Compare the four river-valley civilizations

Grade 6 Social Studies Worksheet

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Government and writing in four river valleys (cards A to E). Card A, a compare chart (columns Civilization | Government | Writing | Can scholars read it today?): Mesopotamia | independent city-states, each with its own government | cuneiform, pressed into clay | yes; Egypt | kings called pharaohs | hieroglyphs, more than 1,000 signs | yes; Indus Valley | not known; cities shared standards, and some scholars think a central authority set them | the Indus script | no; Early China | dynasties of kings | characters carved on oracle bones | about 1,200 characters known for certain. Card B, a classroom reading written for this sheet: The Rosetta Stone was found in 1799. It carries one decree from 196 BCE written three ways: in hieroglyphs, in a later Egyptian script, and in Greek. Scholars who could read Greek used it as a key. In 1822 Jean-François Champollion showed how the hieroglyphs worked. Card C, a classroom reading written for this sheet: Most Indus inscriptions are very short and appear on small stamp seals. No long Indus text has been found, and none sits beside a text in a language scholars can read. Card D, a museum label written for this sheet: Cuneiform signs were pressed into wet clay with a cut reed. Dried or baked clay lasts for thousands of years, so many tablets survive. Card E, a museum label written for this sheet: This stone seal from Mohenjo-daro shows an animal and a few signs. Seals like it were pressed into clay, and archaeologists have found many in Indus cities.

2. 1.

   According to card A, which statement about governments in the river valleys is supported, Bo asks?

   • Scholars know a king ruled the Indus Valley
   • Mesopotamia had city-states, and Egypt's rulers were pharaohs
   • Early China had city-states like Mesopotamia
   • Egypt had city-states, and Mesopotamia's rulers were pharaohs
3. 2.

   Esme wants evidence of how Egyptians wrote in 196 BCE. Which source is closest to that time?

   • Champollion's 1822 explanation of the signs
   • The decree carved on the Rosetta Stone itself
   • Card A, because charts use numbers instead of opinions
   • Card B, because it was written most recently
4. 3.

   Cards C and E both mention Indus signs. What do the two cards show together, Jun asks?

   • The Indus seal signs were copied from Mesopotamian cuneiform
   • Seals with signs show one ruler controlled every Indus city
   • Indus people wrote short signs on seals that nobody can read
   • Long Indus texts on clay tablets explain what the seals mean
5. 4.

   Card D says cuneiform was pressed into clay that can last thousands of years. Which chain of events explains why we can read many Mesopotamian records, Luz asks?

   • Scribes copied the tablets each century, so few were lost
   • Scholars read the tablets first, which made the clay harden
   • Clay lasts, so thousands of tablets survive to be read
   • Cuneiform is a picture alphabet, so the signs are easy to read
6. 5.

   A classmate says: 'Since we can read Mesopotamian writing, we know everything about Mesopotamian life.' How strong is that claim, Milo asks?

   • Strong: card A says scholars can read it, so every question has an answer
   • Weak: tablets are rich evidence, but record only what scribes wrote
   • Weak: card A says scholars cannot read cuneiform today
   • Strong: card D says many tablets survive, so nothing is missing
7. 6.

   Noah wants evidence from the time when Mesopotamian city-states ran their own affairs. Which source is closest to that time?

   • A clay tablet written by a scribe in one of those cities
   • Card A's row for Mesopotamia, since the chart gives the facts
   • Card D, a modern museum label that explains what tablets show
   • A website article from this year that sums up the cities
8. 7.

   Which statement about the 'Can scholars read it today?' column is supported by card A, Pia asks?

   • The Indus script can be read, and Mesopotamian cuneiform cannot be read
   • Mesopotamia and Egypt can be read, Early China partly, the Indus not
   • Early China's writing is fully read, and the Indus script is partly read
   • Egypt can be read, Mesopotamia partly, and the Indus script fully read
9. 8.

   Which find would most help scholars read the Indus script, Ren asks?

   • Another stone with the same Indus signs carved much larger
   • A cuneiform tablet that lists the number of signs in the Indus script
   • More hieroglyphs on the Rosetta Stone
   • A long Indus text found beside a text in a language already read
10. 9.

    Card A says Early China's writing is 'about 1,200 characters known for certain'. What does that tell a reader, Tala asks?

    • The script is fully understood, and 1,200 is its total
    • Scholars can read nothing of it, and 1,200 is a guess
    • Part of the script is understood, though other characters remain unclear
    • The script used just 1,200 characters, so it was simpler than hieroglyphs
11. 10.

    A student's note says: 'The Indus script cannot be read because the Indus people left no writing.' Which fix keeps what is true, Zee asks?

    • They left writing that scholars can read, though they cannot date it
    • They left long clay tablets like Mesopotamia's, which scholars lost
    • They left no writing, and the signs on the seals were just decoration
    • They left writing, mostly short signs on seals, but it cannot be read