From picture-writing to the alphabet

Grade 6 Social Studies Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Ways of writing

   Writing system	Kind of signs	About how many signs
   Cuneiform	?	about 600 in its later form, down from about 1,500
   Egyptian hieroglyphs	signs for words and for sounds	more than 1,000
   Chinese characters on oracle bones	characters for words	thousands
   English alphabet	letters for sounds	26

   The cell marked ? is blank.

2. 1.

   Milo's chart has a blank: what kind of signs did cuneiform use?

   • Wedge-shaped signs pressed into clay
   • Characters for words
   • Letters for sounds
   • Ink drawings on paper
3. 2.

   Pia's chart has a blank: what kind of signs does the English alphabet use?

   • Letters for sounds
   • Characters for whole words
   • Wedges pressed into clay
   • Pictures of objects and nothing else

4. Ways of writing

   Writing system	Kind of signs	About how many signs
   Cuneiform	wedge-shaped signs pressed into clay	about 600 in its later form, down from about 1,500
   Egyptian hieroglyphs	signs for words and for sounds	more than 1,000
   Chinese characters on oracle bones	characters for words	thousands
   English alphabet	letters for sounds	26

5. 3.

   Which writing system in the chart has the fewest signs, Ren asks?

   • Cuneiform, with about 600
   • The English alphabet, with 26
   • Hieroglyphs, with more than 1,000
   • Chinese characters, thousands
6. 4.

   Why is an alphabet quicker to learn than hieroglyphs, Tala asks?

   • Its letters are pictures of words
   • It needs no practice
   • It has far fewer signs to learn
   • It has more signs than hieroglyphs
7. 5.

   Cuneiform's signs fell from about 1,500 to about 600. About how many fewer is that, Zee asks?

   • About 60 fewer
   • About 900 fewer
   • About 2,100 fewer
   • About 1,500 fewer
8. 6.

   Ari reads the word alphabet. What is an alphabet?

   • A set of small pictures that stand for whole words
   • A set of letters that stand for sounds
   • A list of kings
   • A kind of clay tablet
9. 7.

   Bo reads that hieroglyphs had signs for words and for sounds. What is a sign for a word?

   • A number
   • A letter for one sound
   • A sign that stands for a whole word
   • A blank space
10. 8.

    Esme reads that cuneiform is wedge-shaped. What does wedge-shaped mean?

    • Shaped like a letter A
    • Round like a circle
    • Thick at one end, narrowing to a point
    • Long and wavy
11. 9.

    Chinese characters number in the thousands. Which system in the chart is most like that, Kira asks?

    • The English alphabet
    • Egyptian hieroglyphs
    • A set of 26 letters
    • A set of 10 numbers
12. 10.

    Which writing in the chart was pressed into clay rather than drawn or carved, Luz asks?

    • Egyptian hieroglyphs
    • Chinese characters
    • The English alphabet
    • Cuneiform