How do you choose which ancient civilizations to teach and what key points to focus on for each?

Drew Fortune ,

I am  BHP person, so I will let the WHP chime in. But one thing to think about, if you teach HS, is that most MS curricula have covered ancient civilizations in some way-- some very broadly and some in great depth. 

I have roots in a small school system to start with and in both MS and HS in a larger district. I have a good feel for what has come before, so that helps me make decisions about what I do in my HS classroom. 

It pays to look into what your district does in vertical alignment. Once you know the civilizations and the extent of the coverage, you can make much better decisions about HS. 

I echo Donnetta Elsasser comments.  I would look at your state standards first.  Then, if you teach HS look at the MS standards and/or contact your MS colleagues. Doing that scope and sequence step can really help.  I teach HS World History.  We did this about 15 years ago and realized that we didn't need to spend much time at all on stuff going to the Fall of the Roman Empire.  We cover the highlights from 800BCE up to 600CE in the first quarter.  From there, we slow down the rest of the year.

What would you consider the highlights for those 800 years? That’s where I get into the weeds and find myself hitting 1 civilization a day and creating something a bit reductive in terms of content. That’s where using those historical skills vs content comes in handy for me!

Always curious, if teachers had the freedom, what would they focus on in a brief Ancient History unit?

I stole the idea of how do empires gain, maintain, and lose power from New Visions curriculum out of NY.  That's how I approach it.  You could take one or two days for each of those ideas, pull out examples for two or three empires each day, and do it as more of a comparative unit, especially if your students already have background in the topics from middle school.

I do a similar thing with belief systems in APWH because students remember those from middle school.  I talk about belief systems reinforcing power, reinforcing social classes, and spreading.  It seems to work well as an overview.

 Drew Fortune , I love, love LOVE that question!

I have tried to ask teachers that for a long time and I feel like they are not understanding what I am getting at.

I can follow a curriculum guide or a standard expectation of the "important" civilizations. But I hope teaching is much more than that. We know we have to make choices. So do we follow the main narrative? Are we concerned about the dangers of one master perspective? Are the civilization police going to judge us if we choose wrong?

One thing I have tried to do before is ask a group of teachers, "If you could only choose (X number) of (topics) for (this stretch of history) what would they be?"  My hunch is that none of the lists would match, but that from an educated and experienced group of teachers, there would be a common trend or core set we could agree on if forced into that box. THAT is where I would start.

But, alas, nobody ever wants to go on record leaving something out!

So, I ask myself: 

1. What do kids already know? ASK them-- take a whole period to pull out what they think they know and show them on a make-shift timeline where their prior knowledge fits. (That can cut down a bunch from there)

2. Is there a particular group that made a particularly noteworthy contribution that cannot go unexamined? (Anything from Sumer, but that has also probably been examined in MS. What about Olmec or Maya?)

3. Is there a particular group that epitomizes controlling trade (a MAJOR lifeline and position of power throughout history--for me, it's the Byzantine Empire--  but that's a bit past ancient).

4. Is there a particular group that best exemplifies the rise and fall of power and influence? (Romans, of course-- but also probably already done in MS. What about Indus River Valley?)

5. Is there a group that always gets ignored, but has a great story to tell? (Ghana/Mali/Songhai? Zimbabwe? Early dynasties of China? Medieval Japan?)

When I do a "Feature Presentation" I always tell my students that I am pulling this topic/civ/idea out as an example, leaving out some great topics (maybe even list them on the side) that curious learners might want to explore on their own.

I also show on a timeline where my feature fits in relation to what we have already studied and/or to the things I'm leaving out.

For me, interconnectedness is more important than cramming in drive-by studies. 

I wrote a lot... sorry. Just very passionate about this, and hope I can offer a perspective as you make your own choices. 

This is so great! I love the idea of looking for the great story inside each civilization. 

I love all of these ideas. There is so much material to cover. Your questions do a good job of narrowing down to the essentials. I especially like question 4. It leads to today's powers. 

Thanks, Kristin Rimal I agree about #4 and the connection to now.

I think #3 is an often overlooked connection too. In ancient times "controlling trade" is the cliche phrase that helps most empires and dynasties rise to power. But is it really so different now?

Why are leaders obsessed with tariffs and patents and outsourcing sensitive materials? Do students understand the difference between a trade deficit and a budget deficit?

Makes for fun conversations with students.

Drew Fortune I hadn't thought of it as the great story for each civilization. But that perspective is brilliant! History is best understood as a narrative. Humans are storytellers, not fact receptacles. 

I incorporate this into a project where there choose empires as examples for their answers to compelling questions.