The Geography Of China’s River Valleys

1. Chapter V Section I The Geography Of China’s River Valleys

2. Entrance Slip-4/9 • Define “loess”

3. KWL- Use your webquest!! • Fold a piece of white paper into 3 • K: What do you know about ancient china? (Use what you learned from your webquest!) • W: What would you like to learn more about? • L: At least 3 facts you’ve learned this week!

4. Vocabulary • Monsoon • Loess • 3 obediances

5. Climate And Landforms • The North China Plain is located in East Asia; built of soil deposits from the Huang River • There is very little rain each year, causing the North China Plain to be very dry and hot • The climate in the south is the opposite • Monsoons from the South China Sea bring heavy rain to the land

6. Huang And Chang Rivers • The Chang River is the longest river in China • The Huang River is the second longest river in China

7. Huang River • The word Huang means “yellow” in Chinese • It is called the “Yellow River” because of the yellow-brown loess (or yellow-brown soil) that its waters carry along with its flooding

8. China’s Sorrow • The Chinese people also called the Huang River “China’s Sorrow” • It brought life to land, but also took life away • Destructive floods could come without warning, sometimes as often as every two years • The course of the river could increase by hundreds of miles

9. Early Civilization In China • Early farming societies formed as early as 5000 b.c. • These early farming societies later formed full-fledged civilizations

10. The Shang Dynasty • First civilization in China • Arose around 1760 b.c. • The Shang Dynasty produced the first Chinese writing system • Built China’s first cities • Among their many accomplishments was the production of China’s finest bronze work

11. The Shang Dynasty (Continued) • Like Mesopotamia’s cuneiform and our alphabet, the Chinese writing system could be used for different languages • This could help for communication, because China had many regional languages

12. The Shang Dynasty (Continued) • About 600 years after the founding of the Shang Dynasty, the Zhou people emerged, lived in the Wei Valley west of the Shang people

13. The Zhou Dynasty • The Zhou conquered the Shang in about 1122 b.c. • The Zhou Dynasty ruled over ancient China for almost 1000 years • This long period was divided into two parts- the earlier Western Zhou Dynasty and the later Eastern Zhou Dynasty

14. The Zhou Dynasty (Continued) • During that time, small kingdoms fought for control over one another until a new dynasty- the Qin- finally emerged • It was near the end for the Eastern Zhou Dynasty that a period known as the Warring States began

15. Women’s Roles • Women were to be considered a lower status than men • According to tradition, women were bound by what were called the three obediences- to obey their fathers in youth, their husbands after marriage, and their sons in widowhood