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Mesopotamia 8,000 BC

Mesopotamia 8,000 BC. Start with a story: imagine you are a farmer living near Southwest Asia. The yearly flood which makes farming possible has not come. Now the village is fighting for it’s life…!. Let’s connect!.

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Mesopotamia 8,000 BC

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  1. Mesopotamia8,000 BC Start with a story: imagine you are a farmer living near Southwest Asia. The yearly flood which makes farming possible has not come. Now the village is fighting for it’s life…!

  2. Let’s connect! • Think of a time when you’ve seen pictures about a flood on TV or in the Newspapers. Floods cause destruction by washing away objects in their path. Do you think a flood can also have good consequences? • SWBAT explain how the land between the Tigris and Euphrates river was essential to early life.

  3. Before & Now.. • Last week you learned… • As people became better farmers, they settled in large villages. Some settlements developed complex villages with NEW ways of life! • This week you will learn… • The geography of Mesopotamia influenced where people settled and HOW they lived!

  4. The Land between Two Rivers… • The word “Mesopotamia” means the land between two rivers. • Mesopotamia is between the: • Tigris River • Euphrates River

  5. Where in the world are we???

  6. Let’s ZOOM in! Asia Africa

  7. Tiny bit closer….

  8. The Euphrates River

  9. The Tigris & Euphrates • Located in Southwest Asia • Provide Water • Good for travel • Easier to move by boat in Ancient times

  10. The Tigris & Euphrates • Fertile Soil • Every year it would rain and melt the snow in the mountains, this caused the river to overflow!

  11. As the water flowed down the mountains it picked up soil. • When the rivers reached the plains water overflowed onto the FLOOD PLAIN. • A flood plain is flat land bordering the banks.

  12. The fine soil picked up by the overflowed river created SILT • Silt was fertile which means it was great for growing crops!

  13. Irrigation 6,000 BCE

  14. Floods and droughts! • A long period when too little rain falls is called a drought. • Mesopotamia was ARID (dry) • Drought is BAD because during a drought the Tigris & Euphrates water level would drop making it hard for famers to water their crops! • IF CROPS FAIL…the people Starve!

  15. Irrigation As early as 6000BCE Mesopotamian farmers took steps to control water they built walls to control water during floods they built canals to carry water from rivers to the fields This system of watering dry land is called IRRIGATION! http://player.discoveryeducation.com/index.cfm?guidAssetId=1E160BFC-BBCA-43F8-B10F-63102046DF34&blnFromSearch=1&productcode=US#

  16. The downside… • Water from Tigris and Euphrates was muddy and silt often clogged the canals • Keeping canals clean was a big challenge for farmers

  17. Read up a little more • Go to the following website and answer these questions: http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/economy/farming/irrigation.htm

  18. Let’s try a game! • http://kids.yahoo.com/games/game/irrigation-nation

  19. Current Events • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGpCjPOFTvg

  20. What are the downsides of this great land Mesopotamia? • Lack of natural resources • No forests for wood so they couldn’t build advanced homes • Limited protection- not surrounded by mountains or other natura barriers • Built brick walls • They did trade because they had a SURPLUS of crops! This lead to a very diverse society.

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