6th grade Pre-test

Egypt and the Nile

Background: Egyptian civilization began close to the Nile River because the Nile provided a fertile area in the middle of a desert. The people depended on the Nile for food and water. Heavy rains caused the Nile to overflow regularly, which made the soil fertile and good for farming. The Nile was also beneficial for the Egyptians as a method of transportation. The ancient Egyptians sang this song about the benefits of the Nile:

Answer #1-3. Base your answers on Egypt and the Nile and the Nile song.

1. According to the song, what is an effect of the Nile’s rising waters? A. There is too much water for the cropsB. There is not enough water for the cropsC. Water reaches the desertD. The men are unhappy with the Nile River flooding

2. Using the information in the background and the song which of the following was not a reason the Nile was important to the Egyptians?

A. It provided fertile soil for plantingB. It provided mud for clay tablets for scribes to write onC. It provided the Egyptians with water to drinkD. It provided the Egyptians with a method of transportation

3. The Greek historian Herodotus proclaimed Egypt "the gift of the Nile" because, in his account,

A. The Nile flows South to NorthB. The Egyptians depended on the Nile for drinking waterC. The Nile provided the Egyptians with many products that they relied on to surviveD. Egyptian myth had their people emerging out of the river

The First Female Pharaoh

Background: Hatshepsut was a woman who took the role of pharaoh. She was the daughter of a pharaoh and also was married to a pharaoh. Hatshepsut took control when her husband died. After Hatshepsut became pharaoh she is often portrayed wearing male clothes and a beard, and she is described with a male pronoun. She took control by saying that the sun god Ra was her real father.

Large Kneeling Statue of Hatshepsut: located in the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Answer #4. Base your answers on The First Female Pharaoh.

4. Why did Hatshepsut have to prove herself worthy of being a pharaoh by claiming her father to be the sun god Ra and portraying herself wearing a beard?

A. Hatshepsut was not popular in EgyptB. People thought Hatshepsut killed her husbandC. The Sun god Ra was the favorite of all Egyptian gods D. Hatshepsut had to prove herself because women were not usually Pharaohs

Pyramids

Background: Ancient Egyptian pharaohs, or god-kings, had workers build huge pyramids to serve as tombs. Egyptians believed that their kings could take their possessions with them after death. As a result, pharaohs were buried with their possessions. Below is a picture of a diagram of a pyramid.

Answer #5-6. Base your answers on Pyramids and the diagram.

5. Mummification, pyramids, and funerary rituals in ancient Egypt were extremely costly and time consuming. Why did the custom continue for so long?

A. The pharaohs wanted to show their power and wealth.B. Egyptians believed in an afterlife that required this process.C. Egyptians wanted somewhere to worship.D. The pharaohs had slaves who could perform all these tasks.

6. Looking at the diagram of the pyramid, which passage would take you to the King’s chamber?

A. Air shaftB. Descending passage C. Escape shaftD. Ascending passage

Egyptian Society

Background: People in ancient Egypt were born into different social classes that determined their status and their jobs. With hard work, some people were able to move into a higher social class. Below is a diagram of Egyptian society, structured like a pyramid.

Answer #7-8. Base your answers on Egyptian Society and the pyramid.

7. Based on the diagram above which two classes of people would harvest papyrus and other crops?

A. Farmers, and enslaved peopleB. Nobles, and kingsC. Farmers and craftsmenD. Kings and enslaved people

8. Which group of people would never be able rise to the status of King?A. NoblesB. PriestsC. King’s family membersD. Enslaved people

Mesopotamia 101 By Vickie Chao

People in "the land between the rivers" were very smart. They invented and discovered many things. They created a set of wedge-shaped symbols called the cuneiform. It was the oldest written language on Earth. With it, people in "the land between the rivers" jotted down their thoughts. They looked at the sky and carefully recorded what they saw. Watching the sky was a very important task for people in "the land between the rivers." That was because they believed that the gods lived in the heavens. By gazing at the stars, they searched for clues that might tell them the gods' will. The only thing they got wrong at the time was the shape of the Earth. They thought it was a flat disk.

To sum up, the culture created by people in "the land between the rivers" had a great impact on our modern cultures. They set up the world's first banking system. They performed the world's first brain surgery. They created the world's first symbol for zero. They published the world's first laws. The list for their achievements is endless. It is simply impossible to describe them all!

Answer #9-10. Base your answers on Mesopotamia 101.

9. Which is the only the invention of the Mesopotamians we do not incorporate into our modern lives?

A. CuneiformB. A banking systemC. Brain surgeryD. Laws

10. What caused the Mesopotamians to study the sky?A. To look for weather patternsB. To record when the moon was fullC. To discover what the gods wanted them to doD. To discover other forms of life

“Eye for an Eye” Laws

The people who lived between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers shared the same concept of justice. They believed that a person who injures another should be punished by suffering the same injury. Today, this idea of justice is called lex talionis, or an “eye for an eye.” The idea of lex talionis was widespread among ancient people living around the Mediterranean Sea. It still influences our thought about law today.

Originally, lex talionis meant that when one person was harmed by another, the injured person could pay back the attackers in kind. Say Jennifer attacks Karen and breaks her leg. Then Karen, or a member of her family, has the right to break Jennifer’s leg. If Karen can’t find Jennifer, she can break Jennifer’s brother’s leg.

The Mesopotamians’ ideas about lex talionis slowly changed. When Hammurabi took over, two important changes were taking place. First, injured people and their families were losing the right to punish their attackers. Instead, punishing wrongdoers was becoming the government’s responsibility. Second, people were substituting payments of gold, silver, or property for physical punishments. The government was more powerful than most families. It could capture wrongdoers and make sure they received the punishment they deserved, no more and no less. Though the old system of physical punishments satisfied people’s desire for revenge, it did nothing to help the injured person.

Answer #11-12. Base your answers on “Eye for an Eye” Laws.

11. Which of the following was a positive result after lex talionis was changed? A. People felt better after getting physical revenge B. More people were brought to justice C. Families were losing power D. Fewer crimes were committed

12. What was a negative result after lex talionis was changed?A. Wealthy citizens could commit crimes and easily pay the fineB. The government became more involvedC. The punishments stopped being physical D. People were not suffering the same punishment as their crime

Mesopotamian Timeline: The events on this page are written starting with the oldest and ending with the most recent.

Answer #13-14. Base your answers on the Mesopotamian Timeline.

13. Based on the timeline what allowed the cities of Mesopotamia to form?A. Hammurabi conquers much of Mesopotamia B. Sumerians develop cuneiformC. Trade networks develop D. Grain is grown along the Tigris and Euphrates river

14. How many years after Hammurabi’s Code (1750BCE) was created was the Code then discovered?

A. 3,651 years B. 1,750 yearsC. 151 yearsD. 1,000 years

Answer #15-17. Base your answers on Religions of Early India.

15. What belief or practice do Hinduism and Buddhism have in common? A. A person’s status is based on rankB. MeditationC. Worship of supernatural beingsD. Elaborate rituals by priest

16. Which characteristic below distinguishes Buddhism from Hinduism? A. Belief in reincarnationB. Origins in India C. Emphasis on fastingD. A historical founder

17. Buddhists believe that to stop the cycle of rebirth a person mustA. To pray to their deities B. Follow the social system guidelinesC. Practice self-denialD. Preforming elaborate rituals

The Caste System in India

About 3,600 years ago, a group of cattle herders from Central Asia settled into India. This group of people, called the Aryans, brought with them their beliefs, customs, and writing system (Sanskrit). They introduced a rigid caste structure that divided people into four classes.

The Aryans' caste system came from local legends. Tales aside, the caste system was a very important element in ancient India. It followed a specific set of guidelines (called the Laws of Manu) that dictated every person's behavior. The guidelines set rules from the type of jobs a person could hold to the type of foods a person could eat or how much education one could obtain. Marrying someone within a person's own caste was norm. Marrying someone outside of a person's caste was rare, but possible.

The ancient Indians believed that each person had an eternal soul that could be reborn in a new body after death. While that person could never move from one caste to another in this life, he or she could be reborn to a different caste in the next life. If the person did a lot of good deeds (such as giving generous donations) in this life, he or she would have the chance of being reborn to a higher caste in the next life. If the person did a lot of horrible things (such as committing a crime) in this life, he or she would risk being reborn to a lower caste in the next life.

Answer #18-20. Base your answers on The Caste System in India.

18. What action could cause a person to be reborn into a lower caste in their next life?A. Donating money to the poorB. Committing murderC. Volunteering D. Helping others

19. Which statement about the Hindu caste system in India is accurate?A. Different castes shared the same rules for governing their behavior B. Foreigners were treated as members of a lower casteC. Castes were encourage to interact with one anotherD. People were required to stay in the same caste to which they were born

20. A person’s caste dictated all of their behavior EXCEPTA. Who they are allowed to marry B. What they can eatC. Jobs they can holdD. Education level

21. Which letter on the map above is the location of the Indus River Valley and the early civilization it supported?

A. Location AB. Location BC. Location CD. Location D

The Great Wall of China

Answer #22-23. Base your answers on The Great Wall of China.

22. Why was the Great Wall of China built?A. They were worried about nomads that lived along the Southern borderB. They were worried about attacks from Chinese warriorsC. They were worried about nomads that lived along the Northern border D. To show the world the wealth of the Chinese dynasty

23. What important effect did the Great Wall have on Ancient ChinaA. It allowed for supplies to reach archersB. It stopped all the border wars C. It allowed for China to be seen in spaceD. It allowed warriors to be three stories off the ground

The Silk Road

Answer #24-25. Base your answers on The Silk Road.

24. Which of the following factors had the greatest impact on Asia and Europe as a result of traders traveling the road to sell their merchandise?

A. Traders using the Silk Road became wealthy and gained political powerB. Disputes developed over trade and territory that lead to warsC. New methods of transportation changed Europe and Asia D. Ideas exchanged between Asia and Europe changed the social makeup of the people in

those continents forever

25. What caused less people to utilize the Silk Road as a trading route? A. The fall of Rome made the road unsafeB. The Silk Road was too confusing with its many roadsC. The landscape of the road was too difficult to pass throughD. Caravans were replaced by ships

Answer question 26 based on the diagram and the map below

26. What information is shown in the map and the diagram?A. Countries that participated in the Silk RoadB. The flow of goods over the Silk Road C. The goods that were tradedD. The time it took for goods to travel from area to area

Confucius

Answer #27-28. Base your answers on Confucius.

27. The Chinese people turned to the teachings of Confucius because his ideas were thought to help

A. Unify the Chinese against foreign enemiesB. Restore order in ChinaC. Stop the Chinese people from converting to Islam D. Create democratic institutions

28. What was created out of Confucius’ philosophy? A. A new religionB. A divide among the Chinese peopleC. A new form of governmentD. A unity of Chinese nobility

The Printing Press

Paper and printing were possibly the most important Chinese inventions. The Chinese invention of moveable type, credited to Bi Sheng in the year 1045 AD, did not significantly change Chinese society. Three hundred years later in Europe, Gutenberg's development of moveable type changed the Western world. Why? The Chinese language uses 3000 to 5000 characters in an average newspaper. The English language, in comparison, uses 26 characters in an average newspaper. Clearly, moving 5,000 characters on a printing press took much longer than moving 26. Still, the invention of moveable type furthered Chinese technology and its role in the advancement of human civilization. Large-scale printing in the 10th century made books readily available in China for the first time. The spread of books greatly increased the spread of literacy (ability to read and write). When books could be made faster, they became cheaper and even the average person could afford them. This led to increased knowledge for human civilization overall and, therefore, more technology and inventions.

Answer #29-30. Base your answers on The Printing Press.

29. Why did the invention of printing not have a significant impact on Chinese society like the printing press invented in Europe did?

A. Chinese people did not have a written alphabet B. Europe’s printing press was invented firstC. The Chinese language uses too many letters to make it worthwhile to use the printerD. Most Chinese people could not read

30. Which of the following was not an effect of books being readily available in China?A. More people learned to read and writeB. There was an increase of knowledgeC. More technology and inventions were producedD. The government of China was changed