Ancient China Unit

2.1 The student will explain how the contributions of ancient China and Egypt have
influenced the present world in terms of architecture, inventions, the calendar, and
written language.
ancient: Long, long ago
architecture: The design of buildings
contribution: The act of giving or doing something

Contributions of Ancient China

China
Written
language
Characters
, symbols
Inventions
Kite, silk
cloth,
compass,
bronze,
fireworks
Architecture
Great
Wall

Many inventions of ancient China and Egypt are still used today.
2.4 The student will develop map skills by
a) locating the United States, China, and Egypt on world maps;
b) understanding the relationship between the environment and the culture of
ancient China and Egypt;

Terms to know
climate: The kind of weather an area has over a long period of time
land: The solid surface of the Earth
environment: Surroundings

China is located in Asia. Egypt is located in Africa. The United States is located in North
America.

Climate Land
China Seasons
Forests, hills,
mountains,
deserts
Ways people related to their environment
The ancient Chinese settled along the Huang He. They fished, farmed, and irrigated
the land.
The ancient Egyptians farmed and irrigated the land near the Nile River.
2.5 The student will develop map skills by
a) locating the equator, the seven continents, and the five oceans on maps and
globes;
b) locating selected rivers (James River, Mississippi River, Rio Grande, Huang He,
Nile River)

Day 1: Introduction and Geography

1. Show maps. Review the continents and oceans. Locate USA, Asia, and China.
Show how far away.
2. Use Google earth to go on a tour of China: China, Yellow River, Gobi desert,
Great Wall of China.
3. Hand out packets show PowerPoint slides and color China on Asia map in
packet.
4. Introduce the term ancient to the class. Have students list things that are new
and things that are old. Talk about how old the students are and how old
their parents and grandparents are. Discuss the fact that the word ancient
means very, very old. Discuss how old the United States is. Tell them that
they are going to study about people and countries that are much older than
that. Fill in ancient in China words book.
5. Work together to fill out map of China with Beijing, Yangtze River, Yellow
River, Mt. Everest, Great Wall of China, Gobi Desert, and Pacific Ocean.
6. Look at map of Ancient China provided (filled out). Talk about what is to the
north, south, east, and west.
7. Exit ticket in packet: We visited, we saw, I learned.

Day 2: Architecture and Contributions
1. Review the term ancient. Use The People-Who and Where pages to review
information.
2. Introduce the terms architecture and contributions. Record these in China words
book.
3. Read A Brief Look at Ancient China and highlight important things throughout.
4. After reading fill in the Ancient China contribution chart.
5. Show notebook slide #11 and ppt. 16-19 which will take you to an online site
with virtual pics of the wall. Show other famous monuments.
6. Start what did the Ancient Chinese invent: the kite, bronze, fireworks.

Day 3: Architecture and Contributions
1. Today we will go into more depth about the contributions.
2. Review the word contribution. Explain that the ancient Chinese made many
valuable contributions to the lives of people today.
3. Show the class a piece of silk, and discuss the process that went into making it
(Show the lifecycle of a silk worm.). Emphasize that we still use silk today, and ask
for or give examples. Use the worksheet for student to sequence the events of
making silk or challenge students to act out the process.
Silk [a history of silk for young students].
<http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/clothing/silk.htm>
4. Ask the class if they would enjoy the Fourth of July without fireworks. Use
resources to show the early use of fireworks.
5. Review the many uses of a compass.
6. Explain that another contribution of the ancient Chinese was bronze. Show a piece of
bronze, and discuss the importance and modern uses of bronze.
7. Finish what did the Ancient Chinese invent.

Day 4: Language of Ancient China
1. Have students look the English alphabet, and discuss how we use it to read print.
2. Use various resource materials to illustrate Chinese alphabet characters and
writing samples using the pages from our booklet Chinese Writing and
Theres More to Know than the ABCs
3. Have the class compare and contrast the English alphabet to the Chinese alphabet.
4. Have the class practice writing Chinese alphabet characters.
5. If time students will make a Slant Booklet using large craft sticks.

Day 5: Assessment
1. Review with students
2. Distribute assessment. Read assessment aloud.
3. If students finish early they can work with individual maps to locate continents
and oceans.

I will include some coloring book pages for students that finish assignments early.