The Ancient Near Eastern World - Unit 6

Unit 6 covers a study of The Israelites, with movement, religion, and law as the big ideas. Information is presented about the Israelites' arrival and subsequent kingdoms in Canaan, in the Near East close to the Mediterranean Sea. It then discusses the religious beliefs of the Israelites and their laws. Stories from the Old Testament such as the Exodus from Egypt and the Ten Commandments continue the exploration of how, through the ages, the Israelites maintained a strong identity as a separate and united people because of their shared beliefs.

Microscopic Organisims

We got some pond scum from our local river. We put a drop of the water onto a slide and viewed it through a microscope. We also made a movie by putting a smartphone lens onto the eyepiece. We saw paramecia, Euglena, and at least one multi-celled organism. These organisms use flagellum (a little tail that whips around), cillia (little hairs), and amoeboid motion (moving like an amoeba. In other words, moving very slowly) to move around. We named one multi-celled microbe Mitch the Microbe.

Mmmmm. Pi.

As the baker looked up to the sky,

He sighed as he said “How and why?”

“The area I need

Of my pie, yes indeed

Is the radius squared times pi!”

A poet praising Pi

Roses are red, violets are blue,

How many numbers does Pi have,

I do not have a clue.

Pi in the sky
Circle in the sky,

I wonder if it’s pie.

Don’t know if it’s 3.14159,

But it is still divine.

Pi-ku

Circle in the wind

Mathematicians’ wanderings

Calculating Pi.

The Ancient Near Eastern World - Unit 5

Conflict, cultural diffusion, and cooperation are the big ideas presented in Unit 5 of The Ancient Near Eastern World. The unit details the conflicts between peoples in the Near East as the great empires of the time fought for control of the land. These empires ended up sharing the region and trading with each other, rather than conquering each other. But the longest-lasting development from this time was the spread of Indo-European Languages from near the Caspian Sea throughout the Near East, westward through Europe, and eastward to India.

The Ancient Near Eastern World - Unit 4

"Daily Life in ancient Mesopotamia" is explored in Unit 4. Daily life, family, and education are the big ideas, including investigation into the daily activities of the Mesopotamian people as discovered on thousands of tablets that were excavated from archaeological sites and ancient buildings. The tablets told stories of work, school, running a household, and communication.