Teacher's Guide for CALLIOPE ^® Sumer and its City-States

Discussion:

Why is Sumer considered a "cradle of civilization"? (first to develop writing, schools, law, literature, irrigation, taxation, weights and measures, the wheel)

Organizing Information:

Add to the timeline on page 2 changes in other cultures mentioned on page 7. Color code these for different civilizations.

Create a time line for the invention and development of writing. Use information in the article and information from other sources.

Debate:

Specialization is necessary for urbanization.

Cooperative Project - Reading for Information / Visualization:

Have students work in small groups to draw plans or representations of the earliest temple from the Ubaid period (5500 BC), the Uruk period temple (3400 BC), and the later temple. Have the groups compare their representations and discuss which are closest to the written text.

Creative Writing:

Read the information on page 10 and examine the picture on page 11. Choose one character from the picture. Imagine his or her life; then choose one of the following options:

• Write a story in which the character faces a major personal decision; make sure the setting of the story is clearly Eridu.
• Imagine a dialogue or a dream which the character might have.
• Write and illustrate a cartoon in which the character stars.

Comprehension:

Why is Kish considered so important as a historical area and as an archeological site? (Rulers advertised their power by calling themselves "King of Kish" meaning "King of Kings," distinctive painted pottery, important religious and political center, cemetery which gives much information about the Early Dynastic period and burial practice, remains of earliest known palace in Mesopotamia)

Describe a cylinder seal and its use. (Cylinder seals were tubular pieces of shell or stone carved with scenes and inscribed with the owner's name and title; the seals could be rolled or pressed onto a piece of damp clay tablet to close and lock a trade package.)

Art:

Design in quick-drying clay a cylinder seal for our times.

Comprehension:

Define a city-state.

Describe the system of government in early Uruk.

Research:

The article mentions several women who were wealthy and probably powerful. Use a search engine on the internet to research the women of Mesopotamia, such as Queen Puabi and the priestess Shagshag. Share what you learned about their lives with the class in an oral talk or in a poster or display. Check out www.womeninworldhistory.com.

Organizing information:

1. Challenge a team of students to use the information on pages 12 through 23 to trace on a map the different trade routes through ancient Mesopotamia, noting what goods were being bartered on each trade route.
2. Challenge a team of students to make a table showing the different gods mentioned in the magazine, where they were worshipped, how they were worshipped, and what their special powers were (See also, "Early Mesopotamian Religions").

Projects:

Use all the details in the article to recreate the tomb of Queen Puabi in a picture or model. Research the archeological career of Charles Leonard Woolley and share what you discover in a talk or poster.

Read about the city-state of Ur in three different sources and share what you learned with your class.

Applying Information:

Read this article carefully, noting how different materials change over time. Choose something that is important to you, such as a musical instrument you play, a favorite piece of jewelry or sports equipment, or the contents of your backpack. Draw a picture of the object(s) now and a picture of what the object(s) might look like after being buried for a thousand years in your backyard. Do you think it would be possible to reconstruct the original object?

Comprehension:

Why was the city of Nippur important and unique? (Mesopotamia's major religious center, the place of the temple of the major Sumerian deity Enlil, a city without political dominance but which legitimized the Sumerian kings)

What did the god Enlil stand for? (the Great Mountain, the father, king of all the lands, the authority)

What did the goddess Inanna stand for? (love, war)

Creative Writing:

Retell the creation myth of Enlil and the Pick Axe. You might want to look ahead to page 33 for more information. Try to imagine the god Enlil's feelings and actions and the feelings and actions of the first human beings. Remember, this is a story. Make it exciting! Illustrate your story or trade stories with a friend and illustrate each other's story.

Organizing information:

Create a table that lists the different Mesopotamian gods, with what virtues or events they were associated, how they were depicted, and where they were worshipped. If you can't fill in all the blanks, find the information somewhere else in the magazine, in books, or on the Internet.

Compare and Contrast:

Write an essay that describes the role of the king in the Mesopotamian city-state. Then compare his role to that of a modern-day king or president.

Debate:

History is written by the victors. Use examples from the article and elsewhere.

Comprehension:

What records do people today have of ancient Mesopotamian writing? (clay tablets of administrative documents)

What is the difference between language and script? (language - vocabulary and grammar used to communicate, script - written symbols used to represent language)

What were the languages of Mesopotamia? (Akkadian, Sumerian)

When was writing invented in Uruk? (3400 BC)

What is the script of Mesopotamia? (cuneiform)

How were records kept before the invention of writing? (cylinder seals identified officials, tokens were used to count)

What is a rebus? (a kind of writing that uses a picture of an object to represent something that sounds like it)

How was cuneiform written? (with a wedge-shaped stylus)

Where did cuneiform get its name? (from the Latin word for "wedge-shaped")

For how many years was cuneiform used? (more than 3,000)

Which languages were written in cuneiform? (Sumerian, Akkadian, Elamite, Hittite, Persian, Ugaritic)

How were the scribes trained? (in special schools in their teacher's homes)

What were they taught? (how to hold the stylus, make cuneiform signs, copy words and texts, through dictionaries and grammars)

What do you think is the most important part of the Sumerian legacy to mankind? Is it writing? Law? Irrigation? Urbanization? Trading? Religion? Mathematics? The wheel? Write a thank you note to the ancient Sumerians for what you think is their greatest legacy and say why you are thanking them.

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Updated: 11/7/09 05:39 am
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