India: Indus Valley Civilization (basic)
A social studies/language arts lesson
Copyright J.M.Kenoyer/Govt.of Pakistan
This lesson is part of the WER Unit, Ancient Civilizations: India. The original lesson was written for American Grade 6 students and the readability level, and the degree of difficulty of the assignments, reflects this.
Lesson Plan (Basic), found below, is a version of the same lesson but is written for students who are learning English as a second language, students who are academially challenged, or students in a lower grade. Consequently, the students' material is written at a much lower readability level with assignments appropriate for this level.
Contents
Story, Life in the Indus Valley by Joyce and David Mollet (readability level found at the end of the story)
Student assignment 1: Glossary
Student assignment 2: Basic literal recall
Student assignment 3: Story Web
Student assignment 4: Travel Brochure
Teacher's notes
Life in the Indus Valley  by Joyce and David Mollet
Introduction
Today, the Indus Valley is a desert. However, the River Indus runs through this desert. A long time ago, the Indus Valley was a green and fertile jungle. Many wild beasts lived in the jungle. This story tells of that time, many years ago.
Indatri had been born and raised in the town of Mohenjo-Daro. Her father, Avara, was a trader. He decided to move his family to the city of Balakot on the coast. Indatri was 12 at the time.
Balakot was a port on the main trade route. Boats arrived there daily. They brought goods to the city from far away. Once unloaded, the boats would be quickly filled with a new cargo. They were then ready to continue their journey.
A New Beginning
Indatri awoke and opened her eyes. For a moment she did not know where she was. Then she remembered. She was in her new bed, in her new room.
"I am so glad that the long journey is over," she thought.
It was many weeks since she and her family had left Mohenjo-Daro. Together, they had started the 250 mile journey down to the coast. It had been a slow journey. They had brought with them everything they owned. Their possessions were packed into bullock carts. They could travel only as fast as the slowest cart.
The Decision Explained
They had a beautiful new house in Balakot. Even so, Indatri still felt sad at the thought of leaving her friends and everything that was familiar. She did not blame her father for moving. It had all made sense when he had talked to them some months ago.
"Your grandfather has become too old to run the business at the coast," Avara told them. "I must move there and take over that part of the family business."
"Your brother, Datri, will stay here in Mohenjo-Daro to take care of the land routes. Your uncle will stay in Harappa to deal with the inland trade."
Thoughts of Home
Trade was very important in the Indus Valley. It was second only to farming. Farming was the most important industry around Mohenjo-Daro.
Indatri would often escape with her pet dog into the fields around her home. She had to keep him close to her because he loved to bite the camels’ ankles. Sometimes he would chase the cattle into the wheat fields. Fields of wheat and barley stretched as far as the eye could see. There were also crops of melons, sesame, field-peas and dates.
"Will I ever stop longing for my homeland?" Indatri said to herself.
Just then she heard the heavy rumbling of bullock carts passing the house.
"This is very early for street traffic," she thought.
Houses in the Valley
Indatri wanted to look out of a window to see what was happening. However, the house had no windows facing the street. Her new house was much the same as the one in Mohenjo-Daro. It was also similar to her uncle’s house in Harappa.
The house was quite large and in the center was an open courtyard. Stairs went up to a flat roof. With a bucket and long rope the family brought up water from a well in the courtyard. In the bathroom there was a drain into an underground sewer system.
Indatri ran through the silent house in her bare feet. She made her way up to the flat roof. She looked over the low wall to the street below.
There she saw a number of bullock carts. In the soft light of dawn she could see that the carts were full of wicker baskets. She gasped in horror when she saw what was inside the baskets. There were birds in every basket. They were mainly black crows and they were all pecking and struggling to get free. She had never seen anything like this in Mohenjo-Daro.
"Those poor birds," she thought, "This is an awful place. I shall never get used to it."
Mohenjo-Daro
At that moment she wanted to be back in her home city. In her imagination she was there, climbing the thirty-foot mound to the great citadel. The citadel was the center of religion and government for Mohenjo-Daro’s 35,000 people.
In the middle of the citadel was the Great Bath. It was a huge, deep bath with steps leading into it. The people used it in their religion because they believed water had special qualities.
Indatri also remembered the great granary in Mohenjo-Daro where the grain was stored. It was a huge building made of thousands of fired bricks. It could hold enough food to feed all the people of the city for a long time.
Closing her eyes, Indatri could see herself running through the wide main streets of Mohenjo-Daro. The main streets ran from north to south. There were smaller streets that ran from east to west. There were even narrower lanes that divided the houses.
A Common Plan
"All our cities are alike, Indatri," her father had once told her. "Our valley has a strong government that rules all the cities. When the cities were first built, they were all planned by the same people," he explained.
"Could it be then that Balakot will be familiar?" she wondered.
At that moment the squawking of the birds brought her back to the present. She ran down the stairs and out of the house. She decided to find out what was going to happen to the poor creatures. She followed the carts and found herself going towards the port. She passed many craft workshops. They were not yet open for business. Soon she reached the waterfront.
A Discovery
Sadly, she watched as the bird catcher loaded the baskets on to the ships that were tied up along the front.
"You poor birds," she whispered to herself. "So that is what happens to you. You are served up for meals on board ship during the long voyage."
The thought of these birds not being able to fly upset her. With tears in her eyes she turned for home. She was about to cry when she saw her new home and felt comforted. The house, like other buildings in the Valley, was made of baked clay bricks. It had strong wooden beams to support the flat roof. It was a familiar sight. It could almost have been her old home.
Beautiful Possessions
"Where have you been?" Yamuru, her mother, called. She hardly stopped from the task of unpacking. Yamuru was safely storing her most precious possessions. She was carefully unpacking her best pottery. She was very pleased. Her fine pots had not been broken on the journey.
She had unpacked all sorts of beads onto a colorful cotton cloth. There was also a beautiful necklace that was made of turquoise and lapis lazuli. All the women wore bangles, earrings, and brightly beaded necklaces. Yamuru would often wear her hair in braids. On special occasions, she would put it up in a fancy headdress. She looked as beautiful as the richest lady.
"I have seen such a sad thing," said Indatri, and she told her story. To her surprise her father threw back his head and laughed.
Back to the Waterfront
"Come," he said to his daughter. "Get yourself something to eat and come with me. I have to meet with the captains of some of the ships down at the waterfront."
Avara went in search of his seal. He carefully put it around his neck. Every trader had a seal. He used it to make his special mark. Avara’s seal, a horned bull, looked very fine resting against his colorful cotton robe. It showed that he was important. Indatri walked proudly beside her father. The waterfront was even more crowded than earlier.
"The ships are quite different to the flat-bottomed boats we used to see on the river in Mohenjo-Daro, father," said Indatri.
"You are right, child. That is because these ships go out to sea," her father replied.
"Some of these ships have traveled west along the coast collecting copper from Afghanistan. Others have sailed even further south to India for gold.
These are the ships that have traded timber, ivory and pottery in Mesopotamia and silver and turquoise in Persia. They are calling at Balakot before sailing again."
Indatri Learns the Truth
Avara stopped to talk to one of the captains. Indatri knew her father was repeating her story to the captain. The captain came over and smiled at her.
"The last thing you should do, young lady, is to worry over these birds," the captain said to her. "They are very well looked after. There are times when these creatures are our lifeline."
Indatri did not understand and looked up at him.
"We never sail without our birds on board," said the captain. "When a mist comes down at sea, or we lose sight of land, it can be frightening. We release one of our birds and it flies towards the nearest land. If we follow the path of the bird we will always head safely home."
Indatri smiled with relief. She now knew that these birds would eventually fly free.
Things Look Brighter
"Come, my daughter, we must return home," Avara said. "My work is finished for today."
Indatri began to see Balakot in a new light.
"Maybe this will not be such a bad place to live," she thought. "It might even prove to be more interesting than Mohenjo-Daro."
A terracotta amulet discovered by archaeologists in Mohenjo-Daro shows a representation of a ship together with "compass birds."
Readability Level (with glossary words removed)
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 3.2
Flesch Reading 90.7
Average sentences per paragraph 2.1
Average words per sentence 10.7
Average characters per words 3.9 |
Assignment 1: Glossary |
Names
Indus Valley - the valley which the River Indus runs through
River Indus – one of the major rivers in India
Indatri – the daughter of Avara and Yamuru
Mohenjo-Daro – an ancient city in the Indus Valley
Balakot – an ancient city at the mouth of the Indus
Avara – husband of Yamuru and father of Indatri and Datri
Datri – son of Avara and Yamuru
Harappa – an inland ancient city in the Indus Valley
Yamuru – wife of Avara and mother of Indatri and Datri
Afghanistan – a country west of India
Mesopotamia – an ancient land west of the Indus Valley |
Words
fertile – producing crops easily
unloaded – to take off
continue – to carry or go on
remembered – to think of again
possessions – something owned
beautiful – very pleasing to see or hear
familiar – well known
important – having value
industry – a form of business or trade
rumbling – a deep, heavy sound
similar – the same as alike
gasped – to draw in breath sharply
imagination – forming a picture in one’s mind
citadel – a fortress overlooking a city
squawking – loud screeching
voyages – a sea journey
comforted – a feeling of well-being
precious – valuable
lapis lazuli – a precious stone
occasions –events or happenings
eventually – sometime in the future
interesting - attracting attention |
| It is suggested that students learn the glossary words before reading the story independently. This can be done with a word recognition game aand to facilitate this we present the words in an appropriate format below. |
fertile |
unloaded |
continue |
remembered |
possessions |
beautiful |
familiar |
important |
industry |
rumbling |
similar |
gasped |
imagination |
citadel |
squawking |
voyages |
comforted |
precious |
lapis lazuli |
occasions |
eventually |
interesting |
Assignment 2: Basic literal recall
Objective of the Assignment
Through answering the questions (and in the second approach organizing them in chronological order), students end up with their own version of the story.
The assignment can be approached in one of two ways.
The first approach entails answering the sequence of simple questions (50 in total) in their given sequence. It is envisaged that students will work individually, although working in pairs or in a group are alternatives.
The second approach is based on the same 50 questions, but the story and the questions are divided into 5 parts. It is intended that the teacher organizes 5 work stations with one set of questions and the relevant section of the story at each. The students, working individually or in pairs, visit each station, finishing with the answers to all 50 questions.
Assignment 2 consists of simple "closed" questions. "Open-ended" questions would take us into the areas of interpretative, critical and creative comprehension - for assignments on these areas please refer to the original lesson written for main stream students.
Introduction/A New Beginning
- Describe the Indus Valley as it is today.
- Describe the Indus Valley as it was in the past.
- In what town was Indatri born?
- What was Indatri's father called?
- What job did Indatri's father do?
- What city did the family move to?
- Where was this city located?
- How far was Mohenjo-Daro from Balakot?
- Why did the journey take so long?
- Into what did the family pack their possessions ?
The Decision Explained/Thoughts of Home
- Why was Indatri sad to leave her home?
- Why did Avara want to move to Balakot?
- Who was going to look after the trade that came on the land routes?
- What was the most important industry around Mohenjo-Daro?
- What was the next most important industry around Mohenjo-Daro?
- Where did Indatri take her dog?
- Why did she have to keep the dog close to her?
- Name two grains that were grown around Mohenjo-Daro.
- Name two other crops that were grown around Mohenjo-Daro.
- What did Indatri hear passing her house?
Houses in the Valley/Mohenjo-Daro
- Why could Indatri not see into the street?
- Describe the house Indatri lived in.
- Where did the familly get their water from?
- What was in the bathroom?
- What did Indatri see when she looked down from the roof?
- What could Indatri see inside the wicker baskets?
- Where did she imagine she was?
- What was a citadel?
- Describe the great granary in Mohenjo-Daro.
- Describe the street plan of Mohenjo-Daro.
A Common Plan/A Discovery/Beautiful Possessions/
- Why were all the cities alike?
- Why did Indatri leave the house?
- What did she pass on the way to the waterfront?
- What did she think was going to happen to the birds?
- Describe what her house was made of.
- What was Indatri's mother called?
- Why was Indatri's mother pleased?
- What was Yamuru's necklace made of?
- Name some of the things women of that time wore.
- When Indatri told her story, what did her father do?
Back to the Waterfront/Indatri Learns the Truth/Things Look Brighter
- What did Avara go in search of?
- Why did every trader have to have a seal?
- Describe Avara's seal.
- Why were the ships in Balakot different to the ones on the river in Mohenjo-Daro?
- Name 3 other countires some of the ships had visited.
- Name 3 things that were traded in Mesopotamia.
- Name 2 things that were traded in Persia.
- Why did the captain smile at her?
- Why were the birds so important?
- What would eventually happen to the birds?
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Assignment 3: Story Web
1) You may want to work with a partner to fill these cells with facts about the Indus Valley civilization.
2) Most of the facts are in the story.
3) For some of the facts you will need to make inferences (talk to your teacher about this word) as you read the text.
4) When you have completed this assignment, use it to create a poster.
5) Decorate your poster with illustrations.
6) You will find photographs to help you at the following web site http://www.harappa.com/har/har0.html |
What I have discovered about the ancient cities of the Indus Valley |
Homes |
Transport |
Work and Jobs |
Public Buildings |
Trade |
Additional Information |
Assignment 4: Travel Brochure |
Teacher notes
In this assignment students will create, with their teacher's assistance, a travel brochure for the Indus Valley as it was in ancient times. This gives students the opportunity to express all that they have learned about Harappan society in a creative way.
Although the instructions are written for students we recommend that the teacher guides the students through each step of the instructions. |
Introduction
1) Imagine that you are a resident of Mohenjo-Daro.
2) You have been employed by the central government to promote tourism as an industry.
3) One of your first tasks is to design a travel brochure.
4) These will be distributed along the trade-route linking the Indus Valley with Sumer in Mesopotamia.
5) They will be distributed in large numbers in Ur.
 This is what you do
1) Prepare a letter-size sheet of paper by folding twice.
2) This will give you three areas to work on for the outside of the brochure, and one large area inside.
Prepare your information
1) Review the story on the Indus Valley Civilization.
2) Carry out research to extend your knowledge of this culture.
3) Divide your information into the groups found in the next column. |
Divide information into:
1) the accommodations (that is the type of housing) visitors to Mohenjo-Daro can expect, and what things are available for their comfort;
2) the route that will take them from Ur to Mohenjo-Daro and the kind of terrain they can expect to pass through;
3) the mode of transportation;
4) what gifts tourists can expect to buy in the city;
5) what there is to see and do in Mohenjo-Daro. |
Design your brochure
1) Create a colorful and eye-catching cover for your brochure.
2) Present the information on accommodation on the inside cover.
3) Assemble your information on transportation and route on the back of the brochure.
4) Remember that you want to attract visitors so you will want to present hardship and danger on the journey as excitement and adventure.
5) Use the inside of the brochure to present the information on “what to do,” “what to see,” and “what to buy.”
6) Make it as attractive, appealing and informative as you can. Balance the text with illustrations and use plenty of color.
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