Biography of Zheng He

Your assignment:  Write your own biographical sketch of Zheng He

• What your essay should include:
• Information about his childhood
• where was he born?
• who were his parents?
• What was an important event in his childhood that affected his adult life?
• Information about China
• how was he influenced by what was happening in China at the time he lived?
• how was he able to achieve importance in Chinese society?
• Information about his accomplishments
• what did he achieve?
• what was his influence on  other cultures/history?
• how is he remembered?

*You should post your essay, along with three pictures that relate to your topic, to your blog.  Your essay should be between 300-450 words.

The Legend of Zheng He

The Chinese Treasure Fleets were an important step in the spread of culture, trade and important ideas - it was also an influential step toward European exploration of the Western Hemisphere.  The leader of the Chinese navy at the beginning of the 15th century was a man known as Zheng He.  Who was he and what were his contributions to world history? 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-t3QSGRN1-U

Who was Alexander the Great?

Your assignment is to conduct research regarding Alexander the Great.
You should write a 3-4 paragraph blog posting that explains:

• his early life before he rose to power
• who did he conquer and how did he accomplish so much?
• what is he known for?
• what did his accomplishments mean to the world - what was his influence?

You should site your resources used and provide three pictures that relate to your topic.

Exploring the Persian Empire

The Persian Empire lasted for over 2,400 years, led by a succession of kings with different styles of leadership.  For this assignment you are to identify important aspects of the rule of three men: Cyrus the Great, Darius the Great and Xerxes the Great. 
For each king, briefly explain their accomplishments and also identify key componenets of the Persian Empire that came about during the time of their reign.  Examples could be the development of religious ideas, inventions, expansion into new lands, etc...
Be sure to write in your own words as much as possible and site your sources.  Please include one picture relevant to each king (three total.)

The websites below may be of assistance but you may use other sites, as well.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achaemenid_Empire

http://www.crystalinks.com/ancient.html

http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?historyid=aa65

The Mayans

As we begin to examine the Classical Civilizations, we begin with the Mayan societies of Mesoamerica.  Your assignment is to familiarize yourself with the Maya by reading the contents of the webpage linked below.  After completing this reading, you should view as many of the short video clips (at the top of the same page) as you are able to. 

Finally, upon completing these tasks, you should begin writing a blog post (including 3 pictures) that explains who the Maya were and give details of three of their major accomplishments.

http://www.history.com/topics/maya

Compare and Contrast of Ancient Cultures

Through your reading and research you are learning that empires have some general characteristics that are similar across cultures.  However, there are obvious differences between these cultures which make them interesting to study.  Your assignment is to examine the three cultures/empires  (Babylonian, Phoenician, Egyptian) and describe their similarities to each other as well as the characteristics that set them apart.

Focus on these factors:

• Religious beliefs
• Writing systems
• Geography
• Agricultural advances
• Social Structure of Society
• Technology advancement / inventions
• Trade routes

Explain the factors they shared or had in common.
Explain the ways they were unique or different from each other.

Be sure to include three pictures with your post.

Civilizations of North Africa

As we begin to examine the ancient societies of north Africa, you must first familiarize yourself with the history and culture of ancient Egypt.  Developed along the lower Nile, it was one of the most advanced and significant empires in history. 

Visit the British Museum website at http://www.ancientegypt.co.uk/menu.html

Read the sections regarding Egyptian Life, Geography, and Gods and Godesses. 

Begin reading chapter 3 in your textbook this weekend as we will be discussing/working with these ideas next week.