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?

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

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

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

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

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

   • It has more signs than hieroglyphs
   • It needs no practice
   • Its letters are pictures of words
   • It has far fewer signs to learn
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 1,500 fewer
   • About 900 fewer
   • About 2,100 fewer
8. 6.

   Ari reads the word alphabet. What is an alphabet?

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

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

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

    Which two systems in the chart used signs for whole words, Jun asks?

    • The English alphabet alone
    • Not one of the four
    • The English alphabet and cuneiform
    • Hieroglyphs and Chinese characters
11. 9.

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

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

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

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