LESSON 2.2 - CHINA 

Confucius, Han Feizi, Laozi & Siddhartha

Imagine how you would feel if the mayor of Ashcroft was continuously waging a war on the mayor of Cache Creek and Spence's Bridge.

Eventually, you may start wondering how it might be to live in harmony.  

During the Warring States period in China, four individuals sought out answers to the question:  HOW CAN WE LIVE IN HARMONY?  The four individuals were: Confucius, Han Feizi, Laozi, and Siddhartha.

HARMONY - is a pleasing combination of elements in a whole.

PHILOSOPHER - One who studies the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality, and existence, especially when considered as an academic discipline.


What does a Philosopher look like??

Confucius
-Lived from 551 - 479 BCE
-The system of ethics, education, and statesmanship taught by Confucius and his followers.
-Taught respect for tradition and duty
-He believed that chaos in Society was caused by bad behaviours in government and people not leading virtuous lives.
-He believed that people were basically good, but needed to be trained to behave well.
-people could build a Harmonious society by striving for 5 virtues:
     1. Hones
     2. Upright
     3. Conscientious
     4. Charitable
     5. Loving in all Relationships



Han Feizi
-Lived from 280 - 233 BCE
-He was a leading writer for a group of philosphers called the LEGALISTS.
-He believed all people were basically selfish and greedy.
-They believed that rulers had to be strong and ruthless through strict laws and harsh punishments.






Laozi
-Lived during the 6th century BCE
-Daoism is based on the teachings of the philosopher Laozi.
-They believe that by studying nature closely you would be able to live in harmony with it.
-They believed that disturbing nature harms the well-being of humans.
-Daoist's were opposed to rules and customs because they believed that this stopped people from behaving naturally.




Siddhartha
-Lived around 563 BCE
-Buddhism developed from the teachings of an Indian prince called Siddhartha.
-He believed he received enlightenment an became Buddha.
-Buddha believed that suffering occurred because people were too concerned with themselves and their own desires and needs.
-Buddha taught that people should seek to free themselves of worldly concerns through meditation.
-Buddhists also believe in reincarnation - the idea that a soul is reborn again and again until it finds enlightenment.



VOCABULARY

Moral - abiding by a set of rules about right and wrong conduct.

Ethical - making right choices.

Exile - being forced to live far away from one's community, or country.

Treason - betrayal of one's country or ruler.

Alchemist - an early chemist whose methods would now be considered scientifically unsound.

Immortality - endless life.

Mercury - a silver-white metal that is liquid at room temperature.

Metallurgy - the science of producing and purifying metals.

Enlightenment - being awake to a great reality, which most people never achieve.

Meditation - the act of calming and emptying the mind.

Monastery - a community of people devoted to a religious life.

Nirvana - in Buddhism, a state completely free from suffering and worldly concerns

STUDENT ACTIVITY

-Please print off this chart and complete it using information from your text and this page.

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BxIkQvEHk4XzQ19hbEJIVi1tLU0/edit

-ANSWERS:
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BxIkQvEHk4XzSUh5dENZSThVTkk/edit

NOTE:  You can either answer the final question on the paper or blog it in the comments section.

REFERENCES:

Cranny, Michael. (2012). Pathways - Civilizations Through Time. Pearson. Toronto.

LESSON 2.0 CHINA'S GEOGRAPHY

STUDENTS SHOULD READ THE FOLLOWING ARTICLE:

BC vs BCE:

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BxIkQvEHk4XzeWFfWVBKSF9mQnM/edit

STUDENTS SHOULD COPY THE FOLLOWING IN THEIR NOTES:

BC vs BCE

BC = Before Christ

BCE = Before Common Era Denotes the time before the birth of Jesus Christ and counts backwards.

AD = Anno Domini (the year of the Lord)

CE = Common Era-Denotes the time after the birth of Jesus and counting chronologically.

600 500 400 300 200 100 0 100 200 300 400 500 600

___________________________________________

BC   Birth of                         AD

 or                                  Jesus                               or

BCE                           Christ                           CE

MAP OF ASIA

THE STEPPES OF CHINA

THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA

HOW CAN GEOGRAPHY ENCOURAGE CIVILIZATION?

GEOGRAPHY

Ë Chinese civilization began in the Huang He (Yellow River) valley with the Shang Dynasty in about 1650 BCE.

Ë The Geography of some areas of China is excellent for natural protection from enemies.

Ë The Geography that provided the best protections was the following:

1.  High mountain ranges in the west and southwest

2.   The Tibetan Plateau in the west (largest and highest plateau in the world)

3.   Deserts in the west and northwest

4.   Ocean to the east

5.   Jungles in the southeast

Ë China has one weak point to the north. The land consists of steppes which are vast, treeless plains.  Invaders found it easy to access China through these steppes.

MAJOR RIVERS

Ë The 2 major rivers in China are:

1.   Huang He in the north (Yellow River)

2.   Yangtze in the south

Ë The Huang He River is 5464 km. long compared to the Fraser River which is 1370 km.

Ë Huang He River floods regularly and spreads rich silt over the North China Plain, making the soil fertile and good for farming.

Ë The Yangtze River is 6300 km. long and is an important trade and transportation route for China.

CLIMATE

Ë The climate of China is very different from the north to the south.

Ë The far north region of China is subarctic with cold winters and dry summers.

Ë The south region of China has a subtropical climate with mild temperatures and lots of rain.

STUDENT ACTIVITY

• Students will require an Atlas and pencil crayons/markers and asharp pencil for the mapping project that follows.
• HAND OUT MAP – “GEOGRAPHIC FEATURES OF CHINA”
• The labelling requirements are on the back.
• Students can use the atlas or text to find answers
• Remember to write on maps appropriately. For example: Political names written straight and Physical names follow the landform.
• Colour when labelling is complete.
• HAND-IN

STUDENT HANDOUTS:

1. GEOGRAPHIC FEATURES OF CHINA MAP:
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BxIkQvEHk4XzQzF2RHFCZVJERVU/edit

REFERENCES:

Cranny, Michael. (2012). Pathways - Civilizations Through Time. Pearson. Toronto.

LESSON 1.1 - RELIGION AND CIVILIZATION

RELIGION

• Religious beliefs are one way a civilization can define or describe itself.
• Religion also affects people's values and actions.

WHY RELIGION?

• Humans have always asked questions about why we are on the earth. 
• Questions like: Why do bad things happen?  and What happens to me after I die?
• Human beings like to have answers to their questions.  
• Scientific questions are based on a hypothesis and then experiments to discover if the original question was correct.
• With religious questions, people have to accept answers that are based on faith.

DIFFERENT RELIGIONS, DIFFERENT ANSWERS

• There are many religions in the world and each has different answers to the "big questions."
• The answers to the "big questions" have no scientifically provable answers so no one religion has the "right" answers.
• Different religions around the world have developed over thousands of years.
• In the past it was common for everyone in the same country to follow the same religion.
• People began asking questions like "What if people disagreed?" and "What if someone came up with new answers to the big questions?"
• Today, religion is often a catalyst for disagreements and sometimes war.  
• In some places in the world people of different religious beliefs live side by side, but cannot get along, and sometimes they can.

MAIN RELIGIONS OF THE WORLD

1. BUDDHISM

• No Gods
• After death there is rebirth or enlightenment
• Practices: Living by the Five Precepts and The Noble Eightfold Path
• Holy Book: Tipitaka
• Place of Worship: Vihara (temple)
• Religious Leader: Lama (teacher)
• # of Followers today: 2.0% = 490 million people

   2.  CHRISTIANITY

• One God - in the form of the Trinity (God, Jesus, Holy Spirit)
• After death there is Heaven or Hell
• Practices: Prayer, church attendance, Eucharist
• Holy Book: Old and New Testament
• Place of Worship: Church or chapel
• Religious Leader: Priest or Minister
• # of Followers today: 30% = 2 billion

   3.  HINDUISM

• Many which are all manifestations of One God.
• After death there is Rebirth
• Practices: Living according to one's role in life (dharma)                                                             and worship of a god (Puja) using yoga and meditation.
• Holy Book: Vedas/Bhagavad Gita
• Place of Worship: Mandir (temple)
• Religious Leader: Brahmin; guru
• # of Followers today: 14% = 1 billion

   4. ISLAM

• One God - Allah and Prophet - Mohammad
• After death there is Paradise (Jannah) or Hell (Jahannam)
• Practices: Living by the Five Pillars (eating halal food, pray 5 times a day, no alcohol)
• Holy Book: Koran (Qur'an)
• Place of Worship: Mosque
• Religious Leader: Imam
• # of Followers today: 23% = 1.6 billion

   5.  JUDAISM

• One God
• After death there is the "World to Come" or                                                                             Heaven and Hell
• Practices: Following commandments of the Torah                                                                       (eating kosher food and praying 3 times a day)
• Holy Book: Torah and Talmud
• Place of Worship: Synagogue
• Religious Leader: Rabbi
• # of Followers today: .20% = 14 million

    6. SIKHISM

• One God (Ik Onkar)
• After death there is rebirth until merging with the soul
• Practices: Prayer, wearing the Five K's (articles of faith),                                                             Langar (community meals), being mindful of God, doing good deeds.
• Holy Book: Sri Guru Granth Sahib
• Place of Worship: Gurdwara
• No Religious Leader
• # of Followers today: .34% = 23 million

STUDENT ACTIVITY

Students are to blog about the question below. 

Make sure to include facts from your research. 

Students can either write a story, a poem, or a paragraph answering the following question:

HOW CAN RELIGION AFFECT CIVILIZATION?

REFERENCES:

Cranny, Michael. (2012). Pathways - Civilizations Through Time. Pearson. Toronto.

LESSON 1.0 - CIVILIZATIONS

EXPLORING CIVILIZATIONS

• Civilizations are quite complex, and involve large numbers of people.
• In the past, human societies were relatively simple, and had few people.  
• Both societies and civilizations share characteristics such as commerce, language, religion, and art.

DOMESTICATION

• 12,000 years ago, humans began to domesticate plants and animals.
• This domestication allowed humans to stay in the same place year after year.
• Extra food allowed for population growth.
• Extra food also allowed some people to stop farming and instead they made tools, clothing, or they provided security.

http://www.auuuu.com/technology/early-technology/

• As towns grew, they needed more protection, so people worked together to build walls.

http://deskarati.com/2011/08/27/neolithic-villages/

• About 7000 years ago, some of these towns became so large and complex that they became cities. 
• These cities joined together to share territory, protect each other, and exchange goods.
• This was the first example of civilizations.

FEATURES OF CIVILIZATION

There are 8 FEATURES OF CIVILIZATION:

1. Arts and Culture
2. Organized Religion
3. Organized Commerce
4. Central Government
5. Knowledge Transfer
6. Technological Innovation
7. Social Structure
8. Public Works

STUDENT ACTIVITY SECTION



Students are to blog the following:

• Pick out which 3 features of civilization you believe are the most important in our society.
• Describe why you chose each particular feature as most important.(3)
• Finally, give examples of how each of your 3 features of civilization are important to today's society.               

 Make sure you put your name on the comment!!

REFERENCES:

Cranny, Michael. (2012). Pathways - Civilizations Through Time. Pearson. Toronto.