This Week in Social Studies

This week in social studies, we have been studying Roman art. We have been looking at it not only as art, but also as propaganda.  The emperors often would use the art, not just as something lovely to look at, but also as a form of promotion of the empire and themselves.

We started off on Monday and Tuesday with just a general overview of art in Ancient Rome. This involved a short reading that included identifying influences from other cultures, the Romans' use of art and architecture as propaganda, Roman contributions, and some modern influences.  This reading and discussion questions were started as a class, then students finished the rest as homework. The next day we discussed the rest of the reading as well as answered questions students had.

Wednesday and Thursday students were assigned specific area (glassware, mosaics, coinage, the Colosseum, and others) of Roman art to learn in groups of 2 or 3. Thursday afternoon, students presented what they had learned to the rest of the class. Some who were done before others created powerpoint slides for their information.

Here is the powerpoint presentation from the creators of World History For Us All, which is where this lesson came from.  Although it does not include the exact information the students presented with, it does include the basic information.

History For Us All roman art and architecture from cbarcroft

Tomorrow, we will go to the computer lab for students to analyze art by taking a virtual tour of a gallery, selecting a piece of art, and writing a response to the art using some guided questions.  Students who finish early will be permitted to create a digital presentation. Students will also be able to finish this project over the weekend should they wish to complete a digital presentation, but do not have time in class.

Tonight's Homework.

Today in class we reviewed Alexander the Great's expansion of the Greek empire by conquering lands from Greece to India. One of the first places conquered by Alexander the Great was Persia. This week we will be taking a side step from Greece to learn a bit about Persia. Today in class we read "The Persian Press". It is in the format of a small newspaper that was "published" in 486 BCE.

 On the last page of the news letter are 4 "Questions for Review" that students are to answer for homework on the lined paper I provided them in class (any lined paper will do).

 Here is some vocabulary that may be useful as they read this assignment.


Administration
A method of managing a group’s business
Canal
A ditch or channel in which water flows; used for both irrigation and boat transport
Citadel
A strongly fortified building or fort used for military defense and protection
Coinage
Money in the form of coins
Culture
The shared way of life of a group of people
Daric
A gold coin used in the Persian empire
Rebel (verb)
To rise up against political authority, usually with violence
Revenge
Action taken to pay back or retaliate against someone who has caused an offense or injury
Satrap
Governor appointed by the emperor of a province in the Persian empire
Shekel
A unit of currency, often a silver coin; still used in Israel today
Silk roads
A set of trade routes that crossed Inner Eurasia and that connected Europe, the Mediterranean, Southwest Asia, India, and China