Topic One: Geographical Orientation Topic Two: Worldview Topic Three: The Concept of Change Topic Four: The Roman Empire and Why it Failed Topic Five: Migration Contributed to the Fall of the Roman Society Topic Six: The Growth of Catholicism Topic Seven: Development of the Medieval Worldview - Feudalism 83 Topic Eight: The Medieval Worldview Topic Nine: Development of Urban Society Topic Ten: Environmental and Technological Change Topic Eleven: The Growth of a New Worldview

PDF file for all of Grade 9 Unit 2 Topics

Topic One: Geographical Orientation

Topic Two: Worldview

Topic Three: The Concept of Change

Topic Four: The Roman Empire and Why it Failed

Learning Objectives
Knowledge/Content	Skills/Processes	Values/Attitudes
Know that throughout history individuals have had to change their beliefs in order to accommodate changes in society. (COM, CCT) Know that a worldview is a distinctive way of looking at reality that creates a context for living. (CCT). Know that societies try to find a pattern in their beliefs that gives their lives meaning and direction. Know that when change occurs in one aspect of a society's belief system, it results in change to other aspects. (COM, CCT) Know that individuals within societies resist changes that challenge their worldview. (COM, CCT)	Examine relevant data and make a pertinent generalization. (CCT) Create a timeline to indicate major historical events. (CCT) Participate effectively in a Jigsaw group activity. (COM) Use effective strategies for making meaning of what is read.	· Appreciate how beliefs give structure and direction to individuals and societies. (PSVS) · Appreciate that history provides guidance for making decisions about contemporary problems and issues.

Procedure

Teacher Notes Tradition and Change: In the third to sixth centuries A.D., Roman civilization experienced great change, and the government was uncertain how to handle it. The second century A.D. had been a period of prosperity in which agriculture and trade flourished. In the third century A.D., Rome underwent a period of misrule and civil war. As a result, in the fourth century A.D., large movements of people from outside the Roman Empire found it much easier to invade. The breakdown of central authority meant that: people could not trust the government to protect them the rich could take advantage of the poor farmers became impoverished and left their lands coinage was debased, trade routes were unprotected, and taxes were collected unfairly, leading to inflation and a decline in productivity farmers, who had been free, were so threatened by chaos that they turned to the landlords for protection and many ended up being bound to the land as serfs Christianity was recognized as a legitimate religion because its spread and hold on ordinary Roman people was too strong to be ignored. See page 360 in the curriculum guide for information about the Jigsaw strategy.

Assessment Suggestions Assess students' inferring and generalizing skills. Assess students' abilities to collaborate and cooperate in groups. Instruction Suggestions Have students create a timeline encompassing the time span of the Roman Empire and identify some of its major achievements. Have students draw inferences based on the timeline data, and make generalizations about what might cause such a successful civilization to collapse. Ask students to consider the idea of progress or the lack of progress in history. What is the best way to depict timelines to reveal the nature of the progress of a specific time in history (e.g., sloping upward to show progress and downward to show decline; as a spiral or a wave to reveal repetition of progress and decline)? Explain that a basic timeline, such as the one they created, is intended simply to record different eras or spans of time and not to indicate periods of decline or progress. However, for each era it is possible to create a timeline that shares more information. Give students some background information about the situation that Rome faced (A.D. 200-500). Discuss what type of a timeline would best represent this era. Discuss some reasons that civilizations may fail after a period of time. Give some other examples of great civilizations that have fallen. Engage students in a Jigsaw group activity to explore and evaluate four theories about the decline and fall of the Roman Empire. Distribute copies of each of the following handouts to the appropriate groups: "Student Handout # 3: Gibbon's Theory," "Student Handout #4: Lot's Theory," "Student Handout #5: Unstable Government Theory" and "Student Handout #6: Environmental Theories." Debrief the Jigsaw activity through classroom discussion.

Topic Five: Migration Contributed to the Fall of the Roman Society

Topic Six: The Growth of Catholicism

Learning Objectives
Knowledge/Content	Skills/Processes	Values/Attitudes
Know that people often choose religion as a means of explaining life, and as a source of comfort and hope. (COM, CCT) Know that the basic beliefs and values of religion play an important role in the way the fundamentals of life are viewed. (COM, CCT) Know that the church's main sources of power were information and organization, achieved through authority and influence.	Identify alternative courses of action and predict the likely consequences of each decision. (CCT) Draw inferences. Make generalizations. (CCT)	Respect peoples' religious choices. (PSVS) Appreciate the role of religious beliefs in people's lives. (PSVS)

Procedure

Teacher Notes See page 410 in this curriculum guide for a sample template for assessing generalizing skills. During the fifth century, the Bishops of Rome, known as popes, believed they ruled over the Kingdom of God on Earth. They claimed to represent St. Peter, the chief of apostles. Christianity appealed to ordinary people because: It gave a promise of a better life after death. The congregations collected money and cared for the poor. It provided the individual with a sense of community in which everyone was acceptable despite their status. The Church over the centuries held many different visions of what is fundamental to Christianity. In the fifth century Augustine wrote what would be for centuries the standard statement of Christian philosophy on the role of the Church in history: Humans are fallen creatures who do evil even when they know better, and who can enter Heaven only through the intercession of the Church. As the state is a human organization, it is subject to corruption. Any civil government that fails to provide justice is little better than a band of gangsters. The Church, representing the spiritual power of God, must have authority over kings to make sure government is conducted according to God's commandments.

Assessment Suggestions Assess students' skills in making generalizations. Instruction Suggestions Place this time on the classroom timelines (the fifth century). Impress upon students the amount of time involved in the occurrence of any major change to the way of life during this period. Conduct a draw to determine which of the following stations in life the students will find themselves "born" into: aristocratic class (4 students out of 30), the knight class (5/30), the freeman class (5/30), the trading class (1/30) and the serf class (15/30). Have students consider their individual "fates" and make a choice about whether they wish to accept what life has offered or whether they will pay the cost of attempting a change. Suggest that students have options such as: building a stockade/castle for protection; becoming a knight, joining a monastic order and living behind high walls for protection; becoming a trader that takes goods from city to city to trade and make a profit; becoming a free farmer and carving an independent farm out of the wilderness; or becoming a serf and living within the walls of a castle and paying rent to the lord. Ask students to consider what choices they think women had in these times. To help them make choices, give students "Student Handout #9: Benefit and Costs of Social Roles." Given their situations, have students evaluate their alternatives using the questions on the handout. In a whole class discussion, have students evaluate the alternatives to determine if it would be realistic to expect an increase in living standards, to expect that the wealthy will share their wealth, and to have faith that the next life will be better. Have students work in pairs to arrive at a generalization about the role of religion in these times and circumstances. Discuss with students the worldview likely to develop in this situation and why their theory is probable.

Topic Seven: Development of the Medieval Worldview - Feudalism

Learning Objectives
Knowledge/Content	Skills/Processes	Values/Attitudes
Know that political power, which is the ability to make and carry out decisions, is dependent on certain sources of power. Know that Feudalism was a system of government in which those who possessed landed estates also possessed the political power. (COM) Know that the influence and charisma of religious beliefs are important methods of acquiring and maintaining power. (COM, CCT) Know that there was tension between the power held by the church, which was achieved through religious influence, and secular power, which was achieved through force. (COM, CCT)	Participate in resolving conflicts and differences by persuading, compromising, debating and negotiating. (COM, CCT) Predict likely outcomes based on factual data. (CCT)	Appreciate the role of beliefs and values in determining a society's concept of social order. (PSVS) Empathize with the dilemmas of people in other societies at other times in history.

Procedure

Teacher Notes Medieval Social Organization (Feudalism) : Feudal kings, who could not afford a bureaucracy or an army, granted estates in return for loyal service from the nobility. Vassalage evolved as a feudal contract between the church, the king, the lord, and the common people. In theory, kings were seen as supreme, but in practice they were manipulated by feudal lords who became increasingly powerful. Feudalism, by the 10th century, evolved into a political system in which power was treated as a private possession and divided among a large number of lords. Catholic Social Values: The humanitarian ethic of Christianity asserted that manual labour was part of spiritual life: "To work is to pray." Christian monks combined intellect and labour, and made monasteries materially successful by turning the forest into farmland in the 9th and 10th centuries. The Rule of Saint Benedict outlined a monastic life in which the monk swore: to live his life in the same monastery to strive to improve himself by growing in knowledge and understanding of God to obey completely the abbot of the monastery. All those taken into the monastery had to accept the same rules and treatment. Monastic rule was adapted for women and many convents were established.

Assessment Suggestions · Develop a checklist of skills to assess students' abilities to resolve conflicts effectively. Instruction Suggestions Have students remain in the groups that they were in during the last lesson: aristocratic class (4/30), knight class (5/30), freeman class (5/30), trading class (1/30) and serf class (15/30). Provide the students with the following information: One of the aristocratic class members has royal ancestors (from an ancient War Chief or Noble family). This entitles him to claim to be known as king. Another of the aristocrat class has joined the church and has been selected as Pope. Two students are descendants of ancient Gallo-Roman families who control large fortified estates. One student is an abbess or abbot of a large religious community (e.g., monastery) of nuns or monks. Explain that all people need resources if they are to have the power to do their jobs. Provide each group of students with a copy of "Student Handout #10: Scarcity of Resources." Instruct each group to read the appropriate section and identify its resources, needs and sources of power. Have the church, the king and the nobles negotiate by messenger the power relationships among them. Have students discuss what is realistic about the power of the freemen, serfs and trading class. Extended Learning: Have students explore the role of women in each of the social classes.

Topic Eight: The Medieval Worldview

Learning Objectives
Knowledge/Content	Skills/Processes	Values/Attitudes
Know that the control of resources is critical to economic and political power. (COM, CCT) Know that innovation depends upon the need and the freedom to be creative. Know that the acceptance of an innovation depends upon whether the incentive for acceptance outweighs the power of tradition. (COM, CCT)	Identify situations in which a decision is required. Make summaries of data that can be used for comparison purposes. (COM, CCT) State relevant generalizations. (CCT) Compromise and negotiate to resolve conflicts and differences. (COM, CCT) Practise developing a hypothesis on the basis of data.	Appreciate the role of beliefs and values in determining a society's economic organization. (PSVS)

Procedure

Teacher Notes See pages 355-356 and 410 for information about making generalizations and a sample assessment checklist. Manorialism: Manorialism refers to the system of services and obligations owed by the peasant classes to the nobility. A manor was like a small country in which the king's castle was the capital. A typical manor consisted of meadows, forests, fields, pastures, rivers, orchards, a mill and bake-house, a well, a wine press, a tannery, a church and a village. The economic power of the aristocrats depended on the landed estates and the workers who worked them. Labour and land (not money) were the key commodities in producing wealth in Medieval times. Peasants needed protection, which the lords supplied in return for the peasants' land and labour. The peasants were allowed to farm their land, but were tied to the land by the obligation to provide various customary payments and services. By 800 A.D. about 60% of the population of Western Europe had been reduced to serfdom in an attempt to find some security. Technological Change: The frontier conditions that many new manors faced required the adoption of new technology in order to be successful. The lord had an interest in the actual production of goods on the manor, which meant that the lord understood the need for technological innovation. In the next centuries, technology (much of which came from the Far East) began to change farming practice: plows with iron shares horse shoes and horse collars three-field crop rotations: cereal crop, nitrogen-generating crop, then fallow, which was plowed twice to loosen soil and rid it of weeds Productivity increased and yields grew from 3:1 seeded to 5:1. See the Resource section of this unit of study for suggested novels.

Assessment Suggestions Assess students' generalizing skills. Instruction Suggestions Present "Teacher Information Sheet #5: A Medieval Story." Have students participate in a PACE activity. (See page 366 in this curriculum guide for details about the PACE strategy.) Divide students into six groups representing aristocrats (lords), knights, priests, millers, serfs and traders. Provide each group with the appropriate handout describing what life was like in the early Middle Ages. Have students read the handout that applies to their group ("Student Handouts #11A-11F"). Have each group review its description of the daily lives of lords, knights, clergy, traders, serfs, millers or traders. Have students form new groups in which each member represents one of the six social classes. Instruct students to discuss the life led by people of their particular social class, and how each class might relate and interact. Have each group write and present a role play to demonstrate the interaction of the classes. (See page 391 in this curriculum guide for more information about role plays.) Once students have a picture of the life led by the people of the Middle Ages, they should decide: What changes are needed within society at this point in history? What resources (power) do they have that could be used to change society? Would they rather use their power to prevent change from occurring? Give students "Student Handout #12: Changes." Ask them to consider, from the point of view of their assigned social class, whether they would use their wealth and power to make these changes. Why or why not? Have students, as a large group, decide which of these changes are acceptable and will be adopted by the society (make sure that each group understands its sources of power and uses them to achieve the desired end). Remind students to consider the consequences of their decisions. Have students examine their decisions, and determine which of the following worldviews guided their decision making: A religious worldview in which humans should obediently endure pain and suffering in this life as a preparation for a life in paradise after death. A military worldview in which men should fight with each other for glory and power. A farming worldview in which people work to produce enough wealth so that everyone has enough to eat and a place to keep warm. An urban worldview in which people earn their living as craftsmen and traders. A combination of all of these views. Instruct students to explain, orally or in writing, the worldview(s) that guided their decision making. Discuss with students where power will come to reside in this society they have selected. Extended Learning: Interdisciplinary Study with English Language Arts Collect several historical fiction novels and/or short stories or poems. Using the Literature Circle approach, have students explore the Middle Ages/medieval times through fiction. (See English Language Arts: A Curriculum for the Middle Level for information about the Literature Circle strategy.) As students read, have them create a chart to collect information about the daily life and roles of characters within various social classes.

Topic Nine: Development of Urban Society

Learning Objectives
Knowledge/Content	Skills/Processes	Values/Attitudes
Know that growth in population gave an incentive to improve agriculture to feed increased numbers of people. (COM, CCT) Know that society undergoes change as a result of encountering new ideas, and with the rise of new social classes. Know that social change can result in the development of new beliefs, social organizations and institutions that can conflict with established beliefs and institutions. (COM, CCT)	Use a timeline as a classification system to categorize and analyze data. (CCT, COM) Test generalizations on the basis of relevant data. (CCT) Present information in a logical manner to show valid relationships. (CCT) Express a point of view.	Appreciate that environmental change and technological change have important consequences for individuals in societies. (PSVS, TL) Appreciate that changes, if accepted over time, will result in revision of basic beliefs. Respect and consider others' points of view. (PSVS)

Procedure

Teacher Notes Urban Society: Between 1000 and 1300 A.D., the climate consisted of mild winters and dry summers. This resulted in steady economic growth and the population grew by at least 200 percent. The increased agricultural production led to a food surplus that could support the townspeople, making specialization and trade possible. In the 11th century, merchant trade was limited mostly to trade in luxury items. By the 14th century, trade had moved from the edge of most people's lives to the centre. First in Italy, then along trade routes and on the Baltic coast, towns grew larger, wealthier, and more important politically. Fairs were held at strategic locations along trade routes. Cities that had been insignificant in earlier times were now growing and organizing into trading leagues, which gave them even more wealth and power. If a serf escaped to a town for a year and a day, the serf then became free. Rise of the New Monarchies: French and English kings formed informal alliances with the rising merchant class. The burghers had the skills and resources to manage the king's bureaucracy so that it was now better able to govern the country. In return the monarchs gave the cities protection against: the frequent wars and arbitrary demands of the feudal lords and bishops the many tolls and taxes on trade by the feudal lords. The townspeople, as they became more confident and prosperous, were able to get a charter from the king licensing them to act as a corporation. Reaction of the Rural Nobility: Despite the changes, Europe was still made up of many feudal lords who: seriously interfered with trade and continually fought with each other wished to control the wealth and power that the towns represented were fearful of the centralizing power of the new monarchs. Reaction of the Catholic Church: The popes believed it was the church's moral duty to guard against individual selfish interests in society. In 1198, a period of papal supremacy began in which the popes were involved in the affairs of virtually every European state. This ended in 1302 when Pope Boniface VIII's doctrine of papal authority was rejected by Philip IV who had a French archbishop elected pope and headquartered in Avignon where Philip could control him. This limited some of the popes' prestige and power.

Assessment Suggestions Assess students' abilities to construct timelines that effectively present the required information. Instruction Suggestions Review the major historical events and choices that have been made so far and place these on the timeline. Point out that, at this time in history, the wealth and population grew rapidly, so people were prosperous and optimistic. Have students meet in the same groups they formed for the last lesson. Give them copies of "Student Handout #13: Worldview Generalizations." Have them become familiar with the list of generalizations about the medieval worldview. Describe how trade grew and ask students to consider whether the medieval worldview helped or hindered trade and commerce. Out of the group that was representing the serfs, create a relatively large group of burghers (city dwellers), some of whom are craftspeople, some business people, and some rich bankers. Have the other groups discuss whether the new way of life is useful from the perspective of the particular social class that they represent, and what their reaction to it would be. Have a large group discussion about changes created by the urban way of life, including issues such as: Should usury (lending money and charging interest) be allowed? Should women be allowed to own property and participate in trade? Should traders have the right of free passage anywhere in the kingdom? Who should have authority over towns? Once students have made some decisions about how to incorporate the growth of trade and towns into medieval society, have them consider how the worldview has shifted by comparing the two worldviews as outlined on "Student Handout #13: Worldview Generalizations." Have students respond to the changes from the perspective of the social class they are representing, making inferences about the impact that such changes will have on the way of life of each of the groups. Have students consider where, at this point in history, the power resides. Have them analyze why the power seems to be shifting from the aristocracy to the king.

Topic Ten: Environmental and Technological Change

Topic Eleven: The Growth of a New Worldview

Learning Objectives
Knowledge/Content	Skills/Processes	Values/Attitudes
Know that change to fundamental beliefs underlying a worldview is not readily accepted. (COM, CCT) Know that violence can develop between the advocates of the status quo and the advocates of change. Know that societies must resolve the tension between the old and the new by reconciling old beliefs with new beliefs. Know that individuals in every society have to reach a general agreement about what is acceptable and unacceptable. (COM) Know that this agreement will be reflective of who holds the power within the society. (CCT, COM)	Present information in a logical manner to show relationships. Express a point of view. Draw a consensus about a complex situation with a number of alternatives. (CCT) Identify alternate courses of action and predict the likely consequences of each. Make generalizations about historical actions. (CCT) Question the assumptions on which inferences have been based. (CCT)	Appreciate that there are areas in the human condition in which emotion counts for as much as reason. (PSVS) Appreciate that people under high levels of stress may act in ways that observers find unreasonable. Appreciate that technological change has important consequences for the belief systems of society. (PSVS, TL)

Procedure

Teacher Notes See page 410 in this curriculum guide for a sample checklist to assess generalizing. In the fourteenth century, people's expectations had risen to the point where they were demanding a better lifestyle economically and socially. Peasant revolts against the nobles began to occur with increasing frequency, caused by increased taxation, increased crime, a demand for higher wages and few manorial obligations. Rural serfdom was under serious challenge in much of Western Europe by the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. The kings and upper middle class could not overcome their aristocratic feudal worldview and joined with the nobles in savagely putting down the peasants. Society underwent a period of chaos in which there were insurrections against the feudal order, civil wars over the succession to the throne, or insurrections against kings who were indifferent to their administrative responsibilities. Beginning in the fifteenth century a new style of monarchy in Italy, France, England, and Spain ruthlessly curbed violence, controlled warlike nobles and created domestic order. These kings began to assemble the power, bureaucracies and armies that would make this possible. Thinkers such as Machiavelli argued that a king was justified in using power to impose a central authority on those who would create disorder for their selfish purposes.

Assessment Suggestions Assess students' generalizing skills. Instructional Suggestions Give the students representing the aristocrats Student Handout #15: The Situation Facing the Feudal Lords in the Fourteenth Century. Once they have read it, have the feudal lords announce that they are going to re-impose their traditional feudal rights on the people. Give the students representing the common people (serfs and dwellers) "Student Handout #16: The Situation Facing the Common people in the Fourteenth Century." Have the common people meet to put together a list of changes that they want to see instituted and addressed by the king. Give both the king and the church some of their basic assumptions about the way that society should function. Some information can be found on "Student Handout #10." (Students may find it necessary to read and research for further details.) Have the king call the nobles and the common people together to attempt to resolve their differences. The king and the church should act as mediators to find a solution. Then have the king and the church make a decision about how the differences between the two groups ought to be settled. Encourage them to use the medieval generalizations from "Student Handout #14" as the assumptions behind their decisions. After the meeting has been held, ask the serfs and townspeople whether they are going to accept the decision of the king and the church. Allow the common people to make a statement about what they intend to do. Then allow the nobles, the king and the church to make a statement about how they intend to respond to the statement of the common people. Distribute "Student Handout #17: Peasant Revolts". In a class discussion, compare the predictions made in the classroom during the last activity and what actually happened. (See "Teacher Information Sheet #7: Response to the Peasant Revolts.") How were their predictions correct and how were they wrong? What generalizations might be drawn about the change process?