Discovering Our Past: A History of the World

Worksheet Answer Key

Mesopotamia

Table of Contents

CHAPTER-LEVEL ACTIVITIES:
What Do You Know? Anticipation Guide.................................. 2
Vocabulary Builder Activity................................................... 2
Hands-On Chapter Project: Mesopotamia ............................... 3

LESSON-LEVEL ACTIVITIES:
Guided Reading: Lesson 1 The Sumerians .............................. 3
Guided Reading: Lesson 2 Mesopotamian Empires................... 4
Economics of History Activity: Lesson 1
Bartering ..................................................................... 5
21st Century Skills Activity: Lesson 1
Collaboration: Group Project .......................................... 5
Primary Source Activity: Lesson 2
The Code of Hammurabi ............................................... 6

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Discovering Our Past: A History of the World

Worksheet Answer Key

Mesopotamia

CHAPTER WORKSHEETS

What Do You Know? Anticipation Guide

Before You Read
1-10. All student responses will vary.

After You Read

After students have read the chapter, their responses should be:
1. Agree
2. Agree
3. Disagree - Sumer had three social classes: the upper class, the middle class,
and the lower class.
4. Agree
5. Disagree - The Sumerians created an epic poem called the Epic of Gilgamesh.
6. Disagree - Hammurabi formed a code of laws that later influenced the laws of
the Greeks and Romans.
7. Agree
8. Disagree - The Assyrians used the writing and religion of Babylon.
9. Disagree- King Nebuchadnezzar built the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.
10. Agree

Vocabulary Builder Activity

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A. Content Vocabulary
1. a) irrigation
b) caravan
c) scribe
d) tribute
e) ziggurat
2. a) silt
b) polytheism
c) empire
d) cuneiform
e) astronomer
f) province
3. a) city-state and empire
b) silt and irrigation
c) polytheism and ziggurat
d) caravan

B. Academic Vocabulary
1. d
2. b
3. e

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Discovering Our Past: A History of the World

Worksheet Answer Key

Mesopotamia
4. a
5. c

C. Combined Vocabulary Reinforcement

1. silt, irrigation
2. polytheism, ziggurats
3. cuneiform, scribe
4. tribute, provinces
5. astronomers
6. city-state

Hands-On Chapter Project

Mesopotamia

Worksheet 1: Project Plan

Our group’s Sumerian occupation is: Occupations will vary.
Task List: Students’ task lists will vary but should be based on how the group
decides to divide up the work.
Due Date: The due date will be decided by the instructor.

Worksheet 2: Important Jobs in Sumer

Students' answers will vary based on job chosen.

Worksheet 3: Creating a Bibliography

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Sources will vary but should be formatted correctly.

Worksheet 4: Assessment Rubric

Students’ self-assessment will be based on their opinions about their performance
during the project.

LESSON WORKSHEETS

Guided Reading: Lesson 1 The Sumerians

The First Civilizations in Mesopotamia
1. People settled in Mesopotamia.
2. Sumerians used water from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers to water their crops.
Sumerians used irrigation to water their crops, which increased harvests.
3. Plentiful food allowed some Sumerians to specialize in work other than farming,
such as being an artisan.
4. People began to live together in areas that favored trade, thereby developing
cities.
5. Mesopotamia is the region between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. These riv-
ers run parallel to each other. Mesopotamia has a fertile plain.
Discovering Our Past: A History of the World

Worksheet Answer Key

Mesopotamia
Sumer’s Civilization
1. Location: Sumerian city-states were located near rivers.
2. Economy: Sumerian city-states produced their own crops.
3. Population: The population of Sumerian city-states varied from 20,000 to
250,000.
4. Politics: Sumerian city-states formed alliances with other city-states.
5. Religion: Sumerian city-states often had a ziggurat.
6. warrior, government official, king
7. artisan, merchant, farmer
8. debtor, slave, criminal
9. Possible answers: tin, timber, carnelian, lapis lazuli

Sumerian Contributions
1. Sumerians developed a form of writing called cuneiform, developed a form of
poetry called the epic, and wrote the poem called the Epic of Gilgamesh.
2. Sumerians invented the wheel, developed the first carts and chariots, developed
the sailboat, invented the wooden plow, made bronze, and developed the pot-
ter’s wheel.
3. Sumerians used geometry to measure the size of fields and design buildings,
created a system of numbers based on 60, charted the position of the stars to
learn the best times to plant crops and hold religious ceremonies, and developed
the 12-month calendar.

Guided Reading: Lesson 2 Mesopotamian Empires

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The First Empires
1. Sargon helped to develop the kingdom of Akkad.
2. Sargon moved his armies south.
3. Sargon conquered Sumerian city-states.
4. Sargon united Akkad and Sumer.
5-7. Possible answers: The code is posted for all to see.
The code covers many types of law.
The code is based on the principle of “an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.”

The Assyrian Empire

1. I greatly fear and hate the Assyrians and their army. Their ruthless soldiers
robbed my town, set my crops on fire, and smashed the dams of my town. Also,
they demand that I pay an unjust tribute.
2. The Babylonians have turned into a weak people. We conquered them easily. I
admire much of their culture, such as their temples and architecture. We will use
what is good from Babylonian culture and combine it with the strength of the As-
syrian army and government to form a great empire.
3. Yes. The roads connected all of the provinces of the empire. Soldiers stood
guard along the roads to protect traders from bandits. Also, messengers on gov-
ernment business used the stations along the road to rest and change horses.
4. The Assyrians modeled their writing after Babylonian writing. Also, the Assyrians
and Babylonians worshipped many of the same gods.
Discovering Our Past: A History of the World

Worksheet Answer Key

Mesopotamia
The Chaldean Empire
1. The harsh rule of the Assyrians made the people they conquered resent this
rule. As a result, the conquered people were probably looking for an opportunity
to revolt against the Assyrians. This opportunity came when the Assyrians
started to fight each other. The Chaldeans and Medes joined in a revolt against
the Assyrians and defeated them.
2. Check students’ drawings.
3. Astronomers studied the stars, planets, and moon. Chaldeans made a sundial to
measure time and invented the seven-day week.

Economics of History Activity: Lesson 1

Bartering

1. Bartering is the direct exchange of goods and services. It often involves having a
person or group giving something they don’t need for something they need.
2. One sheep and five loaves of bread are being bartered. Sarah is giving a sheep
and is receiving bread.
3. Advantages: A person is giving away goods he or she doesn’t need for things
that he or she needs.
Disadvantages: It is difficult for a person to get the exact amount of what he or
she needs. So a person would often end up with too much of some goods and
not enough of other goods.
4. By using money to meet their needs, people do not have to depend on what
other people are willing to exchange. Instead, a person can just buy whatever he

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or she needs.

21st Century Skills Activity: Lesson 1

Collaboration: Group Project

Practicing the Skill

1. Answers will vary. Students might find out the type of dress people wore, the
weapons they used, and that Gilgamesh could be seen as a superhero.
2. Answers will vary, but should be supported by well thought out reasons. For ex-
ample, a student might say that they saw the Lord of the Rings movies and that
they enjoyed the action, the fantasy characters, and the locations.
3. Answer will vary but should be supported by well thought out reasons. For exam-
ple, a student might say that they prefer to do the publicity for a movie because
he or she finds movie posters more interesting than book covers.

Applying the Skill

1-3. Students should work together in their groups to 1) write a summary of the story
of Gilgamesh, 2) write descriptions of each character; 3) create a novel cover or
a movie poster. Students should give constructive feedback on the work of group
members. Finally, groups should present their projects to the class.

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Worksheet Answer Key

Mesopotamia
Class Question:
Answers will vary depending on the publicity presented. However, all answers
should be supported by well thought out reasons. For example, students might say
that the publicity made them want to read the book because it showed how exciting
the story is, how interesting the characters are, and made them wonder how the
story ended.

Primary Source Activity: Lesson 2

The Code of Hammurabi

1. He shall receive sixty blows with an ox whip in public.

2. He shall have his ear cut off.
3. They all deal with a person striking the body of another person.
4. The social classes of people involved in the crime are different. Also, the punish-
ments differ.
5. The laws are different because the punishment for the same crime differed de-
pending on the social rank of the person who committed the crime and the per-
son against whom the crime was committed.

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