Early Humans Geography Challenge

Bellringer  Copy the objective: I will be able to map the development of early humans, Neolithic towns, Sumerian city-states, and early empires.  Explain the definition of the key terms History and Prehistory.  How were the accounts of events in prehistory different from accounts of events today?

Objective  I will be able to map the development of early humans, Neolithic towns, Sumerian city-states, and early empires.

Materials  Early Humans map/ World map blank sheet  Early Humans questions sheet  Ancient World Text (Page 248)  Geography challenge question cards  Colored pencils

Introduction  In the Early Humans Geography Challenge, you will review some basic world geography information and map important geographic features related to early humans and the development of the earliest towns, city-states, and empires.

Directions  You will be working in groups to complete the challenge  Each group will start out with one challenge card  You will read the question on the card and answer in complete sentence then you will follow the directions for labeling or coloring your maps  When you are finished with the card please raise your hand to have your answer reviewed and then you may return the card to the card station and pick up a new one. Continue until you have completed all 8 questions.

Discussion  What do you now know about early humans that you didn’t know before?  What information from this map do you think will be most important in our study of the development of humans?  What are some questions you now have about early humans?

Exit Ticket  Looking at your completed map, what conclusions can you draw about the Neolithic towns and Sumerian city-states?  How is the location of Sumerian city-states related to the rivers in the area?

 How did the map portion go? What could I do to help you with the mapping?  What is your level of understanding at this point in the activity? What can I do to help you understand the map better?