isle of Man Department of Education, Europe) |
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7. The royal game (The British Museum, U.K.) |
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8. The royal game of Ur (gamecabinet.com) |
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9. Fertile Cresent Jeopardy game (Cooperative Educational Services, Trumbull, CT, USA) |
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Museums |
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12. Miscellaneous Resources |
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Doing Research |
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1. How to do research: the CMS approach: see left side of page (Avi Luxenburg, Comox Valley School District, BC, Canada) |
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2. The Research Process (Oregon School Library Information System, USA) |
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3. Why should we study history? (schoolhistory.co, U.K.) |
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4. Primary vs. secondary sources (Bowling Green State University, Ohio, USA) |
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5. A student's guide to the study of history (historyguide.org) |
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6. How to do history (bbc.co.uk) |
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7. Archaeology - excavations and techniques (bbc.co.uk) |
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8. How old is that? - dating techniques (Minnesota State University, USA) |
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9. Learn about the impact of conquests (bbc.co.uk) |
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10. Family histories (bbc.co.uk) |
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11. Sentences (actden.com) |
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12. Writing paragraphs (actden.com) |
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13. Writing essays (actden.com) |
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14. Guide to writing a basic essay (Kathy Livingston) |
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15. Turning Microsoft Word into a talking word processor (Paul Hamilton, SETBC) |
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Translate Traduisez Traduzca 翻译 ترجم |
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1. Babel Fish translation (altavista.com) |
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2. Google Translate (google.com) |
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Misc. |
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1. Historic sites of Iraq (ECAI, University of California, USA) |
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2. Wonders of the world (wonderclub.com) |
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3.United Nations World Heritage sites (The United Nations) |
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Folktales and Stories |
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Content created by Stewart Savard Fall 2003 (with suggestions and advice from Christine van der Ree and Rob Gratham). Rebuilt November 2009. All rights to "look and feel" reserved. |
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CSS Styles by Josh Porter SD#71 (Comox Valley) July 2008. |
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