Big Idea Day #3

Ancient Civilizations

I) Ancient Egypt

A) People settled along the Nile River..WHY?

B) Pharaoh - Egyptian ruler

C) Hieroglyphics Early Egyptian writing system

D) Mummification Preserving the dead for the
afterlife



Pros and Cons of Rivers
PROS
1) Floods leave fertile soil
2) Transportation of people & Goods
3) Protection from invaders
4) Cultural Diffusion

CONS
1) Flooding occurs
2) Loss of crops lead to famines
3) Villages & Homes destroyed

Egyptian Hierarchy
Pharaoh
Priests & Priestesses
Nobles
Craftspeople & Merchants
Peasant Farmers
Slaves
II) Ancient Sumer

A) Located in the Middle East (Near present-day Iraq)

B) Tigris and Euphrates Rivers (Same ideas with the
river as in Egypt)

C) First writing system made - Called Cuneiform

D) Fertile Crescent Area of fertile land
III) Indus River Valley

A) Indus and Ganges Rivers leads to civilization
starting in India

B) Himalayas - High mountain ranges make it hard to
unite India

Pros and cons of mountains?
III) Indus River Valley


C) Winds called monsoons in India bring rain or
dry desert air
Dry air = drought, no water, crops wither, people
cannot grow crops
Wet moist air = moisture from the Ganges River
causes deadly floods and crops to die
IV) Ancient China

A) China is separated from
the rest of the world
(isolation)

B) Chinese civilization arose
around the Huang He and
Yangzi river valleys

C) Dynasty Time when one
family rules a country

D) Mandate of Heaven You
have the right to rule as along
as God approves

Generation go
by, New
Dynasty
becomes...
New Dynasty
claims Mandate
of Heaven
New Dynasty
-brings peace
-protects people
-Rebuilds infrastructure

Old Dynasty
-Unfair treatment
-Taxes
-No protection
-Infrastructure
fails
Old Dynasty
loses Mandate
of Heaven
-Revolution
-Invasion
The Dynastic Cycle
V) American Indians

A) Incas Located in Peru. Lived on mountain tops
B) Mayas Located in South America
C) Aztecs Located in Mexico

D) Polytheistic & animist

E) Strong government, calendars, strong army,
roads, advancements in math and medicine.

F) Terrace Farming Used by the Incas to farm on
the mountains

G) Mostly Hunters and gatherers