Ancient China
Some areas of focus:
Isolated China: China was isolated by its geography. The Pacific Ocean to the east, mountain ranges and dense jungles in the south, the Tibetan Plateau and highest mountains in the world to the west, and to the north is the Gobi Desert and the vast lands of Mongolia, where the Chinese built a wall to keep out dangerous tribes.
The Great Wall of China: The Great Wall of China is a very old stone wall in China which was built to protect the north of the empire of China from enemy attacks. It is the longest structure humans have ever built: stretching approximately 5,000 kilometers. The First Emperor of China started the Qin Dynasty. The Xiongnu tribes in the north of China (who are also called the Huns) were his enemies. Because the land in some parts of China is easy to cross, Qin Shi Huang began building the Great Wall to make it more difficult for the Xiongnu to invade China.
Other dynasties in China worked more on the wall and made it longer. The Han, Sui, Northern and Jin Dynasties all repaired, rebuilt or expanded the Great Wall. During the Ming Dynasty, major rebuilding work took place, where sections of the Wall were built with bricks and stone instead of earth.
The irony is now that the wall was originally built to keep invaders out, now it attracts thousands of tourists each day.
Terracotta warriors: The Terracotta Army or the "Terracotta Warriors and Horses" is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China. It is a form of funerary art buried with the emperor in 210–209 BCE and whose purpose was to protect the emperor in his afterlife.
Isolated China: China was isolated by its geography. The Pacific Ocean to the east, mountain ranges and dense jungles in the south, the Tibetan Plateau and highest mountains in the world to the west, and to the north is the Gobi Desert and the vast lands of Mongolia, where the Chinese built a wall to keep out dangerous tribes.
The Great Wall of China: The Great Wall of China is a very old stone wall in China which was built to protect the north of the empire of China from enemy attacks. It is the longest structure humans have ever built: stretching approximately 5,000 kilometers. The First Emperor of China started the Qin Dynasty. The Xiongnu tribes in the north of China (who are also called the Huns) were his enemies. Because the land in some parts of China is easy to cross, Qin Shi Huang began building the Great Wall to make it more difficult for the Xiongnu to invade China.
Other dynasties in China worked more on the wall and made it longer. The Han, Sui, Northern and Jin Dynasties all repaired, rebuilt or expanded the Great Wall. During the Ming Dynasty, major rebuilding work took place, where sections of the Wall were built with bricks and stone instead of earth.
The irony is now that the wall was originally built to keep invaders out, now it attracts thousands of tourists each day.
Terracotta warriors: The Terracotta Army or the "Terracotta Warriors and Horses" is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China. It is a form of funerary art buried with the emperor in 210–209 BCE and whose purpose was to protect the emperor in his afterlife.
The Silk Road: The Silk Road is a series of trade and cultural transmission routes that were central to cultural interaction through regions of the Asian continent connecting the west and east by linking traders, merchants, pilgrims, monks, soldiers, nomads, and urban dwellers from China to the Mediterranean Sea during various periods of time. Extending 6,437 kilometers, the Silk Road derives its name from the lucrative trade in Chinese silk carried out along its length, beginning during the Han Dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD). The Central Asian sections of the trade routes were expanded around 114 BC by the Han dynasty, largely through the missions and explorations of Chinese imperial envoy, Zhang Qian. The Chinese took great interest in the safety of their trade products and extended the Great Wall of China to ensure the protection of the trade route. Trade on the Silk Road was a significant factor in the development of the civilizations of China, the Indian subcontinent, Persia, Europe, and Arabia, opening long-distance, political and economic interactions between the civilizations. Though silk was certainly the major trade item from China, many other goods were traded, and various technologies, religions, and philosophies, as well as the bubonic plague (the "Black Death"), also traveled along the Silk Routes. In addition to economic trade, the Silk Road served as a means of carrying out cultural trade among the civilizations along its network.
Tai Chi
Thai Chi is an ancient Chinese martial art. Many people practice it today to help relieve stress and tension and to focus the mind. It provides a more gentle alternative to a hard physical martial art such as karate. Tai Chi can be traced back to almost 2000 BC; by AD 600 it was extensively practiced by monks across China.
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Chinese dynasties
As a class, we created our own timeline of ancient Chinese dynasties. This is displayed in our classroom.
Reference: jacaranda Humanities Alive 1