My goal is to make learning a positive experience in our classroom by using a wide variety of activities and project-based learning to meet the California Social Science Standards in an atmosphere where everyone can succeed. In addition, students will analyze past events in order to gain a more insightful perspective of the world in which we live in. In order to comprehend the present, we must gain knowledge of the past; history can give us the keys to the future that is inside all of us.
The best way to contact me will be through email aphiasivongsa@sandi.net. Students can learn more by visiting these World History Sites. In addition Students can access their grades by visiting Gradebookwizard.

Students in grade seven study the social, cultural, and technological changes that occurred in Europe, Africa, and Asia in the years A. D. 500Ð to 1789. After reviewing the ancient world and the ways in which archaeologists and historians uncover the past, students study the history and geography of great civilizations that were developing concurrently throughout the world during medieval and early modern times.

Students in grade six expand their understanding of history by studying the people and events that ushered in the dawn of the major Western and non-Western ancient civilizations. Geography is of special significance in the development of the human story. Continued emphasis is placed on the everyday lives, problems, and accomplishments of people, their role in developing social, economic, and political structures, as well as in establishing and spreading ideas that helped transform the world forever. Students develop higher levels of critical thinking by considering why civilizations developed where and when they did, why they became dominant, and why they declined. Students analyze the interactions among the various cultures, emphasizing their enduring contributions and the link, despite time, between the contemporary and ancient worlds.

Brain Pop
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History for kids
KidPast.com is the fun way to explore our history. We are who we are today, because of those who have gone before us.

Brought to you by the KidsKnowIt Network, The Totally Free Learning Network, KidsPast.com is packed with articles from early man, to recent historical events.

Pope Gregory VII: He thought popes should have the power to choose bishops. He believed popes, not kings, got their power from God. Emperor Henry IV thought popes had too much power. He argued that kings should choose bishops because God had chosen the king. Excommunicate: to cast out from the church. Crusades: The crusades were a long series of wars between Christians and Muslims in South Asia. They fought over control of Palestine. Holy land: Europeans called Palestine the Holy Land because it was the region where Jesus had lived, preached, and died. Pope Urban II: Pope Urban called on Christians from all over Europe to retake the Holy Land from the Muslim Turks. He challenged Europe�s kings and nobles to quit fighting among themselves and fight together against the Turks. King Richard I: He was called �lion Heart� for his courage, Richard I was a skilled soldier and a great general. He did not succeed in taking Jerusalem during the Third Crusade. Saladin: Saladin is often called one of the greatest generals of the Middle Ages. The Muslim leader successfully held Jerusalem against Richard I in the Third Crusade. Saladin�s people considered their leader a wise ruler. Crusaders respected his sometimes kind treatment of fallen enemies. Many Christians saw him as a model of knightly chivalry. Clergy: Church officials and their teaching were very influential in European culture and politics. Religious order: A group of people who dedicate their lives to religion and follow common rules. Saint Francis of Assisi: Francis considered everyone his brother or sister, including animals. People begun to copy his lifestyle and called them, Franciscans. Because they didn�t live in monasteries, members of these orders were not monks. Friars: People who belonged to religious orders but lived and worked among the general public. Thomas Aquinas: He was teacher at the University of Paris. He argued that rational thought could be used to support Christian beliefs. For example, he wrote an argument to prove the existence of God. He believes in natural law. Natural law: a law that governed how the world operated. Magna Carta: This document listing rights that the king cannot ignore. More importantly, Magna Carta required that everyone-even the king-had to obey the law. Parliament: The lawmaking body that governs England today. By the late Middle Ages, kings could do little without Parliament�s support. Hundred Year�s War: A long conflict between England and France. Joan of Arc: a teenage peasant girl who rallied the French troops against the English during the Hundred Year War. Black Death: a deadly plague that swept through Europe between 1347 and 1351. The plague killed 25 million people in Europe. Heresy: Religious ideas that oppose accepted church teaching. People who hold such ideas are called heretics. Reconquista (Reconquest): The efforts to retake Spain from the Moors. Spanish Inquistition: An organization of priests that looked for and punished anyone in Spain suspected of secretly practicing their old religion. The Spanish Inquisitions were ruthless in seeking heretics, Muslims, and Jews. They often burned to death; the Spanish sentenced about 2,000 people to die. Policy: Rule, course of action Authority: Power, right to rule

Innovation (p.27)– a new idea or way of doing something.

Efficient (p.34)– Productive and not wasteful

Strategy (p.32)– a plan for fighting a battle or war

Cause – to make something happen

Effect – the result of an action or decision

Purpose – use or function; reason; objective

Policy: Rule, course of action

Authority: Power, right to rule

The Crusades News Article

You are a reporter for a European Newspaper during the time the Crusades were ending. Europeans had received very little information about the Crusades because the fighting had taken place so far away. They want to learn more about what happened. Therefore, your boss has asked you to write the feature article for the newspaper, which will explain the Crusades to the people of Europe. Here are the requirements for you news article:

1. Title
2. Author
3. Your article must include the following information:

a. How did the Crusades begin? 5 points

b. Where was most of the fighting? 5 points

c. When did each one of the Crusades take place? 5 points

d. Who were the main participants in the Crusades? (Specific people and countries involved, example Saladin, Richard I). 5 points

e. What happened in each one of the Crusades? 5 points

f. Why were the Crusades unsuccessful? 5 points

**REMEMBER** This is the FEATURE article and needs to be four or more paragraphs long. All of Europe depends on you to help them better understand these Crusades.

1. What changes occurred in Europe after the fall of Rome?

2. What factors helped Christianity to grow and spread?

3. What was feudalism and how did it work?

4. What role did the manor system play in the economic structure of Europe during the Middle Ages?

5. What was town life like during the Middle Ages?

6. What internal problems weaken the Roman Empire?

7. What brought about the fall of Rome?

8. What are the main Characteristics of the Byzantine Empire?

9. What was life like in Constantinople?

10. What lasting contributions of Roman culture influenced later societies?

11. What similarities did the feudal societies in Europe and Japan share?

12. How did European and Japanese feudalism differ?

13. Why was the Church so powerful during the middle ages?

14. Why did the Christians begin a series of wars to conquer Palestine?

CA Standards: Students analyze the geographic, political, economic, religion, and social structures of the civilization of Medieval Europe.


Early Medieval Feudal Poster Project 25 points:

1. Students will choose one of the following subjects about Feudal society:
a. Kings/Queens
b. Lords/Nobles
c. Knights
d. Peasants/Serfs

2. First create a rough draft of your poster that illustrates the following:
a. Title at the top of the page
b. One big picture in the center of your poster that represents your subject.
c. Concept bubbles connected to the picture that explain different characteristics pertaining to your subject.
d. You must have at least 4 bubbles:
I. Three bubbles that describe your subject's duties.
II. One bubble that describes your subject's life on the manor.

-IMPORTANT- make sure that your rough draft has all of the requirements stated above.

e. Get poster paper and create your poster.
I. Make sure you add color to your final project.

Middle Age Time line Poster
15 points
1. Time line (page 227) must have important events dating from 450-1000.
2. Poster must have illustration of important people during time period.
3. Poster must have colors
4. Poster must have title: The Early Middle Ages
5. Write down all the important events on the bottom and the top of the time line.

TBA

Augustus: Rome’s first emperor, set many of the powers that later emperors would have. The Emperor had the power to declare war, raise taxes, control trade, punish lawbreakers, choose public officials, influence Senate meetings, and lead religious festivals.

Diocletian: Roman Emperor in 200s divided the empire in two, Western and Eastern Empire.

Constantine: Roman Emperor who moved the empire’s capital to the east into what is now Turkey. The city was called Constantinople, which means “the city of Constantine.”

Attila: Leader of the Huns raided Roman territory in the east. Attila led the Huns in raids against Constantinople, Greece, Gaul, and parts of northern Italy.

Clovis: a Frankish king built a huge kingdom in Gaul. He was one of the most powerful of all the German kings.
Pope: the leader of the Christian church in Rome.

Justinian: Roman emperor during 527-565, who wanted to unite Roman Empire. His passion was for the law and the church. He ordered the removal of all out-of-date or unchristian laws.

Theodora: wife of Emperor Justinian helped her husband stayed in power, helped him stopped riots and saved his throne.

PowerPoint presentation in class

Mr. PH 7th Grade World History/Geography
Crusader Propaganda (25 points)
15 Point: Creativity/neatness/color
10 Point: Content
pro•pa•gan•da
Function: noun
1 : the spreading of ideas, information, or rumor for the purpose of helping or injuring an institution, a cause, or a person
2 : ideas, facts, or allegations spread deliberately to further one's cause or to damage an opposing cause; also : a public action having such an effect

In an effort to free the Holy Land from the Turks, thousands of Christians joined crusades. From 1096 to 1270 there were eight major crusades and two children’s crusades. Only the first and third crusades were successful. In the centuries of crusades, thousands of knights, soldiers, merchants, and peasants lost their lives on the march or in battle.
A. Create a propaganda poster that could have been used during the Middle Ages to persuade people to either fight for or against the Crusades. As you work on this, consider the goals of Christians and the Turks and the type of people they wanted to join them
Extra Credit Poster
B. Crusade Sequence Poster
15 points
1. Briefly explain each Crusade (When did it happen and what happen in each Crusades).
2. Poster must have illustration during this time period.
3. Poster must have title: The Crusade Time line
C. Time line Posters
15 points
1. Time line (page 257, page 294) must have important events dating from 1066-1492.
2. Poster must have illustration during time period.
3. Poster must have colors
4. Poster must have title: The Later Middle Ages, The Renaissance.
5. Write down all the important events on the bottom and the top of the time line.
--IMPORTANT--
Please put name, period, and date on the back of the poster

Citizens (p.25)– the people who could participate in the government.

Aqueducts (P.26)– human-made channels that carried water from distant mountain ranges into Rome or other cities.

Republic (P.24)– a government in which people elect their leaders.

Barbarians (P.30)– people the Romans considered uncivilized, away from settled area, wild.

Devotion (p.39) – dedication and loyalty.

Guarantee (p.37) – promise

Influences (p.38) – factors that have an effect on an event or persons.

Byzantine Empire (p.38) – the society that developed in the eastern Roman empire after the western empire fell.

Mosaics (p.39) - pictures made with pieces of colored stone or glass.

Corruption (pg.34) – the decay of people’s values

History – the study of the past.

Primary Source – an account of an event created by someone who took part in or witnessed the event.

Secondary source – information gathered by someone who did not take part in or witness an event.

Archaeology – the study of the past based on materials that people have left behind.

Fossil - is a part or imprint of something that was once alive.

Artifacts – objects created and used by humans
Society – A society is a community of people who share a common culture.

Social structure – the way a society is organized.

TBA

Time Life's "Lost Civilizations": "Mesopotamia: Return to Eden"
1. Ancient Mesopotamia lies in present-day __________.
A) Mesoamerica.
B) Israel.
C) Iraq.
D) India.

2. In 1947, Bedouin shepherds in present-day Israel discovered __________, which dated to the time of Christ.
A) The Dead Sea Scrolls.
B) The Grateful Dead.
C) The Great Library at Nineveh.
D) The Garden of Eden.

3. Which of the following artifacts, discovered in 1868 and now lost, described a battle that was also mentioned in the Bible?
A) The Victory Stele of Naram-Sin.
B) The Law Code of Hammurabi.
C) The Palette of King Narmer.
D) The Moabite Stone.

4. In 586 B.C., the armies of Nebuchadnezzar sacked Jerusalem and took the Israelite captives to __________.
A) Nineveh.
B) Babylon.
C) Ur.
D) Giza.

5. All of the following could be seen in the ancient city of Babylon except:
A) The Ziggurat of King Urnammu.
B) The Hanging Gardens.
C) The Ishtar Gate.
D) The Tower of Babel.

6. Babylon's written, legal code, the first of its kind, was inscribed on a stele known as the Law Code of __________.
A) King Urnammu.
B) Judge Judy.
C) Darius and Xerxes.
D) Hammurabi.

7. How was ancient Assyria described in the Bible?
A) "A land that never bathed."
B) "A land bathed in blood."
C) "A land of blood donors."
D) "A land of big, strong men who liked to fight a lot."

8. The Great Library at Nineveh, part of the ancient Assyrian palace complex, contained about 22,000 clay tablets written in __________.
A) Cuneiform.
B) Maidenform.
C) Hieroglyphics.
D) Greek.

9. In 1989, a burial chamber containing two Assyrian queens was discovered beneath the floor of the ancient palace at __________.
A) Persepolis.
B) Ur.
C) Nimrud.
D) Thebes.

10. The Epic of Gilgamesh, which is about an ancient Sumerian hero, describes a _________ similar to one mentioned in the Bible.
A) Crucifixion.
B) Flood.
C) Ten Commandments.
D) Coat of many colors.

11. Which ancient site has been referred to as the "first civilization on earth"?
A) Sumer.
B) Assyria.
C) Babylon.
D) Jerusalem.

12. Sir Leonard Woolley discovered the __________, which contained 74 skeletons, all entombed at the same time.
A) Ziggurat of King Urnammu at Ur.
B) Royal Tombs, or Grave Pits, of Ur.
C) Pyramids at Giza.
D) Citadel of Sargon II.

13. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Dilmun is referred to as a Mesopotamian equivalent of __________.
A) Hell.
B) The Garden of Eden.
C) Jerusalem.
D) The Tower of Babel.

14. The present-day island of __________, south of the ancient city of Ur, was once an "Eden-like" place with plenty of water, lush gardens, and snakes.
A) Hawaii.
B) Tahiti.
C) England.
D) Bahrain.

Horace Mann Middle School
Augustus Phiny Phiasivongsa