M ESOPOTAMIA S CAVENGER H UNT By Lexie and Zoe

W HY WERE THE RIVER VALLEYS THE FIRST PLACE FOR COMPLEX SOCIETIES ? There was fertile soil. There was good farming conditions. The rivers supplied fish and freshwater. The rivers made it easy to get from one place to another and it was easier to trade. By being able to trade, they could get more supplies.

H OW WERE FARMERS ABLE TO CONTROL SEASONAL FLOODS AND BRING WATER TO THEIR FIELDS ? They were able to control floods because they had irrigation systems. Irrigation is a process where you can store water to use it another time.

W HAT ARE PICTOGRAPHS AND LOGOGRAPHS ? Pictographs are pictures that represent things, but they are often drawn more abstract than needed. Logographs are pictographs that symbolize something, but they are drawn a different way. For example, to say “I” you might draw a picture of an eyeball. It was important to develop a writing system because they could communicate in a different way than talking.

H OW DO WE USE THREE INVENTIONS THAT THE S UMERIANS FOUNDED AND THREE MATHEMATICAL IDEAS ? Three Inventions They invented wagon wheels. We use them in bikes and cars. They invented the sailboat. We use them to get places and to fish. They invented the plow to make farming easier. Three Mathematical Ideas They used geometry to measure fields and put up buildings. They created a number system based on 60. That’s how we got 60 seconds in a minute and 60 minutes in an hour. They used a twelve month calendar.

W HAT IS A ZIGGURAT AND WHAT IS ITS FUNCTION ? Ziggurats were massive structures that were often shaped like a pyramid. They were built in Mesopotamia, Iran, and Iraq by the Sumerians, Babylonians, Elamites, Akkadians, and Assyrians. Ziggurats were built for religious purposes, and each ziggurat was part of a temple complex which included many other buildings. They were known as dwelling places for the gods. Each city had its own patron god.

W HAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PART OF THE STORY OF G ILGAMESH ? My favorite part of the story of Gilgamesh is when Gilgamesh and Enkidu become best friends and they go off to search for adventure. That is my favorite part because it brings Gilgamesh out of his despair and he gets a new friend.

W HO WAS H AMMURABI ? He was a famous leader. He came up with two hundred, eighty-two rules for the society called Hammurabi’s Code. He inscribed these rules onto stone tablets. He was the sixth king of Babylon. He became the first king of the Babylonian Empire.

W HO DEVELOPED A WAY TO USE IRON WEAPONS WITHIN THEIR ARMORS ? The Assyrians began using iron weapons in their armies. While everyone else was using bows and arrows, they began using spears and daggers. The Assyrians were all about fighting, war, and weapons.

W HAT IS ONE OF THE 7 WONDERS OF THE ANCIENT WORLD ? W HY WAS IT CONSTRUCTED ? One of the seven wonders of the world is the Hanging Gardens in Babylon. It is a garden that is told to be extremely beautiful. The Hanging Gardens were built by Nebuchadnezzar II and his wife Amytis. They built the gorgeous gardens because Amytis didn’t like the Babylonian desert. She had lived in Persia where there were many fountains and plants before she moved to Babylon with her husband.

The End!