TEACHER’S GUIDE
TEACHER’S GUIDE
• The Chalcolithic Period was the first time in human history that humans
used metal to create tools and ornaments. Have students research prehistoric mining and smelting techniques. Students can also investigate the
wide variety of articles that the people of this period created. Useful
resource: www.unr.edu/sb204/geology/history.html
• The wheel is one of the most important inventions of the Bronze Age.
Have students explore the evolutionary stages of the development of the
wheel. Students can also create diagrams of these various stages. Useful
resource: library.thinkquest.org/C004203/science/science02.htm?
tqskip1=1&tqtime=0928
Suggested Internet Resources
Periodically, Internet Resources are updated on our web site at
www.libraryvideo.com
• archaeology.ncl.ac.uk/undergraduate/studentpages/
lawrence_moran/index.htm
This site has lots of information about Bronze Age metallurgy with
interesting and informative links.
• www.bbc.co.uk/legacies/immig_emig/england/
wiltshire/article_1.shtml
This site has good background information about the Beaker Folk.
The End of the Stone Age
Grades 7–12
• McGowan,Tom. Giant Stones and Earth Mounds. Lerner Publishing,
Minneapolis, MN; 2000.
• Nardo, Don. Empires of Mesopotamia. Gale Group, Farmington, MI; 2000.
TEACHER’S GUIDE
Julia McMeans, M.Ed.
Curriculum Specialist, Schlessinger Media
TITLES
• THE FIRST FARMERS
• THE FIRST TOWNS & VILLAGES
• THE END OF THE STONE AGE
Teacher’s Guides Included
and Available Online at:
he Stone Age, named so because the tools that were used
were fashioned out of stone, is a prehistoric stage of human
development that began around 600,000 to 700,000 years ago.
This preliterate stage in human development is subdivided into
three shorter time periods — the Paleolithic, Mesolithic and
Neolithic — each characterized by the types of tools these prehistoric people used. Generally speaking, the stone tools that
Stone Age people employed ranged from the simple to the
complex and from nonspecialized to specialized implements
designed for specific tasks. Stone Age populations existed over
vast areas; from the Fertile Crescent in the Middle East to
Northern Europe, and each population developed according to
its specific needs, which were primarily dictated by the environmental conditions under which they lived.The Stone Age is the
period in history where anatomically modern humans took the
first steps that eventually led to modern civilization.
T
Suggested Print Resources
800-843-3620
Teacher’s Guide Copyright 2005 by Schlessinger Media,
a division of Library Video Company
P.O. Box 580,Wynnewood, PA 19096 • 800-843-3620
Program Copyright 2003 by Film Finance Corporation Australia Limited,
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All rights reserved.
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Program Summary
Pre-viewing Discussion
The End of the Stone Age chronicles the rise and influence of the
Ghassoulians, a Stone Age society which existed in the Jordan Valley about
7,000 years ago. The Ghassoulians are credited with being the first great
trading society, making and trading olive oil and salt.They are also known for
building irrigation channels 1,000 years before the Egyptians and for learning
how to smelt cooper to forge both tools and ornaments. Many ideas regarding trade, religion and societal organization, in addition to technological
advances including the wheel and the discovery of bronze, were exported
from the Middle East to Europe laying the foundations for Bronze Age civilizations. It was during this time in the prehistory of man that the individual,
the warrior and the elite emerged in societies that were becoming increasingly more structured and more complex.
• Explain to students that the Bronze Age was a pivotal turning point in the
prehistory of humans. Have them discuss and identify other periods in
human history that are also considered to be turning points.Why are
certain periods in history considered “turning points”?
• The time period explored in this program is marked by increased trading
among various groups of people. Have students discuss the effect that
trading goods has on the further development of societies.
• As Bronze Age societies developed, the roles of individuals became more
clearly defined and solidified. Have students discuss both the advantages
and disadvantages of the assignation of specific roles to individuals.
Focus Questions
Vocabulary
Paleolithic Period — A stage in human development 600,000 to 700,000
years ago that was characterized by the use of stone tools.This period is also
known as the Stone Age.
Mesolithic Period — A stage in human development that occurred
between the Paleolithic and the Neolithic Periods about 10,000 years ago.
The Natufians existed during this period.
Neolithic Period — The final stage in prehistoric human development.
This period precedes the Bronze Age.
Copper Stone Age — Also referred to as the Chalcolithic Age, the time in
human prehistory, about 6,000 years ago, when people forged tools and
other objects out of pure copper.
Bronze Age — The time in human prehistory, about 5,000 years ago, when
people began to forge tools and other objects from bronze.
Ghassoulians — A Stone Age civilization that existed in the Jordan Valley
around 7,000 years ago.
irrigation — A system to water crops using man-made channels or streams
of water that run through fields.
smelt — To melt metal.
fermentation — The process by which alcoholic drinks are made.
Beaker People — A group of people who lived during the Bronze Age in
Europe about 6,000 years ago.They get their name from the drinking
containers that they fashioned and used.
Iron Age — The time in human prehistory, about 4,000 years ago, when
people made tools, weapons and ornaments out of iron.
amber — The fossilized remains of the sap of ancient pine trees.
1.Where did the Ghassoulians live?
2.What products did the Ghassoulians produce and trade?
3. How did the Ghassoulians overcome the lack of water in the area in
which they lived?
4.What rock was mined to produce copper?
5.When was the wheel invented?
6 Which group of people is credited with creating alcoholic drinks?
7.What two metals are combined to create bronze?
8.What craft caused clothing to become warmer during the Bronze Age?
9. How are the contents of passage tombs different from the contents of
mound graves?
10.What Age comes after the Bronze Age?
Follow-up Discussion
• During the Bronze Age, the mounted horse was a symbol of wealth and
power. Have students discuss 21st century symbols of wealth and power.
• Archeologists deduce many things about the way in which people lived
from prehistoric burials. In 6,000 years, what might our burials tell a future
archeologist about how we lived?
Follow-up Activities
• In small groups, have students research Stonehenge. Students can find out
who is credited with building this mysterious structure, how archeologists
think it was created and what its purpose may have been. Useful
resources:
campus.northpark.edu/history/WebChron/World/Stonehenge.CP.html
metamedia.stanford.edu/traumwerk/index.php/HistoryTeacher
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