Sumer and Babylon: city-states, irrigation, cuneiform and written law

Grade 6 Social Studies Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Land between two rivers

   Feature	What it is	Why it mattered
   Tigris and Euphrates rivers	two rivers that run through Mesopotamia, in modern Iraq	?
   Irrigation canals	channels dug from the rivers to the fields	carried water to crops in a dry land
   City-states	cities, each with its own government and farmland	farm towns grew into busy trading cities

   The cell marked ? is blank.

2. 1.

   Esme's chart has a blank: why did the Tigris and Euphrates matter?

   • Cities with their own government
   • Rain falling on the farms for the whole year
   • Channels dug to the fields
   • Water for farms and a route for boats
3. 2.

   Jun's chart has a blank: what are irrigation canals?

   • Two rivers in modern Iraq
   • Clouds that bring rain to fields
   • Channels dug from the rivers to fields
   • Walls of mud brick built around the city
4. 3.

   Kira's chart has a blank: what were city-states?

   • Channels to the fields
   • One country with one ruler
   • Cities, each with its own government
   • Two rivers

5. Land between two rivers

   Feature	What it is	Why it mattered
   Tigris and Euphrates rivers	two rivers that run through Mesopotamia, in modern Iraq	water for farms and a route for boats
   Irrigation canals	channels dug from the rivers to the fields	carried water to crops in a dry land
   City-states	cities, each with its own government and farmland	farm towns grew into busy trading cities

6. 4.

   Noah reads that Sumer was divided into city-states. What is a city-state?

   • A state with no cities
   • A river between two cities
   • A city that governs itself and its land
   • A street inside a city
7. 5.

   Southern Mesopotamia has a dry climate. Why did farmers dig canals, Pia asks?

   • To keep boats away from farms
   • To carry river water to dry fields
   • Because rain flooded the fields daily
   • To drain the rivers dry
8. 6.

   Canals brought water to more fields. What was one effect, Ren asks?

   • Farmers could grow more crops
   • Farmers needed fewer fields
   • The rivers moved to the canals
   • Rain began to fall more often
9. 7.

   Sumer's city-states were linked by canals and rivers. How did that help them grow, Tala asks?

   • Canals kept traders out
   • Cities grew, so canals appeared
   • Boats carried trade goods between cities
   • Rivers carried rain clouds
10. 8.

    Mesopotamia's two rivers flow toward which body of water, Zee asks?

    • The Indian Ocean, by way of India
    • The Atlantic Ocean, to the west
    • The Arctic Ocean, to the north
    • The Gulf, to the southeast
11. 9.

    Most of Mesopotamia lies in which modern country, Ari asks?

    • Iraq
    • Egypt
    • Italy
    • India
12. 10.

    Where do the Tigris and Euphrates have their headwaters, Bo asks?

    • In highlands to the north
    • In the desert, far west
    • In the city-states
    • In the Gulf, to the south