Activities

Webquest
Experiencing India’s Caste System

Create a PowerPoint presentation following through Step 3 of the WebQuest

Additional Sources
   Indian Caste System
   Caste System in Hinduism
   Caste System in India (Wikipedia)
   India Caste System
   Caste System in India

   Indian baby names
   Indian baby names
   *You practice Hinduism--be sure to use Hindu names!

Curriculum Standards:
16.B.3 (W) Compare the political characteristics of Greek and Roman civilizations with non-Western civilizations, including the early Han dynasty and Gupta empire, between 500 BCE and 500 CE.

Chapter 8, Lesson 1: The Indus Valley Civilization (pp. 222-228)

The Indus River Valley was the site of a complex civilization which lasted for 1000 years.

I. Almost a Continent

• A. India is a subcontinent, a large land mass that is somewhat separated yet still part of a continent.
• B. The Indus River Valley was an ideal place for people to settle because the river flooded often--spreading fertile soil--and the monsoons brought regular rainfall.
• C. Supported by a stable food supply, people settled in the Indus River Valley and eventually built cities.

II. The Great River Civilization

• A. The Indus River Valley civilization probably had a strong central government with information flowing freely between towns.
• B. The people of the Indus River Valley also traded with communities as far away as Mesopotamia and the Persian Gulf.

III. Echoes from Abandoned Cities

• A. After lasting 1000 years, the Indus River Valley civilization finally declined.
• B. The Indus River Valley people were the first to raise chickens for food. Today chicken is eaten worldwide.
• C. The Indus River Valley people made jewelry and cotton cloth, both of which are still made today.

Internet Resources

History of India - Kidipede
Ancient India - British Museum
Ancient India






 

Chapter 8, Lesson 2: Arrival of the Aryans (pp. 229-234)

The arrival of the Aryans in the Indus River Valley changed the culture of both Aryans and the Indus River Valley people.

I. Who Were the Aryans?

• A. According to one theory, the Aryans were part of a larger seminomadic group we now call the Indo-Europeans.
• B. The Indo-Europeans left their homeland around 2000 B.C. and migrated throughout Europe, Asia, and India.
• C. Aryan beliefs and daily life were described in Vedas, a collection of sacred hymns and poems, passed down orally from generation to generation.

• II. What Do the Vedas Reveal?

• A. As the Aryans and the Indus Valley people combined cultures, they ended up with a four-class system.
• B. Divisions within classes were called castes. People did not change castes.
• C. The Aryans worshipped divine beings or gods, and priests became very powerful in their society.

• III. What Remains Today of Aryan Ways?

• A. Sanskrit, the language spoken by the Aryans, is the root of Hindi, one of the most common languages of modern India.
• B. Many people in modern India still follow the caste system created by the Aryans thousands of years ago.
• C. Religion is the most lasting heritage of the Aryans.

Hinduism (Wikipedia)
Hinduism
Hinduism
BBC - Hinduism

Sacred Texts - Hinduism
Hinduism - Religion facts



Social Sites
The Hindu Universe
Hinduism Today
 

Chapter 8, Lesson 3, Beginning of Buddhism (pp. 235-240)

I. Life of the Buddha

A. Siddhartha Gautama established Buddhism, one of the world's major religions.

B. After much searching and meditation, Siddhartha reached a height of understanding that Buddhists call enlightenment.

C. After his enlightenment, Siddhartha was called the Buddha. He preached Buddhist dharma for many years until he died.

II. Teachings of Buddhism

A. The Buddha preached that everyone could find peace, without the Vedic priests or animal sacrifices.

B. The Buddha's teaching centered on how people should think and act.

C. The Buddha taught that the Eightfold Path leads to enlightenment.

D. Buddhism gradually traveled to China, Korea, Japan, Tibet, Burma and other areas of Southeast Asia.

III. A Great Buddhist Ruler

A. Asoka, a powerful emperor, converted to Buddhism and sent missionaries around and beyond the subcontinent.

B. Asoka announced his Buddhist beliefs to his people in edicts, and ordered his empire to follow them.

C. After Asoka's death the Mauryan Empire broke down into many little warring kingdoms.

Ashoka the Great (Wikipedia)

~The Edicts of King Asoka



 

Chapter 8, Lesson 4, The Golden Age (pp. 244-250)

I. Beliefs of Hinduism

A. Hinduism is both the major religion of India today and a way of life, with roots in the Vedic religion of the Aryan people.

B. Dharma and karma are important teachings of Hinduism that influence peoples' conduct.

C. Certain Hindus go through four different stages of life; the last stage is as a holy person.

II. The Gupta Empire

A. Both India and Hinduism grew and flourished under the Gupta Empire.

B. Under the Guptas, India traded with Rome and the rest of Mediterranean, Saudi Arabia and Central Asia, and China and Southeast Asia.

C. Guilds grew as trade increased under the Guptas.

III. Achievements of Ancient India

A. Under the Guptas, two important epics of Hinduism were written down for the first time.

B. An Indian astronomer determined the world was a sphere that rotated around the sun and accurately calculated the length of a solar year.

C. Indian mathematicians devised the number system we use today, featuring nine numerals, the zero, and the decimal.