Ancient+India-Clara

Assignment 4-1 Source: IndiaSubcontinentMapTrans.jpg Directions: Look at the map above, read the text below, and answer the following questions on your wiki page: I n the 1990's, satellite pictures revealed an ancient, dried riverbed located in India's present-day Thar Desert. Geologists have identified this riverbed as the route of the ancient Sarasvati River. The Sarasvati lay east of the Indus River and generally followed the same course, originating in the Himalaya mountains and emptying into the Arabian Sea. Geologists believe that the Sarasvati River dried up around 1900 B.C.E. Over time, the once fertile area around the Sarasvati River dried up around 1900 B.C.E. Over time, the once fertile area around the Sarasvati evolved into the dry, hot desert that exists today. Early Indian agricultural settlements arose in the Indus-Sarasvati river region at least as far back as 6500 B.C.E. Like many other ancient peoples, the early Indians settled by rivers. They settled primarily on the banks of the Sarasvati River as well as along the banks of the Indus River. These rivers provided the ancient Indians with plenty of water, and the land near the rivers was fertile and excellent for growing crops. The rivers also provided the Indians with a convenient way to travel and trade among themselves and with other civilizations. Archeologists have found artifacts from the Indus-Sarasvati civilization - such as carved seals - in Mesopotamia's Sumer. These discoveries have led scholars to believe that the early Indians traded with Mesopotamia, possibly by traveling in ships down the Indus and Sarasvati rivers to the Arabian Sea and then west to Sumer and other locations. After the Sarasvati River dried up around 1900 B.C.E., the Indus-Sarasvati Indians moved to more habitable areas, such as the fertile banks of the Ganga river further east. Archeological evidence shows, however, that people settled by the Ganga River as far back as 5000 B.C.E. Questions: 1. In what ways is your map similar to the one that you see in the map above? 2. What physiographic features can you identify on this map that are not on your map? 3. Why do you think settlements developed along the Indus and Sarasvati rivers? Explain with clear and complete details. 4. Accurately draw and label the ancient Sarasvati River on your map. 5. Why did ancient Indian people eventually migrate to the Ganga River? Assignment 4-2 Website: Indus Valley Use the website above to answer these questions. Write your answers in complete sentences with clear details on your wiki page. 1. What was discovered during the excavations of Mohenjo-Daro? 2. How is Mohenjo-Daro similar to our cities today? 3. What can we learn from archaeological discoveries (such as artifacts and city construction) in Mohenjo-Daro? 4. Give clear and specific information about how people lived in Mohenjo-Daro. In your answer, you have to talk about the artifacts that you discovered and put into the museum. 5. What do we know about the Priest-King? 6. What was the Great Bath and how was it used? = Assignment 4-3 Source: external image pdf.png Archeologists Ideas Mohenjo-Daro.pdf Think about the activity we did in class as archeologists in Mohenjo-Daro. Using the source above, your ideas, and the notes you took about archeologists ideas, answer the following questions clearly and completely on your wiki page. Each answer should be at least two sentences long with specific information. 1. What have you learned about daily life in Mohenjo-Daro from this activity? 2. Which characteristics of civilization do you see represented in the artifacts you looked at? Explain. 3. In what ways do you think Mohenjo-Daro was like a modern city? 4. Why do you think it is difficult for us to know exactly what life was like in ancient civilizations like those in the Indus-Sarasvati region? 5. What do you think might have contributed to the decline of Mohenjo-Daro? Answer: 1. I learned about that they did many things that we do today. Like trading, selling, buying, playing games, taking bath, and taking care of animals. 2. The characteristics I see represented in the artifacts is a people having different classes of job, religious system, and devaloping literature like seals, and jewelry. 3. I think that Mohenjo-Daro was like a modern city because they had good organization of jobs, and domestication of animals, and growing crops, and selling and trading. So they could have got in touch with different city and trade with them what they didn't had there. 4. I think it was difficult for us because of their writing. If they did they could have most of the idea what happened in past. 5. I think invaders, and not enough food or nothing to trade with. I think that might have contributed to the decline of Mohenjo-Daro.

Assignment 4-4 Answer the following questions clearly and with details on your wiki page. 1. What varna were you in during the caste system simulation? 2. What was your favorite part about the caste system simulation? Why? 3. What part of the simulation made you angry, upset, or frustrated? Why? 4. Do you think this system is fair? Why or why not? 5. Do you think a society should organize people into social classes? Why or Why not?

Assignment 4-5 Website: India-Government Use the website above and what you have learned in class so far to answer these questions about the early Indus River Governments. 1. Why would having a central government help in planning and organizing a city? Having a central government would help in planning and organizing a city a certain amount of people can work together to build one type of city instead of all of the citizens voting which would make things much harder. 2. Who were Rajahs? Rajahs are like the mayors. They are the rulers of a city but they are not as high as the priests in the Indian caste system. 3. What is a Guru? A Guru was a teacher that a student had to serve even until up to 20 years old. 4. What subjects were taught in school? The subjects taught were of religious nature. 5. Who was in charge of the government? The priests were in charge of the government because they were at the top of the Indian caste system. 6. Why did people look up to the priests? People looked up to priests because they were the ones who made offerings to the gods and they believed in the caste system and the priests were at the top of the Indian caste system.