Bell Work
January 31, 2012
• In your spiral, translate (tell in your own words) what the
following proverb by Confucius means.
•“Listening to music brings
harmony to the mind. Right
conduct brings harmony to
existence.”
What will I learn from today’s lesson?
By the end of today, I will…
• Understand the achievements of great Asian empires.
How? You will use a graphic organizer to categorize
inventions by dynasty.
• Understand the influence of science and technology on
the development of culture through time. How? You will
see how the inventions get more complex with each
dynasty.
• 6.2.SPI.5. Recognize the importance of trade in later
civilizations (The Silk Road)
• 6.3.SPI.3. Identify the location of early civilizations on a
map -- Where is China? What physical feature makes
up the majority of the land in China?
• 6.5.SPI.5. Identify major technological advances -- The
Great Wall and other inventions of the Ancient Chinese
Ancient China
Inventions, The Great Wall
& The Silk Road
The Great Wall Of China
Can the Great Wall of
China be seen from
space?
The Great Wall of China is not visible
from space. Under the perfect
weather conditions, it can be seen
from a low Earth orbit (100 miles).
Why?
The Great Wall is only 30
feet wide. It is almost the
same color of the land
around it. Seeing the wall
from the moon would be like
seeing a human hair from 2
miles away.
Interesting facts:
During its construction, the Great Wall was
called “the longest cemetery on earth” because
so many people died building it. Reportedly, it
cost the lives of more than one million people.
According to legend, a helpful dragon traced
out the course of the Great Wall for the
workforce. The builders subsequently followed
the tracks of the dragon.
The Chinese invented the wheelbarrow
and used it extensively in building the
Great Wall.
That the Great Wall is a single, continuous
wall built all at once is a myth. In reality,
the wall is a discontinuous network of wall
segments built by various dynasties to
protect China’s northern boundary.
Ancient Chinese Inventions,
Technologies and Ideas
What is technology?
1 : the use of science in
solving problems (as in
industry or engineering)
2 : a technical method of
doing something
• Paper
• Silk
• Dominoes
• Matches
• Wheelbarrows
• The decimal system
• Waterwheel
• Lacquer ware
• Porcelain
• Pottery wheel
• Compass
• Tangrams
• Folding umbrella
• Kites
• Fireworks
• Ink
• Printing
• Abacus
• Paper Currency
• Seismograph
• Suspension bridge
Assignment:
• 20 minutes
• Work with your shoulder partner
• Determine which invention goes with each dynasty
• You may use your BOOK and your NOTES
• One paper per group
• Write both names on you paper
• WHEN YOU ARE FINISHED…you have 1 question to answer on
YOUR OWN based on what you learned from your partner
work.
****Remember that we use low voices when working in
groups.
****Stay on task – You only have 20 minutes
The Silk Road
The Silk Road is the collective name given
to a number of trade routes linking China
and Roman Empire. The long and winding
Silk Road in Northwest China has a history
of more than two thousand years.
The 7000 mile route spanned China,
Central Asia, Northern India, and the
Roman Empires. It connected the Yellow
River Valley to the Mediterranean.
Trade along the route was conducted by
Central Asian merchants, who brought horses,
cattle, furs, hides and luxuries such as ivory
and jade.
New goods were also introduced to the
Chinese by the traders, such as cucumbers,
walnuts, sesame seeds, figs, alfalfa and
pomegranates. New skills, such as using
grapes to make wine, enriched China's ancient
civilization.
The Silk Road refers to the ancient trade
route between Central Asia and China.
Originally, the Chinese traded silk
internally within the empire.
Caravans from the empire's interior would
carry silk to the western edges of the
region. They were often attacked by small
Central Asian tribes who wanted to steal
the traders' valuable commodities.
In order to protect caravans travelling from the
interior of the Chinese Empire and assure the
safety of trade, the Han Government
dispatched General Zhang Qian to build good
relationships with these small nomadic tribes.
As overland trade became increasingly
dangerous, and travel by sea became more
popular, trade along the Silk Road declined.
Silk Road Assignment
Homework:
Read the story of the Silk Road.
Answer the questions on the map and the
questions below the map.
Exit Ticket:
• List 5 things you learned
today.
• Is there anything you are
still unsure of?