Ancient Civilizations
Bring the ancient world to life with free, ready-to-use lessons, maps, and videos that help students explore how empires—from Rome and Persia to India and China—rose, connected, and built the foundations of the modern world.
Teaching Ancient Civilizations
Maps Index
Discover the World History Maps Index, featuring maps that bring ancient civilizations to life. Check out the 300 BCE Ancient Empires and Agriculture thematic map to get started!
PD Event: Rediscovering Ancient Ways
Join us to explore object-based learning with the Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures, and discover the connection between past and present human experiences.
Blog Post: You Can Thank the Ancients
Help your students understand the legacies of ancient civilizations that reach beyond the ruins—think concrete, calendars, and democracy!
Blog Post: Lesson Plan: Ancient Societies
Show students how ancient ingenuity shapes our world today—from concrete to civics—in a ready-to-roll lesson that lightens your prep and sparks those ah-ha moments.
Teach Tomorrow: Ancient Civilization Lessons and Materials
Lesson 5.3.3
The First States
These materials explore some of the earliest agrarian states. Compare Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and the Indus River Valley civilizations.
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Lesson 4.4
Comparing Ancient Empires
Empires rise and fall. Dive into a selection of the ancient world’s great empires, comparing what made them unique and identifying similarities in what caused their growth and collapse.
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Lesson 5.4.3
Empires Rise and Fall
Why do empires rise and collapse? These materials explore how some of the most powerful political forces on Earth collapsed.
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Lesson 4.2
Comparing Portable Belief Systems
From Hinduism and Buddhism to Christianity and Islam, religions transformed societies as they spread to new places. What common ideas did these portable belief systems share—and how did they differ?
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Ancient Civilization Activities and Resources
What is an Empire?
Article
What is an Empire?
Empires have been one of the most common features of human societies throughout history. But what are they? This article gives a basic definition and highlights several important features common to empires.
Expansion of the Roman Empire Map
Visual Aid
Expansion of the Roman Empire Map
A full-color regional map of the expansion of the Roman Empire, including the network of Roman roads, cities, and sea lanes that connected Rome to its empire.
Empire Autopsy
Activity
Empire Autopsy
Think you can figure out why empires fall? Time to conduct an autopsy on some of the world’s earliest empires.
Writing Assessments for Teaching the Ancient World
Pre-Writing: Early Chinese Philosophies
Assessment
Pre-Writing: Early Chinese Philosophies
Get ready for writing by crafting a claim and gathering supporting evidence.
DBQ Sources: Early Chinese Philosophies
Assessment
DBQ Sources: Early Chinese Philosophies
Analyze these sources and gather evidence to support your argument
Writing: Early Chinese Philosophies
Assessment
Writing: Early Chinese Philosophies
Time to write! Demonstrate your understanding of this unit’s content by creating a written argument in response to a prompt.
