At Bellevue Santa Fe Charter school, the sixth grade students are participating in an interactive simulation, called Empires. The first thing we did was getting separated into five different historically accurate clans of Mesopotamia. There are the Babylonians, Hittites, Medes, Persians, and Phoenicians. Next, we were introduced to the map (as seen below,) which is where the battle and strategy takes place. The objective is to gain Civilzation Points, which can be obtained in multiple ways. If you collect a lot of coins (by taking the money a square provides) to buy armies and other necessities, and use a good conquering method, it will indirectly get you civilization points. If you have a lot of armies, you have a larger chance of conquering resources, which is what gives you Civilization Points. If you control a resource, you are given that resource’s coupons for as long as you control the square. When it comes to a trade day, resource coupons are exchanged. Whoever has acquired all the necessary resources receives Civilization Points. There are also challenges and important decisions throughout the simulation that either make or break. One example is when we had to build a school either for an artisan, a priest, or a scribe. Using real historically correct facts, such as the idea that artisans didn’t have schools, we received a fate. The last and most substantial way to achieve Civilization Points is with tasks. Each group moves from the four stages of civilization: Tribe, Village, City-State, and Empire. For each level, every member is given a question they need to answer with a creative* project. Here are my four projects that I made:
* “creative” meaning more than just a written report, such as different medias and materials
This is the game map.
Tribe Task: Cuneiform Tablet
My component of civilization was writing. Mesopotamians used Cuneiform to write, which are complicated symbols inscribed into clay tablets by people called scribes. I carved the word “Cuneiform” into the clay.
Village Task: Slides Presentation
My component of civilization was Government. I made a slide presentation about the hereditary leadership of Mesopotamia. It describes the people who would be chosen to lead Empires, which were the sons of the kings. It also explains what they did to make a flourishing civilization.
Click here to see my presentation!
City-State Task: Newspaper
My component of civilization was religion. I wrote a newspaper about the fictional story of Priestess Capoa, who disappears mysteriously into the city’s ziggurat. It informs the reader of the rituals citizens performed to please the gods, such as hiring a priest to feed and clothe gods, and how people would pray consistently in order to please the gods.
Click here to see my virtual newspaper!
Empires Task: Movie
My component of civilization was arts, architecture, and public works. I made this movie with four other students. It is about the fictional battle between the Akkadians and Babylonians, answering the question of how the ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia defended themselves. It contains information about the city walls and controlled floods, both historically accurate defense systems.