Ms. Aman Global 1

teachinthebronx@hotmail.com

Theme:

Human and Physical Geography

Introduction:

Most people today live in cities or small urban towns, which bring people together to live and work. Cities provide people with goods and services that are not always available in rural areas. Cities are often centers for trade, government, education, religion, and transportation systems. Mesopotamia was one of these quickly developing areas, it was known as the land between two rivers, the Tigris to the north and the Euphrates to the south. Farming in this region depended on irrigation from the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. Many resources in Mesopotamia were scarce or absent, which stimulated trade during ancient times. With the help of a profitable trade system with its neighbors, Mesopotamia grew to become a powerful empire.

Task:

You will develop a community that will meet the needs a variety of people. Many challenges will be faced, such as Mother Nature, meaning geographical features, different points of views from the people, and roles of people in society. You and your partner will research the rise and fall of Mesopotamia and determine the significance it has had in history. You will share your experiences with the class.

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Process:

As a public policy analyst, you need to develop the following policy skills:

• Defining the social problem
• Gather evidence to support the existence of the problem
• Determine the causes and factors contributing to the problem
• Evaluate the policy
• Comparative Analysis

You will use the 5-step public policy analysis worksheets as a template for writing your report and completing your diagram presentation. Read the information on the following website. TIPS Examine the website carefully before continuing. Ask the teacher questions if you have difficulty.

Student Worksheets:

Worksheet1: Defining the social problem in Mesopotamia

Worksheet2: Gathering evidence of the social problem in Mesopotamia

Worksheet3: Determining the causes of the problem in Mesopotamia

Worksheet4: Evaluating existing public policies that make modern civilization remain strong

Worksheet 5: Compare the fall of Mesopotamia with other collapsed civilization

You and your partner will hand in a 2 page typed written report along with a detailed diagram of the layout of your community or civilization. The diagram will be explained to the class in a 3-5 minute presentation. Your grade on this assignment will be based on the rubric below

Resources:

Mesopotamia a place to start

Mesopotamia in the Electronic Passport

Mesopotamia Timeline

Collapse of Mesopotamia

Fall of Mesopotamia

Evaluation:

OBJECTIVES	NEEDS IMPROVEMENT	WORKING TO IMPROVE	SATISFACTORY	GOOD	EXELLENT	EARNED POINTS
CONTENT OF WRITTEN PAPER	5 points Student has not meet the criteria for the assigned paper. Or the student has given incorrect information.	10 points Student has met the criteria for the paper but may be missing one or two important facts.	15 points Student has meet all of the required criteria for the paper.	20 points Student has met all of the required criteria for the paper. However the student has clearly shown the attempt to add more to the content of their bio than the required information.	25 points The student has meet all of the requirements for the paper. And the student has shown a mastery of the content area/topic.
PRESENTATION	5 points Presentation is not organized. Class is unable to follow presentation.	10 points Presentation includes some of the required material but is disorganized to the point that it is difficult to follow.	15 points Material is presented in such a way that the class is able to understand it but IS not actively involved in the presentation. Presentation may be simply read to the class.	20 points Presentation engages the majority of the class by making use of some strategies to make the information more appealing.	25 points Uses dynamic style and methods to engage the whole class. Material is presented in a creative and enthusiastic manner that does not interfere with the content.
CREATIVITY EXTRA CREDIT POINTS!!!	0 points Presentation shows no attempt at innovation.	2 points Presentation consist of very little innovation.	6 points Presentation shows effort on the part of the student. However the creativity level is not enough to capture the audience.	8 points Presentation shows that the student has a high level of creativity. The student has successfully integrated creativity into the presentation.	10 points Presentation shows that the student has attained the highest level of creativity. The student has through the presentation convinced the audience that he/she has become the person that they are presenting.
	POSSIBLE	POINTS 50			TOTAL SCORE :

NY State Learning Standards:

Standard 2:  World History

Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of major ideas, eras, themes, developments, and turning points in world history and examine the broad sweep of history from a variety of perspectives.

Standard 5:  Civics, Citizenship, and Government

Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of the necessity for establishing governments; the governmental system of the United States and other nations; the United States Constitution; the basic civic values of American constitutional democracy; and the roles, rights, and responsibilities of citizenship, including avenues of participation.

Conclusion:

You should have learned from this web quest what were the major causes that faced the people in Mesopotamia, which in turn led to the fall of their civilization. You should also be able to compare Mesopotamia to another ancient civilization from our studies or with our future studies, including the Roman Empire.

Our next web quest we will look at the rise of ancient Indus Valley and the achievements and contribution made by the people, including the development of ancient India.