How did the achievements of the Ancient Maya impact their society and beyond?
Year 4
Unit Overview
Extending their knowledge of civilisations, children compare and contrast the Maya to Britons at the time. They develop their chronological awareness of how the Maya fit into the timeline of mankind. Pupils learn about the achievements of the Maya and contrast to the experience of the Anglo-Saxons in Britain at this time. Deepening their understanding of the growth of empires, they also learn why the Maya Empire declined.
Unit Sequence: Learning Intentions
How did the ancient Maya settle in a rainforest? - To explore the challenges faced by the ancient Maya when settling in the rainforest.
How important was chocolate to the ancient Maya? - To infer how the Maya valued and used cacao by exploring historical artefacts.
What did the ancient Maya believe? - To describe the role of Maya gods and godesses by studying images and senarios.
How did the Maya reflect their beliefs in their inventions? - To develop recording skills through exploration of ancient Maya inventions.
What do remains tell us about ancient Maya cities? - To make dedustions about an ancient Maya city by exploring remains.
What caused the decline of the ancient Maya cities? - To evaulate historians' claims on the decline of of the ancient Maya cities.
❇ SUBSTANTIVE CONCEPTS
Power (monarchy, government and empire)
Invasion
Settlement and migration
Civilisation (social and cultural)
Beliefs
Achievements and follies of mankind
❇ DISCIPLINARY CONCEPTS
Change and continuity
Sources of evidence
Historical interpretations
Cause and consequence
Historical significance
❇ HISTORICAL VOCABULARY
abandon
city-state
Classic period
creation story
decline
deforestation
drought
hieroglyphics
pyramid
rainforest
slash and burn
tropical rainforest
❇ MEMORABLE MOMENT
N/A
️✏️ WRITING OPPORTUNITIES
Create a report or a poster to share the story of the ancient Maya and their achievements.
🌳 LEARNING OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM
N/A
🏁 BIG FINISH
Imagine you are a historian. You have been invited on national television to share the story of the ancient Maya and their achievements
📖 FOCUS TEXT(S)
Oh Maya Gods! - Maz Evans
Knowledge Organiser
