8 features that make us more than just hunters and gatherers What is a Civilization? 8 features that make us more than just hunters and gatherers

Recall! What is one really important rule or piece of information that you remember from yesterday?

Think! What is a hunter and gatherer society? What is a civilization? How are they different from one another? Share your answers with someone sitting next to you

Today’s objectives Students will understand the differences between a hunter and gatherer society and a civilization. Students will understand the 8 features of a civilization as key points of comparison between ancient societies. Students will voice their opinions respectfully of others. Students will be able to synthesize the information from a class lecture into easy to read notes* *Hand out note taking pdf

When did Civilization begin? Before people could farm, they were hunters and gathers about 6,000 years ago, people began to farm and settle into villages in the the Ancient Middle East (First Agricultural Revolution) This was the beginning of the first civilization

What makes a group of people a civilization? Hunter and gatherer groups were much less sophisticated and organized than civilizations There are 8 features that every civilization has Hunter and gatherer groups may have some of these features but not all of them

Organized Government Governments were formed to oversee large scale efforts to benefit the people. For example governments could oversee the production and distribution of food. Different civilizations had different types of governments. Some had single rulers (like a king) and others had elected officials.

Complex Religion Religion can be monotheistic or polytheistic Monotheistic means there is one God. (Christianity, Judaism) Polytheistic means that there is more than one God (Hinduism, Shintoism)

Job Specialization In hunter and gatherer societies the men hunted and the women gathered plants while taking care of the children When people form civilizations, society has more needs. No one can produce all of the things they need by themselves. This means that people need to specialize in one thing (example: blacksmith, cobbler, farmer, etc.)

Social Classes People in civilizations are often ranked according to their job In most ancient civilizations nobles and religious officials are at the top of society Many civilizations also have a class of slaves at the bottom of society

Arts and Architecture often reflects the beliefs and values of the people who created the art Temples and palaces were created in the ancient world in order to remind the people of the power of the government and religion Most elaborate buildings were often temples or other places of worship

Public Works Large scale building projects that improve a city Examples include irrigation systems, roads, bridges and defensive walls Slaves were used in some civilizations to complete these projects as they required a lot of human labor. Some people even lost their lives in some of these dangerous building projects

Writing Many different civilizations developed writing for various reasons example: record rituals, grain surplus/shortage, achievements of kings Pictographs - simple drawings that look like the object they represent Scribes - people trained to read and write

Cities Population centers that are notably larger and more organized than towns or villages and that support the other features of a civilization City-state - a political unit that includes a city and its surrounding lands and villages

Comparison Activity Your Task: Pretend you are a person who has grown up during the Neolithic Revolution. Make cave art that depicts what your life was like before and after. It should: The art must show at least three aspects of life before the revolution and after. Should be inspired by cave art. Should be creative and visually pleasing ( I will be posting some). Provide a brief explanation of each drawing on the poster.