Ancient Legacies: The Birth of Man to the Middle Ages

Below is the course curriculm for Ancient Legacies, the freshmen history course at Pope John Paul II High School. Students, parents, and staff can view the course objectives, activities, and requirements below. Over time, I will add links to course assignments, essay requirements, lesson plans, and relevant educational websites. Check back often as the school year progresses to see and use the additional links.

The 2009-2010 academic year marks my eleventh year teaching and I have incorporated changes and improvements to course design, schedule, and tasks, based on my earlier teaching experiences and student and staff feedback. While the topic of the course is ancient world history, the course is skills-based. Therefore, the overall focus of the course will be the development of written and oral communication skills, research skills, and analytical thinking. We will also focus on various test-taking skills, including multiple choice, true-false, matching, date identification, etc.

Related Links

• Click here to view the essay requirements for this class.
• Click here to view a sample in-class debate format from first quarter (this one is on the fairness of the Code of Hammurabi).
• Click here to obtain links to useful search engines and related websites.
• Click here to return to my main webpage.

Course Objectives

1. To develop students' understanding of the social, political, economic, military, and intellectual history of the Ancient World from the birth of civilization to the Middle Ages with an emphasis on the casual relationships between these histories. The course will also focus on the relationship between specific periods and the present period. Random and weekly in-class quizzes will be used to test student recall of key figures, events, and concepts from the class readings. Essay assignments and essay exams will be used to test student recall and understanding of casual relationships.
2. To develop students' written communication skills in a cooperative and supportive environment. The course will include essay assignments, which will require students to write, peer edit, rewrite, present, and discuss their work. Exams will be essay-based, which will force students to recall key concepts, interpret arguments and source material, and present arguments in concise, well-supported, and logically-constructed essays. Each semester, students will take a semester exam, which will require them to demonstrate a grasp of the concepts taught during the semester. Second semester, students will complete several research papers.
3. To develop students' oral communication skills in a cooperative and supportive environment. The course will include discussions, debates, mock trials, and special presentations that will help students develop their oral communication skills.
4. To develop students' critical thinking skills, including analysis and interpretation skills. Students will learn about history through examination of primary and secondary source material from the textbook and other sources and through real-world exercises. In addition to normal assignments, students will refine their critical thinking skills through structured debates and class discussions. Course exams will include essay questions designed to specifically test students� critical thinking skills.
5. To encourage student creativity and participation through thought-provoking assignments, which relate historical concepts and ideas to the school community and the world at large. Assignments will encourage the use of emerging technology, including the Internet. Presentation projects will involve both library and Internet research, as well as Powerpoint and Word usage.
6. To write lesson plans that minimize lecturing and require students to learn through examination, discussion, and practice. Units will be divided into lesson plans designed to teach key concepts while varying activities to solicit student attention and interest.
7. College Preparatory students will focus on developing a strong foundation in written and oral communications and a general awareness and understanding of geography. During the second semester, they will work on assignments that foster basic higher level thinking skills. In addition to the College Placement work, Advanced students will focus on an outside reading, a comprehensive final exam, and incorporating primary source documents into their writing.

Grading

Homework Assignments (2-3 per week)			5 points each
Note Checks (1-2 per quarter)				5 points each
Pop Reading Quizzes (2-3 per quarter)			10 points each
Quizzes (2-3 per quarter)				25 points each
Debate Assignments (2-3 per quarter)			25 points each
In-class Writing Assignments (1-4 per quarter)		15-25 points each
Special Projects (1-4 per semester)			25-100 points each
Tests (2-3 per quarter)					75-100 points each
Semester Exams (1 per semester)				120-140 points each

Basic Skill Objective (To be Incorporated into each unit)

1. Building vocabulary, grammar, and punctuation skills.
2. Develop critical thinking skills.
3. Gathering and analyzing information.
4. Forming and weighing arguments.
5. Reporting information in verbal or written form.
6. Brainstorming techniques.

Developing higher-level skills of analysis and interpretation to stimulate critical thinking

1. Understanding the significance and distinguishing the types of source material (primary vs. secondary, fact vs. opinion, etc.).
2. Being able to interpret source material. Detecting and analyzing bias and objectivity in source material.
3. Developing hypotheses and testing them against evidence.
4. Presenting an argument and being able to effectively use supporting material to defend the argument.

Objectives other than critical thinking

1. Learning to highlight pertinent information in textbooks, handouts, and source documents.
2. Students will take notes from printed materials, lectures, textbook readings, other reading assignments, movies, websites, and discussions.
3. Learning how to read and find locations on a map.
4. Students will express themselves orally and in writing with clarity and precision.
5. Students will learn to write effectively in times situations.
6. Students will learn to lead and participate in discussions. Students will learn to function in teams.
7. Students will understand the basic meaning of directive words and can answer questions as directed (i.e., analyze, define, discuss, evaluate, etc.).

Course Schedule

Unit One: Paleolithic and Neolithic Man; Egyptian and Mesopotamian Civilizations
Sample topic: What is civilization and what does it require to exist and endure?
Time: Six weeks

Unit Two: India
Sample topic: Is the practice of sati fair?
Time: Three weeks

Unit Three: China
Sample topic: How does a society’s view of human nature affect the shape, function, and form of societal institutions?
Time: Three weeks

Unit Four: Early American Civilizations
Sample topic: How did the religious beliefs of the Aztecs help lead to their downfall?
Time: Two weeks

Unit Five: Middle Eastern and African Civilizations and Empires
Sample topic: Compare and contrast how religions rise to prominence using Catholicism and Islam as examples.
Time: Three weeks

Semester Exam

Unit Seven: The Greek City-States and the Hellenistic Era
Sample topic: Which city-state would you rather be a woman in, Athens or Sparta?
Movie: Troy or Odyssey
Time: Five weeks

Unit Eight: The Roman Republic and Empire
Sample topic: Compare and contrast the fall of the Roman Republic and the fall of the Galactic Republic in “Star Wars”.
Movie: Star Wars or Gladiator
Time: Five weeks

Unit Nine: Europe in the Middle Ages
Sample topic: Were the Dark Ages really that “dark”?
Movie: Joan of Arc
Time: Seven weeks

Final Exam