Upon completion of this lesson students will become more familiar with Chinese geography by mapping the path of the wall. They will also explain the construction of the Great Wall as a product of the period in which it was built and discuss in brief the dynasty- the Ming Dynasty- during which major construction on the wall was completed. Students will then identify reasons for the dedication of significant resources to the construction of the wall and discuss in brief China's neighbors to the north, in particular the Mongols and Manchus.

Students examine the coexistence of different religions within various countries by chronicling the evolution and nature of those religions throughout history. They then synthesize their findings by designing a creative work that captures the presence of the religions in each of the countries.

This unit emphasizes the diaspora of human history.

Sixth graders are by nature a myopic people, and constantly in danger of not examining their own assumptions. Teaching large scale human history as a beginning to a closer study of culture, movement patterns and events allows students to understand the miraculous conditions that allowed humans to flourish. The perspective we take in this unit also challenges students to consider that the choices we make always provide a set of positive and negative consequences. In past pedagogy, the shift from hunting and gathering to agriculture was taught as the catalyst of human progress. While that is not entirely wrong, it limits students' thinking by not considering the things we lost with this "opportunity cost."

In keeping with the new geography-heavy 2015 standards, this unit begins with a role-playing simulation that asks students to learn specific biomes to imagine they are plopped down in a certain region of the world, with nothing but a basic tool kit (no clothing, food, or shelter!). Right away students understand the complexity of early survival and the interrelationship with the environment. Then, building on the interpretive skills they learned in Unit one, student examine cave paintings to hypothesis lifestyle choices and necessities for early paleolithic peoples. Students recall the mapping skills learned in Unit One to get a visual perspective of the human diaspora in the next lesson, which maps the migration out of Africa, and sets the stage to understanding the next big topic: shifting from hunting and gathering to an agrarian way of life. But first, students will culminate their learning of early humans in an analysis of the issue of who gets the rights to study Kennewick man's remains.

**From the new AAPS 6th grade curriculum; written by Rachel Toon for ATLAS

In this lesson, students will consider immigration in general as well as through the specific lens of the Asian Indian immigrant experience by viewing clips from Remarkable Journey. Students will explore their own immigrant ancestry as they consider the concept of America as a "Nation of Immigrants," as well as the varying reasons for immigration throughout history, the varied experiences of immigrants, their relationship to the American Dream, and the misconceptions that often frame immigration in our society. As a culminating artistic activity, students will create an updated Statue of Liberty - a new design that addresses immigration, America as a "Nation of Immigrants," the concept of the "American Dream," and the related concepts addressed throughout the lesson.

In this lesson, students use maps to learn about the geographicac features and climate of Mali and consider what this can tell us about demographics and economics of the country.

In this lesson, students investigate trade in West Africa's ancient civilizations. They will also explore Islam and how it spread across Africa and how this influenced the development of trade in West Africa.

In this lesson, students differentiate between capital, human, and natural resources. Students describe the role of capital, human, and natural resources in a healthy society.

Trade was critical to Old Babylonia, where many highly prized natural resources were scarce but agricultural goods were in surplus. A vibrant trading system developed, bringing manufactured goods and raw materials from as far as Turkey, and even India, 1500 miles away. Trade became integral to the economy and the culture. In this lesson, students explore the trade industry in Old Babylonia and its far-flung influence.

In this lesson, students gain an understanding of North Carolina Native Americans, their way of life and their culture by assuming the role of an archeologist and recreating an artifact that would have been used by Native populations in the pre-colonial period.

Students use a physical map of the Roman Empire to investigate how physical geography contributed to economic and military power in ancient Rome.

This file is the PPT accompaniment for "Teaching Activities for Remarkable Journey." "Remarkable Journey: Founding the Asian Indian Community in North Carolina" is a documentary that illustrates the history, culture, lives, and contributions of Indian-Americans in North Carolina.

This lesson examines the benefits and challenges the Nile brought to the people of ancient Egypt. First, students discuss what problems the United States faces today to compare historical and contemporary events. This helps students to understand continuity and change in societies . Then they read and discuss an article on the problems and promises that the Nile River posed to ancient Egypt. This shows how different physical features influence developments in societies.

In this lesson, students will explore past use of natural resources. They will use their knowledge of past civilizations to uncover their use of the environment.

This course was created by the Rethink Education Content Development Team. This course is aligned to the NC Standards for 6th Grade Social Studies. 

This course was created by the Rethink Education Content Development Team. This course is aligned to the NC Standards for 6th Grade Social Studies.

Students will learn about Roman architecture, technology, and medicine by becoming teachers for a day. Students will participate in a class discussion about Rome?s contributions in these areas and then work in small groups to become experts in one aspect of Roman technology or medicine. They will then share this knowledge with their classmates by teaching what they have learned and having their classmates participate in an activity where they will have to apply what they have learned. Students will then practice their evaluation skills by reviewing one another?s performance. A final class discussion about the technological and medical contributions of the ancient Romans will summarize the ideas learned. To access the video clips, go to resources and click on the link. It is NOT necessary to purchase the DVD.

In this unit, students will learn about how the earliest civilations lived and how they went from being nomadic hunters to settling down.

In this unit, students will learn about the five themes of Geography Mapping: location, place, human environment interaction, movement, and region.

Students examine infrared Landsat images that show the city of Kathmandu in different years in order to analyze the urban development of Kathmandu and seasonal changes.