More+Lasting+Ideas

=Unit 7: More Lasting Ideas=

Unit Objectives

 * Distinguish between polytheism and monotheism
 * Identify important accomplishments, beliefs, people, and events of the Hebrew people
 * Compare and contrast the beliefs of early polytheistic civilization with those of the Hebrews
 * Recognize the lasting influence of Judaism on Western civilization
 * Identify important gods and goddesses of ancient Greece and the characteristics of Greek religious myths
 * Compare and contrast the values, governments, and ways of life in Sparta and Athens
 * Recognize important cultural achievements of the early Greeks and their emphasis on human achievement
 * Analyze early Greek art for information on values and daily life
 * Identify on ancient and modern maps the region where Judaism developed
 * Identify on ancient and modern maps the major features of the Greek peninsula
 * Analyze maps to assess the reasons for the development of independent city-states in Greece

Keywords

 * Canaan:** the ancient name for the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea; the Promised Land of the Israelites
 * covenant:** a solemn, binding agreement or promise
 * Judaism:** the religion of the Jews, who are descendants of the ancient Hebrews; first major religion to teach belief in one God
 * monotheism****:** belief in one God
 * polytheism:** belief in many gods
 * Torah:** the entire body of wisdom and law contained in Jewish sacred literature and roal tradition; also, the first five books of the Hebrew Bible
 * sabbath:** the holy day of rest and worship in the Hebrew religion; from Friday at sundown to Saturday at sundown
 * Philistines:** a seafaring people who fought against the Hebrews for control of Jerusalem
 * synagogue:** Hebrew place of worship and learning
 * democracy:** rule by the people, originating in the city-states of ancient Greece
 * polis:** a city-state of ancient Greece

Lesson 1: Monotheism Takes Hold
Worship just one God? That was a very radical idea around 2000 B.C. Most ancient people worshiped many gods. You have learned that in Egypt Akhenaten's attempt to introduce the concept of one God failed. But when the Hebrews turned to monotheism, their religion--Judaism--offered a way of thinking that changed the course of world history.

Lesson Objectives

 * Define polytheism, monotheism, Torah, and covenant
 * Identify the Hebrews as the first people to worship one God and spread that idea
 * Name the religion of the ancient Hebrews
 * Identify Abraham
 * Locate on a map the areas that ancient Hebrews traveled through and settled, and identify the countries that occupy the area today
 * Identify Canaan as the land Jews believed to be "the promised land"

Jews Maps of the Travels of the Hebrews The Beginning of Jewish History


 * 1) Complete the Reading Guide as you read Chapter 6, pages 213-219.
 * 2) Review the maps in the link above and also on page 214 of your textbook. Complete [[file:MS_WDHISTA_07_01_Hebrews.pdf]].
 * 3) Read //The Torah and Judiasm// by Vivienne Cato

Lesson 2: Covenants
The Hebrews believed that God made a covenant with Abraham, choosing the Hebrews as his special people and promising them they would become a mighty nation. if they worshiped him alone. When the Hebrews first settled in Canaan, worshiping only on God was a very new idea in the world. As time went by, the Hebrews had different experiences that changed the way they saw God. Events that happened in Joseph's life were proof to the Hebrews that God knew all things and could see the present, past, and future. Joseph's experiences also showed the Hebrews that God was fair and just to people who were faithful to him. And when God helped Moses deliver the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt, they began to see God as all powerful--strong enough t save a whole nation. All these experiences shaped the Hebrew religion and their notions about God.

Lesson Objectives

 * Recognize important beliefs of Judiasm
 * Distinguish between Jewish views of God an the Egyptians' and Sumerians' view


 * 1) Read Chapter 6, pages 219-227. As you read, complete the Reading Guide.[[file:MS_WDHISTA_07_02_guide.pdf]]
 * 2) Complete the Comparing Beliefs worksheet[[file:Lesson 2 Worksheet.docx]]

Lesson 3: The Law
The Hebrews believed God told them what was expected when he gave them the Ten Commandments. The Commandments were God's instructions to all the Hebrew people, not just the leaders.

Lesson Objectives

 * Identify Moses
 * Describe the importance of the Ten Commandments to the Hebrews
 * Explain that Hebrew beliefs developed over time

2. Complete the Comparing Codes and Laws sheet. 3. Read //Moses// by Leonard Everett Fisher
 * 1) Read Chapter 7, pages 228-232, and answer the following questions in your history journal.
 * Who was Moses and what role did he play in the history of the Hebrew people?
 * How did the story of Moses' struggles help alter generations of the Hebrew people?
 * What ideas developed about God's expectations of the Hebrew people?
 * What are the Ten Commandments? Why are the Ten Commandments important to the Hebrews?

Lesson 4: Kings
Ideas about government grow and change over time. An outside threat led the Hebrews to abandon their tribal organization and unite under one king. The kingdom would not last for long, but it had a lasting influence on the Hebrews' view of themselves and their faith.

Lesson Objectives

 * Identify on a map the area known as Canaan--the "Promised Land"--and the city of Jerusalem
 * Explain the importance of David and how the city of Jerusalem became the capital of the Jewish kingdom
 * Identify important events in the lives of the Hebrew people and nearby groups between 2000 and 900 B.C.
 * Recognize the Assyrians and Babylonians as powerful groups who attacked the Hebrews
 * Describe the significance of Solomon's temple to the Hebrew people


 * 1) Read //Exodus// by Brian Wildsmith
 * 2) Read Chapter 7, pages 232-237 in //The Human Odyssey: Prehistory Through the Middle Ages.//
 * 3) Answer the following questions in your history journal:
 * Who was Joshua? Why was he important to the Hebrew people?
 * Where was Canaan?
 * Explain why the Hebrews called Canaan "the Promised Land."
 * Explain the relationships between Hebrews and other nearby groups.
 * Who were Saul, David, & Solomon?
 * Compare Saul, David, and Solomon as rulers of the Hebrews.

Lesson 5: Renewing Their Faith
The 70 years the Hebrews spent in Babylonian captivity further changed the people and their religion. During this time of terror and turmoil the Hebrews did not lose heart. Even though they were no longer in the Promised Land, they could still worship God. The prophets told them that God was wherever his people were. These teachings had a profound effect on Hebrew ideas and practices. lacking temples, the Hebrews began meeting in synagogues--gathering places for worship, teaching, and learning. They also turned more and more to prayer, coming to believe each person could talk directly with God. From the Babylonians they learned to love books, and began setting down all the writings from their early history and reading them aloud to make sure they never forgot their past. When the Hebrews finally returned to Judah, they kept these new ideas alive. Twenty-five hundred years after the Babylonian captivity, Hebrew beliefs have not only survived, they have become a vital part of the later faiths of Christianity and Islam.

Lesson Objectives

 * Describe the developments in Jewish beliefs resulting from the Babylonian captivity
 * Identify synagogues as Jewish places of worship and teaching
 * Explain that Judaism has influenced human history--especially Western history--and the religions of Christianity and Islam
 * Summarize the basic beliefs of Judaism

Judaism 101
 * 1) Read Chapter 7, pages 237-239, in // The Human Odyssey: Prehistory Through the Middle Ages. //
 * 2) Complete the "Comparing Religions and Philosophies" chart
 * 3) Answer the following questions in your history journal:
 * How long were the Hebrews held captive in Babylon?
 * Did Hebrew ideas about God and worship change as a result of this captivity?
 * How could the Hebrews worship God when they were not in the Promised Land?
 * How did Hebrew synagogues differ from the Temple in Jerusalem?
 * Did the Hebrews learn anything from the Babylonians?

Lesson 6: Another Land
Unlike some of the other early civilizations, the ancient Greeks had no fertile river valleys that helped farmers grow a surplus of grain. Thin, poor soil covers the rugged hills and mountains of the Greek mainland and its far-flung islands. To compensate for the scarcity of fertile farmland, the inhabitants grow olives and grapes and raise flocks of sheep, goats, and pigs on the stony hillsides. For other food they turn to the sea, which in ancient times became an all-important thoroughfare for ships carrying goods and ideas. Over a period of centuries, the Greeks built one of the most remarkable civilizations the world has ever known.

Lesson Objectives

 * Identify on a map the Peloponnese, Mediterranean Sea, Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, and Crete
 * Analyze maps to identify the climate and land-forms of Greece
 * Explain the geographic reasons for the development of independent city-states in Greece
 * Describe the ways in which the Greeks relied on and used the sea
 * Describe farming in ancient Greece

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Ancient Greeks - use this link for all lessons on Greece

2. How do you think geography may have contributed to the development of separate Greek city-states rather than one unified Greek state? 3. Read Chapter 8, pages 240-247, in //The Human Odyssey: Prehistory Through the Middle Ages// 4. Complete 5. Imagine you are a farmer living in the hills of ancient Greece. Your brother-in-law, a fisherman who lives on the coast, has just come to visit, and the two of you sit down to talk about your lives and work. Write down what you, as a farmer, might talk about, such as your crops and farm animals. Then write what your brother-in-law might tell you about his experience as a fisherman. Be sure to mention the weather and climate and how they affect your work and his. Then talk about the city-states in which you both live.Explain how geography may have influenced the region to develop separate city- states instead of one government that unifies all the people.
 * 1) Map of Ancient Greece - Review this map and find the following areas:
 * Peloponnese
 * Mediterranean Sea
 * Aegean Sea
 * Ionian Sea
 * Crete
 * Sparta
 * Corinth
 * Athens

Lesson 7: Gods in Ancient Greece
media type="custom" key="24796286" media type="custom" key="24796292" Bulfinch Mythology Greek Mythology Myth Web

The early Greeks believed that the gods lived on Mount Olympus in northern Greece, sometimes coming down to Earth to help people they favored and to punish the wicked. Each go and goddess had a special role and special powers, and together they controlled all the forces of nature. The Greeks wrote stories and poems about the gods to explain how the world worked. one of their favorites was the myth of Prometheus, in which a god gives the gift of fire to humans. The fire in the myth symbolizes the human mind, or the ability to think and reason--something the Greeks believed separates humans from all other creatures.

Lesson Objectives

 * Identify some of the religious beliefs and ideas expressed in Greek myths
 * Identify important gods and goddesses of ancient Greece
 * Explain that the Greek view of humanity differed from that of earlier polytheistic civilizations in that the Greeks believed humans could use their minds and reason to understand the world around them

2. To the Greeks, heroes and gods were larger than life. Create two or three illustrations for the myth of Prometheus, and write captions that help explain Greek beliefs and show how the Greeks thought it was possible for people to understand the world. 3. Read //The Gods and Goddesses of Greek Mythology// by Don Nardo
 * 1) Read Chapter 8, pages 247-250, in // The Human Odyssey: Prehistory Through the Middle Ages //and answer the following questions in your history journal:
 * What are some of the religious beliefs or ideas expressed in the Greek myths?
 * Who were some of the major gods and goddesses of ancient Greece?
 * How did the Greek view of humanity differ from the views of earlier polytheistic civilizations?
 * What three important things did the Greeks believe the could understand with their minds?

Lesson 8: The Gift of Reason
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The Greeks were among the world's first scientists and philosophers. They thought that by asking the right questions, making careful observations, and using their minds and reasoning powers, they could figure out how the world worked. at first they attributed natural phenomena to the actions of the gods. but as they observed nature closely they began to see patterns emerging. They looked for unchanging laws that might explain those patterns, and then used their reasoning powers to come up with logical explanations. This was a whole new approach t learning, and one that modern-day scientists still follow. The idea that the universe is orderly and that humans can understand it is one of the Greeks' greatest gifts to us.

Lesson Objectives

 * Identify one of the Greeks' greatest contributions to Western civilization
 * Recognize how human scientific and philosophical thought progressed from the earliest civilizations to the Greeks and then to modern times
 * Identify areas of study whose names have Greek origins

Words from Greek Math and the Ancient Greeks


 * 1) Read //Ancient Greece// by Michael Anderson
 * 2) Read Chapter 8, pages 250-253, in // The Human Odyssey: Prehistory Through the Middle Ages //and complete the Reading Guide
 * 3) Complete the Greeks Learn About Nature sheet.

Lesson 9: Stories and Games
The Greeks celebrated human potential in many ways. In poems and stories they paid tribute to qualities like bravery, determination, and resourcefulness. Two of the most famous stories of ancient Greece are the Iliad and the Odyssey, epic poems in which the poet Homer recounts events of the Trojan War and the hero Odysseus's long and difficult journey home from the war. The Greeks also celebrated the human body, admiring athletes as much as they did philosophers and statesmen. Every four yeas they held athletic competitions at the foot of Mount Olympus to honor the gods. Today's Olympic games are directly descended from the Greek Olympiads.

Lesson Objectives

 * Identify Homer
 * Describe the Iliad and the Odyssey
 * Describe the purpose and events of the original Olympic games
 * Recognize the work of archaeologists in gaining information on ancient Greece

media type="custom" key="24796444"media type="custom" key="24796462"

Homer's Iliad and Odyssey Archaeology: Ancient Greece Neinrich Schliemann: Heros & Mythos


 * 1) Read Chapter 9, pages 255-258, in // The Human Odyssey: Prehistory Through the Middle Ages //and complete the Reading Guide
 * 2) Read //Olympics// by Barbara Hennessy
 * 3) View the websites (including the one listed in lesson 6) and find xamples of various aspects of life in ancient Greece, including art, poetry, and entertainment. List your top three finds and explain why you chose them.

Lesson 10: Arts and Histories
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The Greeks' admiration for humanity is evident not just in their stories and games, but also in their art. Their artworks celebrate ordinary events and glorify the human form. The Greeks were also fascinated by the past and the lessons it could teach them, becoming the first civilization to undertake an organized study of history. Their early interest in the past is best demonstrated in the work of Herodotus, known as "the father of history." Another Greek historian--Thucydides--built on the work of Herodotus.

Lesson Objectives

 * Analyze Greek vessels for information on the form and purpose of art in ancient Greece
 * Identify the Greeks as the first civilization to study history in an organized manner
 * Identify Herodotus as "the father of history"
 * Describe the differences between the historical writings of Herodotus and Thucydides


 * 1) Read Chapter 9, pages 258-260, in //The Human Odyssey: Prehistory Through the Middle Ages// and answer the following questions in your history journal:
 * Describe Greek vessels, including their uses and decorations
 * What were some of the materials Greek artists used?
 * What civilization is credited as the first to study history in an organized manner?
 * Who is known as "the father of history"?
 * What are the main differences between the historical writings of Herodotus and Thucydides?

Lesson 11: The Polis
media type="custom" key="24796640" Greek civilization emerged at a time when many people in the world were ruled by tyrannical kings who claimed to be gods. The Greeks said this was wrong. They admired human potential and doubted the wisdom of kingly rule. They believed that each city-state, or polis, knew its own needs, and so should make its own rules and have its own form of government. Citizens could help make laws and share in governing. They could decide what gods they would worship. They could feel proud and free. The Greeks called this system of government democracy. but even with these high ideals, Greek government was limited, prohibiting women, foreigners, and slaves from becoming citizens or participating in the government. Nevertheless, the Greeks' faith in peoples' ability to think and reason would help steer the course of history for centuries to come.

Lesson Objectives

 * Define polis
 * Describe the Greek view of the role and limits of government as seen in the polis
 * Summarize the role and duties of citizens in the polis
 * Recognize that the Greeks did not grant citizenship to women, foreigners, and slaves
 * Compare the Greek view of good government with other ancient views

Ancient Greeks Thinkquest: Ancient Greece


 * 1) Read Chapter 9, pages 260-265, in //The Human Odyssey: Prehistory Through the Middle Ages// and complete the Reading Guide

Lesson 12: Telling Tales
media type="custom" key="24802788" Stories like the Iliad and the Odyssey reveal many of the values and beliefs of the ancient Greeks. These stories, show, for example, that the Greeks admired qualities such as bravery and resourcefulness. In part of the Odyssey, the hero and his crew are captured by a one-eyed giant--a Cyclops call Polyphemus. This story illustrates some of the ancient Greeks' values and beliefs.

Lesson Objectives

 * Identify some Greek values and beliefs illustrated in a story


 * 1) Read Chapter 9, pages 265-259, in //The Human Odyssey: Prehistory Through the Middle Ages//
 * 2) The Greeks admired bravery and resourcefulness. What other human qualities did they admire? The Greeks also thought people should act honorably. What other kinds of behavior did they value? In your history journal, list at least three Greek values or beliefs you think the story of Odysseus and the Cyclops illustrates, and prove your case with quotations from the reading.