World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution, and Enlightenment (1600-1770)
Ascension Parish Comprehensive Curriculum
Concept Correlation
Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment (1600-1770)
Time Frame: Regular 4 weeks; Block 2 weeks
Big Picture: (Taken from Unit Description and Student Understanding)
Scientific thought and philosophers were responsible for major political, social, and economic changes in the world.
Absolutism was changed by the intellectual thought of the time period.
Activities Documented GLEs
Guiding Questions The essential GLEs
activities are denoted GLES Date and Method of
by an asterisk. GLES
Bloom’s Level Assessment
Concept 1: Absolutism *Activity 16:
Construct a
Absolutism in
1. Can students identify demographic, timeline to
Early Modern 29
economic, and social trends in explain and 1
Europe
major world regions? analyze historical
GQ 1, 15
DOCUMENTATION
15. Can students analyze the point periods in world
view of an historical figure or Activity 17: history (H-1A-
group in world history? Absolutism 29 H1) (Knowledge)
GQ 1, 15 Identify 21
demographic,
Concept 2: Scientific Revolution
Activity 18: economic, and
and Enlightenment
Science or social trends in
21, 22 major world
14. Can students construct a timeline Rational Thought
GQ 30, 31 regions (H-1C-
to explain and analyze historical
H7)
periods in world history?
*Activity 19: (Knowledge)
30. Can students identify the key
Scientific
players of the Scientific
Revolution and Describe key 22
Revolution and the impact of their 21, 22
the features of the
discoveries on the world then and
Enlightenment Renaissance,
now?
GQ 20, 3 Reformation,
31. Can students describe the major
*Activity 20: Scientific
ideas of philosophers and their
Evaluation of Revolution, and
effects on the world? 28
Natural Law the
GQ 31 Age of
Activity 21: Enlightenment
22
Enlightenment
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment 28
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution, and Enlightenment (1600-1770)
GQ 31 (H-1C
H7) (Evaluation)
Describe the 28
major ideas
of philosophers
and their
effects on the
world (H-1C-
H10) (Evaluation)
*Activity 22:
Change and 1, 28,
Identify causes 29
Enlightenment 29
and evaluate
GQ 14, 30, 31
effects of major
political
revolutions since
the seventeenth
century.
(Synthesis
Reflections
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment 29
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution, and Enlightenment (1600-1770)
Unit 3 - Concept 1: Absolutism
GLEs
*Bolded GLEs are assessed in this unit
29 Identify causes and evaluate effects of major political revolutions since the seventeenth
century. (Synthesis)
Purpose/Guiding Questions: Vocabulary:
Identify characteristics of an absolute Divine Right of Kings
ruler. Absolutism
Judge the effectiveness of absolutism serf
L’etat c’est moi!
Sun king
Balance of power
Assessment Ideas: Resources:
Graphic Organizer Primary/Secondary sources (Frederick
Internet assignment the Great, Peter the Great, Louis XIV)
Graphic organizer
Computer/Internet
Instructional Activities
Note: Essential activities are key to the development of student understandings of each concept.
Substituted activities must cover the same GLEs to the same Bloom’s level.
**Essential Activities: 16
**Optional Activities: 17
Activity 16: Absolutism in Early Modern Europe (CC Unit 3, Activity 2)
(GLE: 29)
Prefacing
On the board have students brainstorm on the many different types of governments (democracy,
communism, monarchy) and the different types of leaders (presidents, dictators, kings). Lead
students in discussion of what is the best type of government and leader.
Ask students to read about the reigns of Frederick the Great (Prussia), Peter the Great (Russia),
and Louis XIV (France). Using student input, guide discussion illustrating the plight of peasants,
the power of nobility, the centralization of authority, militarism, the suppression of enlightened
philosophies, and free will. Provide charts for student notes, such as the following:
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment 28
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution, and Enlightenment (1600-1770)
Characteristics Louis XIV Frederick the Great Peter the Great
How did the monarch
centralize power?
How did he react to
the notion of natural
rights of man?
What was the plight of
the peasants?
How did he exploit the
church and religion?
How did he make use
of military power?
Conclude with a discussion of the following summarizing questions: How did absolute monarchs
achieve power? How did they protect their power from the people? How might an absolute
monarchy exist and survive today? What advice would Machiavelli give an absolute monarch of
today?
Activity 17: Absolutism (Teacher-Made Activity)
(GLE 29)
Teacher may use his/her own discretion. Teacher may use previously made TrackStar or may create own.
Visit www.4teachers.org . Click on the Trackstar icon. Then, put in #278329 in the ―view track
number‖ and click ―go.‖ Then click, ―view in frames.‖ Provide students with guided handout
(can be printed by clicking ―view in text‖). Students should visit the required sites and answer
the provided questions.
List of sites
# 1 http://www.visitvoltaire.com/v_louis_xiv.htm
# 2 www.therfcc.org/louis-xiv-25546.html
#3 www.bartleby.com/65/fr/Fred2Pru.html
#4 www.abcgallery.com/list/2001nov16.html
#5 www.saint-petersburg.com/history/peter1st.asp
#6 www.thenagain.info/webchron/easteurope/petergreat.html
# 7 http://witcombe.sbc.edu/ARTHbaroque.html#Baroque
# 8 http://www.xs4all.nl/~kvenjb/madmonarchs/ivan4/ivan4_bio.htm
#9 http://www.folger.edu/template.cfm?cid=1256
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment 29
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution, and Enlightenment (1600-1770)
Unit 3 - Concept 2 Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment
GLEs
*Bolded GLEs are assessed in this unit
1 Construst a timeline to explain and analyze historical periods in world history (H-
1A-H1) (Knowledge)
21 Identify demographic, economic, and social trends in major world regions
(H-1C-H7) (Knowledge)
22 Describe key features of the Renaissance, Reformation, Scientific Revolution, and the
Age of Enlightenment (H-1C-H7) (Evaluation)
28 Describe the major ideas of philosophers and their effects on the world (H-1C-H10)
(Evaluation)
29 Identify causes and evaluate effects of major political revolutions since the
seventeenth century. (Synthesis)
Purpose/Guiding Questions: Vocabulary:
o Identify the key players of the Geocentric/Heliocentric
Scientific Revolution and Astronomy
Enlightenment and the impact Natural Law
of their discoveries on the world Universal moral law
then and now Salon society
o Describe the major ideas of the Philosophes
philosophers and their effects
Reason
on the world
Deism
censorship
Encyclopedie
Enlightened Despot
―I am the first servant of the state.‖
Baroque
Methodism
Romanticism
Wealth of Nations
Invisible hand
Laissez-faire
Separation of powers
Free market economy
Assessment Ideas: Resources:
Presentation Audio copy of Mozart’s Figuero
Informal Essay Gravity explanation materials
Essay Primary sources (Hobbes, Locke, Smith,
Timelines Malthus, Smith…)
Music video Mosh by Eminem
Instructional Activities
Note: Essential activities are key to the development of student understandings of each concept.
Substituted activities must cover the same GLEs to the same Bloom’s level.
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment 30
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution, and Enlightenment (1600-1770)
**Essential Activities: 19, 20, 21,
**Optional Activities: 18, 22
Activity 18: Science and Rational Thought (CC Unit 2, Activity 4)
(GLE: 22)
Materials List: composition by Mozart, CD or tape player for music, photographs of the solar
system depicting elliptical orbiting of the planets, synopsis or primary text of Locke’s writings
about social contract
Provide students with a composition by Mozart to which they listen, a demonstration of the apple
falling and principle of gravity by Newton, photographs of the sky and a brief explanation of
Kepler’s work, and a synopsis or primary text of Locke’s writing about social contract theory.
Then have students explore these in groups, working toward articulating what they perceive to be
true about life and thinking in the Scientific Revolution and the Age of Enlightenment. Have
them make comparisons as they go between this age and the ages of the Renaissance and
Reformation.
Activity 19: Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment (Teacher Modified, CC Unit 2,
Activity 5) (GLEs: 21, 22, 28)
The teacher should lead students in a brainstorming (view literacy strategy descriptions) session
to list the key personalities and the key ideas they contributed to this period. The following
personalities should be listed:
art and music (e.g., Mozart)
physics and astronomy (e.g., Newton, Kepler)
astronomy (e.g., Kepler)
medicine (e.g., Harvey)
philosophy and natural law (e.g., Locke)
economics (e.g., Adam Smith)
explaining Benjamin Franklin’s experiment with electricity,
compare the statements of Louis XIV to statements of Frederick the Great
reading excerpts from Diderot’s Encyclopedia and explaining how it exemplifies
Enlightenment thought,
Rene Descartes (rationalism)
Thomas Hobbes (social contract)
Jean-Jacques Rousseau (government responsible for equality of society)
Baron de Montesquieu (separation of powers)
Voltaire (justice, religious tolerance, liberty)
Mary Wollstonecraft (equal rights for women)
Adam Smith (laissez-faire economics in a free market economy)
Cesare Beccaria (equal justice)
The teacher should lead the class in a discussion of the impact of the Enlightenment on
government, economics, art, music, literature, architecture, and religion. Ask students to share
their observations as to what they perceive to be the most important legacy of the Enlightenment
and why. Students should relate the legacy to their lives today.
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment 31
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution, and Enlightenment (1600-1770)
Students will be assigned groups to discuss one of the following topics:
Music tends to reflect the time period. Evaluate the music of today and what it says about our
culture. Think back to music from the 1950s and 60s and evaluate how it reflects the time period.
While listening to Mozart, Bach and Handel evaluate how the music from the Age of Reason
reflects the era in which it was created.
Examine sketches of Galileo’s futuristic designs. Galileo created machines he believed the world
needed. Consider our place in history and you must create a sketch of a futuristic machine. (What
does our society need that it doesn’t have?)
After viewing the video Mosh by Eminem, what role does the media play in shaping our views of
society? Should artists like Eminem, Marilyn Manson, and Michael Moore be censored by the
government? Should the government take on the role of the Catholic Church (preVatican II) and
create a Book of Prohibited Works? How would Voltaire respond?
Conclude this activity with the following journal stem: Which philosopher in this unit most
closely resembles your own personal philosophy on life and why?
Activity 20: Evaluation of Natural Law (Teacher Modified, CC Unit 3, Activity 1)
(GLE: 28)
Begin lesson with suggestion of universal moral law
Provide definition-- natural law
Universal Moral Law that is knowable by reason
Break apart each word—have class develop a definition that they agree upon.
Give student three scenarios to consider (scenarios may be changed based on the needs of
students)
o You are walking at the football game and you find a wallet. Inside the wallet you
find a picture of your teacher and her beautiful family. You also find $300 cash in
the wallet. While looking at the money, you find a doctor’s bill for $250 and it is
stamped PAST DUE. What is the moral thing to do?
o Imagine that a woman who is on welfare and is barely living at poverty level and
already has one child finds out that she is pregnant. While she is walking down
the street carrying her malnourished & scantly dressed baby, she comes across an
abortion clinic. She stands at the doors of the clinic trying to decide what to do.
What is the moral decision for this woman to make?
o Imagine that one night while you and your family are asleep in bed someone
breaks into your house. You run to help your parents and brother but you do not
make it in time. They are all brutally murdered. You get a clear view of the
person’s face that has committed this horrid crime. You are able to hide so that
you are not killed. One day while walking in a forest you come across a deserted
cabin. Upon entering the cabin, you find the murdered tied up. Sitting beside him
is a telephone line wired directly to the police station and a loaded gun. No one is
around and no one will EVER find out what you do to him. What is the moral
thing to do?
While students are considering these scenarios, do not influence their decisions. Allow
them to decide as a whole if there is a universal moral law by the decisions that they
make.
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment 32
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution, and Enlightenment (1600-1770)
Students will probably not be able to agree on the moral choice. They will understand the
difficulties experienced during the Age of Reason and Enlightenment. People were faced
with many difficult decisions that went against the things they had always been taught.
Many people during this time will begin to doubt the teaching of the church or the
existence of God.
Discuss the following ideas with students. Relate back to the ideas of Machiavelli and compare
his ideas to the enlightened philosophers.
What is natural law?
Can humans practice rational thought?
Should these ideas be suppressed under Christendom?
Why are these ideas suppressed under absolute monarchs?
Why did the Reformation and Renaissance in England and France foster the
application of natural law to human behavior and society?
For homework:
Assign short biographical reports on various thinkers of the time period and discuss each
philosopher’s contribution to the Enlightenment and the Age of Reason. The teacher should
document student responses on some type of graphic organizer on the board, overhead
transparency, or computer generated program such as Inspiration.
Activity 21: Enlightenment (Modified Teacher-Made Activity)
(GLE 22,)
Provide students with primary and/or secondary sources from Locke and Hobbes. Using
information from the readings and historical knowledge, have students write on the following
topic:
Thomas Jefferson prompt:
―God forbid we should ever be twenty years without such a rebellion. The people cannot be all,
and always, well informed. The part, which is wrong, will be discontented, in proportion to the
importance of the facts they misconceive. If they remain quiet under such misconceptions, it is
lethargy, the forerunner of death to the public liberty. ...And what country can preserve its
liberties, if it's rulers are not warned from time to time, that this people preserve the spirit of
resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to the facts, pardon and pacify
them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from
time to time, with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure."
Using your knowledge of the philosophies of Hobbes and Locke, justify whether or not the
political climate of today is beneficial for our country. Relate to the current political conditions
within America today.
Activity 22: Change and Enlightenment (CC Unit 3, Activity 4)
(GLEs: 1, 28, 29)
Have students generate a timeline of important ―thinkers‖ between 1400 – 1800. Illustrating the
growth of ideas and the emergence of revolutions, such as
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment 33
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution, and Enlightenment (1600-1770)
Prominent leaders in the Reformation and Counter-Reformation to 1648;
prominent artists and musicians to 1800;
prominent scientists to 1800;
prominent philosophers to 1800; and
Prominent revolutions leaders to 1800.
Provide selected readings from Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations.
(http://plus.maths.org/issue14/features/smith/ ) Ask students to explain what he means by the
―invisible hand‖ controlling markets and prices. How is this idea related to natural law? Introduce
the Malthusian doctrine on population.( http://www.victorianweb.org/economics/essay.html )Did
Malthus advocate natural law principles? Was Malthus correct?
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment 34
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution, and Enlightenment (1600-1770)
Name/School_________________________________ Unit No.:______________
Grade ________________________________ Unit Name:________________
Feedback Form
This form should be filled out as the unit is being taught and turned in to your teacher coach upon completion.
Concern and/or Activity Changes needed* Justification for changes
Number
* If you suggest an activity substitution, please attach a copy of the activity narrative formatted
like the activities in the APCC (i.e. GLEs, guiding questions, etc.).
World History Unit 3: Absolutism, Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment 35