Culture and Math
The Chinese
Teacher’s Guide
Grade Level: 10–12
Curriculum Focus: Social Studies
Lesson Duration: Two class periods
Program Description
Early civilizations in China made lasting intellectual advances. In “China’s Unified Empire,” meet
China’s first emperor, Qin Shi Huang, who introduced the concepts of centralized government,
standardized languages, and uniform laws. In “The Chinese Counting Board,” discover how a tablet
and bamboo rods revolutionized the number system in the 4th century B.C. Learn more about ancient
Chinese culture from 3,000-year-old artifacts recently discovered in “The Lost City of Shang.” One of
the most important ancient Chinese documents is the “Jiuzhang Suanshu—The Nine Chapters on the
Mathematical Art.” It contains 246 practical problems and is more than 2,000 years old. Discover the
legendary Eurasian trade route in the “Story of the Silk Road.”
Onscreen Questions
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What forces might contribute to the end of one dynasty and the start of another?
•
How do you think the Chinese counting board was used in everyday life?
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What can scientists learn from artifacts? What can’t artifacts tell us?
•
How is math a universal language?
Lesson Plan
Student Objectives
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Examine the roles and responsibilities of different social classes during the Han dynasty.
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Describe the political, economic, and social achievements of the Han dynasty.
Materials
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Culture and Math: The Chinese video
•
Encyclopedias, history texts, and other reference materials with information about the Han
dynasty
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Computer with Internet access (optional)
Culture and Math
The Chinese
Teacher’s Guide
•
Writing paper
•
Pencils and erasers
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Procedures
1. Begin the lesson by watching Culture and Math: The Chinese with your class. After watching the
video, ask students to reflect on life in ancient China. What was life like during the Shang
dynasty? What innovations occurred during this time? What was life like during the Qin
dynasty? What innovations occurred during this time? What roles and responsibilities did
traders and merchants have in ancient China? How did their lives differ from those of nobles,
peasants, and servants? Why did the Han Dynasty survive for so long? What was life like
during the Han dynasty?
2. Ask students to imagine that they are a peasant, a noble, a merchant, or a servant in ancient
China during the Han dynasty. Have each student write a letter describing his or her role to an
outsider. Each letter should discuss social, economic, and political aspects of life during the Han
dynasty from the perspective of the peasant, noble, merchant, or servant. Students may use
Culture and Math:: The Chinese, encyclopedias, and other reference materials to research their
letters.
3. Give students time to work on their letters in class and at home. Ask students to think about the
following as they research and write their letters: How would you describe your life and your
role in society? In what daily activities do you participate? What are some of your
responsibilities and duties? In what kind of home do you live? How does your life differ from
that of other members of society?
4. Ask each student to pair up with a student who wrote about life in ancient China from a
different perspective. Ask them to read their letters to each other. Have them discuss the
differences and similarities between the roles and responsibilities of each individual.
5. Bring the class back together and have a class discussion about the different roles and classes in
Han society. What was life like for peasants? How did their responsibilities and daily lives
differ from those of nobles, merchants, and servants? Have students reflect on what they have
learned about social, economic, and political aspects of life during the Han dynasty.
Assessment
Use the following three-point rubric to evaluate students' work during this lesson.
•
3 points: Students wrote descriptive, interesting letters that accurately depicted the daily
lives and social roles of merchants, peasants, servants, or nobles during the Han dynasty;
accurately described political, social, and economic aspects of life during the Han dynasty
from the perspective of a merchant, peasant, servant, or noble; demonstrated a solid
understanding of political, social, and economic achievements during the Han dynasty.
Published by Discovery Education. © 2006. All rights reserved.
Culture and Math
The Chinese
Teacher’s Guide
3
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2 points: Students wrote letters that generally depicted the daily lives and social roles of
merchants, peasants, servants, or nobles in the Han dynasty; somewhat accurately described
the political, social, and economic aspects of life during the Han dynasty from the
perspective of a merchant, peasant, servant, or noble; demonstrated an adequate
understanding of political, social, and economic achievements during the Han dynasty.
•
1 point: Students wrote incomplete or inaccurate letters that did not depict the daily lives
and social roles of merchants, peasants, servants, or nobles during the Han dynasty;
inaccurately described political, social, and economic aspects of life during the Han dynasty
from the perspective of a merchant, peasant, servant, or noble; were unable to demonstrate a
basic understanding of political, social, and economic achievements during the Han
dynasty.
Vocabulary
dynasty
Definition: A succession of rulers from the same family
Context: Ancient China was shaped by the early philosophies of its people and the dynasties
that ruled them.
emperor
Definition: The ruler of an empire
Context: China’s first emperor created a centralized government that became the model for later
dynasties.
innovation
Definition: A new idea or invention
Context: Around the 4th century B.C., a Chinese innovation dramatically altered the number
system.
multifaceted
Definition: Having many facets or aspects
Context: Largely isolated from the rest of the world, the Chinese maintained a multifaceted
society.
peasant
Definition: A member of a class comprised of farmers and tenants, sharecroppers, and laborers
Context: Under the Zhou, China developed a feudal society, with the king at the top, nobles
beneath him, and peasants at the bottom.
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Culture and Math
The Chinese
Teacher’s Guide
4
society
Definition: An association or community of people
Context: The teachings of Confucius influenced Chinese society for hundreds of years.
Academic Standards
National Center for History in the Schools (NCHS)
The National Center for History in the Schools has developed standards for the teaching of history.
To view the standards online, go to http://nchs.ucla.edu/standards/toc.html.
This lesson plan addresses the following standards:
•
Era 3: Classical Traditions, Major Religions, and Giant Empires, 1000 BCE-300 CE: How
major religions and large-scale empires arose in the Mediterranean Basin, China, and India,
500 BCE-300 CE
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Era 4: Expanding Zones of Exchange and Encounter, 300-1000 CE: Imperial crises and their
aftermath, 300-700 CE
The National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS)
The National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) has developed national standards to provide
guidelines for teaching social studies. To view the standards online, go to
http://www.socialstudies.org/standards/strands.
This lesson plan addresses the following thematic standards:
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Culture
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Time, Continuity, and Change
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People, Places, and Environments
DVD Content
This program is available in an interactive DVD format. The following information and activities are
specific to the DVD version.
Published by Discovery Education. © 2006. All rights reserved.
Culture and Math
The Chinese
Teacher’s Guide
How to Use the DVD
The DVD starting screen has the following options:
Play Video—This plays the video from start to finish. There are no programmed stops, except by
using a remote control. With a computer, depending on the particular software player, a pause
button is included with the other video controls.
Video Index—Here the video is divided into four parts (see below), indicated by video thumbnail
icons. Watching all parts in sequence is similar to watching the video from start to finish. Brief
descriptions and total running times are noted for each part. To play a particular segment, press
Enter on the remote for TV playback; on a computer, click once to highlight a thumbnail and read
the accompanying text description and click again to start the video.
Curriculum Units—These are specially edited video segments pulled from different sections of the
video (see below). These nonlinear segments align with key ideas in the unit of instruction. They
include onscreen viewing questions, reproduced in this Teacher’s Guide. Total running times for
these segments are noted. To play a particular segment, press Enter on the TV remote or click once
on the Curriculum Unit title on a computer.
Standards Link—Selecting this option displays a single screen that lists the national academic
standards the video addresses.
Teacher Resources—This screen gives the technical support number and Web site address.
Video Index
I. China’s Unified Empire (5 min.)
In 403 B.C., China was a region of warring states, and it remained that way for nearly 200 years.
Then, Qin Shi Huangdi came along and united the rival kingdoms into one empire.
II. The Chinese Counting Board (5 min.)
The Chinese counting board, consisting of a tablet and bamboo rods, gave the ancient Chinese a
place-value number system.
III. Lost City of Shang (5 min.)
Archaeologists uncovered 3,000-year-old artifacts from China’s first great dynasty, the Shang. See
how these artifacts illuminate ancient history.
IV. Jiuzhang Suanshu—The Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art (3 min.)
A 2,000-year-old book is considered one of the most important documents on ancient Chinese
mathematics, and it is still influential.
Published by Discovery Education. © 2006. All rights reserved.
5
Culture and Math
The Chinese
Teacher’s Guide
V. Story of the Silk Road (6 min.)
The Silk Road stretches 4,000 miles from China to the Mediterranean. The trade route was so
important to China’s economy that emperors extended the Great Wall to protect it.
Published by Discovery Education. © 2006. All rights reserved.
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