1. Essential Questions and Guiding Questions

2.  Why do people adopt new belief systems?  What geographic factors influenced history at this time?  How did migration, trade, warfare, and the action of missionaries spread ideas and beliefs?  How did Islam unite the diverse cultures of the Muslim Empire and spur scholars to great achievements?  How did the flourishing economy of Baghdad lead to a golden age in the Muslim Empire?

3.  How did the geography of the Arabian Peninsula encourage a nomadic way of life?  What made the Arabian Peninsula important for trade?

4.  What challenges did Islam face after the death of Muhammad in 632 CE?  How and why did Muhammad spread Islam?

5.  How do the teachings of Islam provide laws and guidelines for religious practice and everyday life?  What are connections between Islam, Judaism, and Christianity?

6.  Who helped to spread Islam following Muhammad’s death?  How did the issue of choosing who to lead after Muhammad’s death divide Muslims?

7.  What lands did the Umayyads add to the Muslim Empire?  What caused the Muslim Empire to split into various groups?

8.  How did the Abbasids build and sustain a unified empire?  What cultural advances were made by the Abbasids  What challenges led to the decline of Abbasid rule?

9. Essential Questions and Guiding Questions

10.  What geo-political factors contributed to the growth of the feudal system in Europe?  How did the Franks use religion to unify their kingdom?  How did societies rely on family roles and social classes to keep order?  How did the Roman Catholic Church affect the political, social, and economic systems of the medieval period?  How did the interaction between Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean lead to the erosion of the feudal system?  How did advances in weaponry render European feudal institutions obsolete?

11.  How did social and political structures evolve as the medieval period advanced?  How did the Crusades lead to the growth of towns, trade guilds, and a merchant class in Medieval Europe?  How did the Black Death and affect Europe and the world throughout the 14 th century and beyond?  What factors did the signing of the Magna Carta have on feudal relationships in England?  In what ways did the 100 Years War forever alter European warfare, and feudal relationships?

12.  How did the geography of Europe help to promote the growth of a rural way of life?  What changes occurred in Europe after the fall of Rome in 476 ce?

13.  What factors helped Christianity to grow and spread?  Why was Charlemagne’s empire significant?  How did the monasteries contribute to the revival of learning under Charlemagne?

14.  What was feudalism, and how did it function?  What eventually happened to Charlemagne’s empire?

15.  Why was the Roman Catholic Church so powerful?  How did the Roman Catholic Church support education?  What role did the manor system play in the economic structure of Europe during the medieval period?

16.  Who fought on behalf of nobles and kings?  What role did knights fulfill in medieval society?  What did serfs and other vassals receive in exchange for their service?

17.  What was chivalry?  What was town life like during Medieval Europe?  Why did monarchs and popes struggle with one another for power and control?

18.  What impact did the Black Death have on the European continent?  Why+how did the 100 Years War have a dramatic impact on the medieval structure of Europe?  How did the Magna Carta contribute to the growth of democratic ideals?  How did the English Parliament lay the foundation for future representative government?

19. Essential Questions and Guiding Questions

20.  Why do people adopt new belief systems?  What factors contribute to the development and sustainability of a religion?  How are East Asian religions similar, yet very different from Western religions?  How do geographic factors influence events in history?

21.  How did Hinduism affect the structure and culture of India?  How do the teachings of Hinduism provide guidelines for religious practice and everyday life?  What makes the Hindu views of after life unique?

22.  Why is the story of Prince Siddhartha Gautama significant?  In what ways does Buddhism differ from other world religions?  What characteristics of Buddhism allowed it to gain a foothold throughout the Asian continent?  Four Noble Truths  Eightfold Path

23.  How was the Zhou Dynasty significant in the development of Chinese history?  How did Confucianism shape both the cultural and political development of China?  How did Daoism shape both the cultural and political development of China?  How did Legalism shape both the cultural and political development of China?

24.  How did changing belief systems alter the course of dynastic events in Chinese history?  What happened after the Han Dynasty fell in 220 ce?  How did the Sui and Tang dynasties reunify and strengthen China?  How was the Chinese government organized under the Tang and Song dynasties?

25.  What technological advances were made under the Tang and Song dynasties?  What role did Marco Polo play in the development of Chinese and European relations?  What role did the Silk Road play in the interactions between Asia and Europe?  What role did the Civil Service Examination play in the structure and function of the Chinese government?

26.  Why was the period of Mongol rule in China so unique?  How did the Samurai culture of Japan shape society and government for centuries?  What similarities did the feudal societies of Japan and Europe share?  How did the samurai and knights differ in their religious beliefs?

27.  How did European and Japanese feudalism differ?

28. Essential Questions and Guiding Questions

29.  What is humanism? Why did people in the Renaissance embrace this idea?  Why did people in the Renaissance not solely rely on the political and religious institutions of the medieval period?  How did the growth of towns and trade help spread Renaissance ideas throughout Europe?  How did the Italian Renaissance change Europe?  In what ways was the Renaissance strengthened by nationalism in various locations throughout Europe?

30.  What impact did the printing press have on European society?  How do new ideas and beliefs challenge authority?  Why did many Europeans in the 16 th century turn to the new Protestant religions?  How did humanism contribute to the reform movement in the Church?

31.  What events helped to bring an end to feudalism and the medieval period?  How did political stability contribute to the growth of trade?  What contributed to the revival of classical learning?

32.  In what ways the focus of humanism different from prevalent medieval thought?  In what ways did humanism lay the foundation for the development of Renaissance thought? What factors helped make Italy (Florence) the birthplace of the Renaissance?

33.  Why did wealthy merchants and bankers become patrons?  In what areas did Renaissance figures make notable achievements and contributions?  In what ways did Renaissance artists maintain the traditions of the past?  How did Renaissance artists improve upon and change artistic styles of the past?

34.  How did Renaissance ideas impact the differing socio-economic classes in Europe?  What position did noble women occupy in Renaissance society?  What factors helped the Renaissance to spread north?

35.  In what ways did Renaissance art in the north differ from Italian art?  What is a woodcut?

36.  Why is William Shakespeare’s writing timeless?  How did the printing press contribute to an improved understanding of the world?  What Renaissance advances occurred outside of the arts?

37.  How did internal differences weaken the Roman Catholic Church?  Why did people begin to question some Church practices?

38.  What did Luther believe about salvation? How did he defy the Roman Catholic Church?  What were some of the results of Luther’s ideas?

39.  What were some of the different Protestant movements that developed throughout Europe?  How did the Reformation impact England?

40.  What was the Counter- Reformation? What were the results of this movement?  What were the long-term impact of the Reformation on the continent of Europe?

41. Essential Questions and Guiding Questions

42.  How did new scientific discoveries change human understanding of the world?  How did new ideas and beliefs challenge authority and lead to change?  How did the ideas of the Enlightenment affect women in the 18 th century?  Which ideas from the Enlightenment inspired monarchs to institute reforms?

43.  What new inventions helped scientists make more precise observations and measurements?  How did classical ideas about astronomy, mathematics, and medicine shape European thought?

44.  How did the Renaissance impact new scientific observations and thought?  What new ideas did scientists develop?  What new ways of viewing the universe did philosophers propose?

45.  Why did the period called the Enlightenment begin?  Why did European philosophers use reason to criticize social and political institutions?

46.  How did people use reason to argue for equal rights?  Why did some European monarchs undertake important reforms?

47.  How did Enlightenment ideas help spark the American Revolution?  How do Enlightenment ideas continue to influence the United States and the political and social institutions of the world?