2.7.3

2.7.3 Chapter 7 Section 3 Pages 170-174 Brady Horne, Mia Alfonsi, Gwen Snavely

Objective: Students will find out what archaeologists have learned about the Indus Valley civilization, the Aryan society, and how they impacted India.

Homework Assignment: After reading the article answer the following questions

Questions: 1. How are the values of purity and cleanliness reflected in ancient South Asian culture? 2. What are some of the theories for why Harappan culture fell? 3. How do Hinduism and Buddhism relate to the caste system? 4. What are the main contrasts between the Indus Valley civilization and other ancient civilizations? 5. How have seals played a role in discovering the history of the Indus Valley civilization?



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[|Mia's Link on Mohenjo-Daro] This article focuses on two main points; an overview of the city of Mohenjo-Daro and the Harappan civilization that inhabited it. It explains the history of Mohenjo-Daro and the reasons for its great success. Landmead's article also discusses the Harappan's contributions to the city and their means of survival. The article provides detailed, specific information regarding Mohenjo-Daro; the information is relative and never deviates from the main topic. The author maintains a clear purpose throughout the article, and the writing is easy to read and interpret. This selection provides useful background information that introduces Mohenjo-Daro; it also includes more particular details relating to the city and its impact on the Indus River Valley. Readers are able to grasp the general idea of Mohenjo-Daro while expanding upon the basics with a deeper understanding. This website is very useful and this article in particular highlights the importance of Mohenjo-Daro in history and its role in the Indus River Valley, which is an important aspect of ancient civilizations in India.

[|Brady's Link on the Indus Valley Civilzation] This website focuses is on three main points. These are the definition of the Indus Valley Civilization, life in the Indus Valley, and the potential causes of the fall of the Indus Valley Civilization. In order to further comprehend the information, this website includes a timeline of events in the Indus Valley. This timeline provides numerous useful events from the first religious practices in 5000 BC to the Persian conquers in 500 BC. Due to the mystery of the Indus Valley Civilization, many of the ideas of the decline of the civilization in this article are not concrete facts but accepted theories. However, this article does contain multiple facts relating to the findings of archaeologists. This website is very useful as it will provide a balanced perspective for students wishing to understand the Indus Valley Civiilzation. While providing a foundation for learning at the beginning of the article and further details throughout, this website would be appropriate for almost all audiences.

Gwen's Link on the Aryans This article focus mainly on the theme of the Aryan language, and how it connects to other parts of Aryan history. The author supports his claims by referencing other works on the same topic, generally at the bottom of paragraphs, such as “The Iranian Migration into the Zagros”. The article provides detailed information of the Aryan language and dialects, specifically on how they refer back to which people migrated when. Although this article doesn't focus on the Aryan people, it does discuss the Aryan migration in general. The writing style is a bit difficult to understand because of the references to a foreign language. Another reason why this article is harder to read is the intended audience was for someone with background knowledge on the subject, and the article is more on a scholarly level. Overall, the article does provide further insight on the Aryans and their rich lingual background. This article challenges readers to consider history from more of a language viewpoint than a material one.

Discovery Education; Indus River Valley: Early Innovation (00:21 - 3:42) (embedded) This video focuses on the Harappan's contributions to the Indus River Valley. The video explains the discoveries made by the Harappans between 2500 and 2000 BC. It is believed the Harappan's most significant contribution was the decimal place value system and a system of weights and measure. The video provides specific, detailed information on the success of the Harappan's innovations and how their culture influenced their creations as well as future civilization's. Although short, the video conveys clear and valid information which is very valuable to its viewers. The Vedic period is also mentioned at the end of the video, however the information included does not directly relate to the Indus River Valley. This source is very useful as it will provide a balanced perspective for students wishing to understand more regarding the Harappan's contributions to the Indus River Valley. After watching this video, the audience will develop a deeper understanding of what the Harappan civilization actually accomplished.

1. What factors contribute to limited understanding of the Indus Valley Civilization and what could be learned if there was a greater understanding? 2. How did these ancient civilizations impact the culture of India? 3. How is the Aryan social order reflective of more modern cultures we've learned about?