1. Years and Dating
Boring, but necessary!

2. Roman Numerals –counting with letters
I = 1 V= 5 X= 10 L=50 C=100 D=500 M=1000 If a numeral of lesser value is in front of a numeral of greater value, subtract the lesser from the greater. Ex: IX = 9, XL = 40, MCM = 1900

3. Alphabet Soup – BC, AD, BCE, CE
BC and AD were created in 525 as a way to count years in relation to the birth of Christ. BC stands for Before Christ and counts backwards from O. AD is “Anno Domini” (In the year of our Lord) and counts forwards from O. Why might some people not like this system?

4. More of the Soup
BCE stands for Before Common Era and follows the same rules as BC. CE stands for Common Era and follows the same rules as AD. Why might this be better for academics to use this way?