We just finished a unit on Ancient Mesopotamia by taking a Google Earth Tour of the remains of Babylon. We visited the coordinates below and students imagined they were walking the streets of the ancient city.
32°32’37.79″N 44°25’12.46″E
Ancient Babylon
They wrote down their thoughts using descriptive sensory words. Here are some of what the class considered the best examples to share.
As I walked though the Ishtar Gate I felt the rough and pebbly stone walls next to me.
- Madison
I see the massive wall with golden carvings. I feel the perspiration running down my face as archers string their bows.
- Ian
I feel the slimy carcass of a dead antelope.
- Juno
I can feel the textured buildings and I can see people getting lost between all the buildings as if it were a maze.
- Nathalie
I see the great textured structure as I am weary from crossing the desert.
- Jr.
I can see the sticky warm animals painted on the solid rock and taste the frail beads of sand.
- Chloe
Hot, arid sand burns my feet as I walk through Ishtar’s Gate.
- Hypathia
As I walked through the Babylon entrance door I could feel the rough walls and the pebbly ground below me.
- Destiny
I can feel the thick air in Babylon while the merchants are roaming around with their canvases filled with fragile goods.
- Anthony
As I was walking in the boiling desert of Babylon I saw something huge and marvelous. It was a gorgeous sight it was the Ishtar Gate!
- Valeria
As I walked in the city of Babylon I was astonished. I saw the big arched bridge in front of me. I walked in and heard the merchants yelling trying to sell there goods. I thought it was a beautiful sight.
- Lizzeth
As I was walking through dry and hot streets of the Ishtar Gate I couldn’t help but notice the murderous eyes of the Assyrian Army.
- Chermelle
Students typed their sentences into a Google form and we used that to create the Wordle word cloud below.
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[...] (with 3-4 other students) or have individual blogs,” he explains. Recommended posts: “Ancient Babylon and Google Earth” and “VoiceThread [...]
[...] (with 3-4 other students) or have individual blogs,” he explains. Recommended posts: “Ancient Babylon and Google Earth” and “VoiceThread [...]
These are very good sentences because they are so descriptive. What a terrific job!
I really enjoyed reading your students vision of another place and time. They have excellent imagery and feel of how people in this place and time lived. An excellent start to your study.
Hi! Just read the written thoughts by your students, Mr Miller. Their vivid descriptions of the Ancient City makes me “see” the place. It takes learning and practice to be able to express ideas well in both oral and written form. Thanks for giving this opportunity to the young ladies and gents in your class.
Hi
I really like the description your students used Mr. Miller. When I was Reading the Wordle I felt like I was in ancient Babylon trying to have merchandise sold to me with soldiers walking past.
Zach from Huzzah
Hello Zach,
Hello this is Michael. Hey I am from The Atom Smashers (a group blog on Mr.Miller’s Blog). If you visit my blog you will see a lot of post those are from previous writers. There are five people in my group blog. This project was great fun to imagine yourself in the position that some people were in about 3,500. Using these words to describe what we were looking at. Why is your blog called Huzzah?
From,
Michael
Wow! I almost felt as if I was in Babylon! I think that you guys did a really great job on this project. I could almost feel the desert sun beating down on my arms. Are you going to post more about Babylon on your blog? I hope you do. You know, I read a book that has a setting in it that seems almost like Babylon. The name of this book is called ARTEMIS FOWL the time paradox ( the 6th book ). Hope to hear from you, Meghan
Hi my name is kyle.You are right I have read Artemis fowl and when I learned about Babylonian I thought about Artemis fowl the books are great.Right back please.I like learning about the old days because it makes me think about how hard they had it. To risk their own life for millions of others.Also I like to learn how they fought.
What a great way to make history come alive! As I read this, I can almost feel the heat and the dust and hear the babble of the marketplace . . . .
Hello thank-you for that reply.I looked at your website and seemed interesting. I also have a blog. It is called P3AC3 L0v3& CUpCAK3s !! It is a group blog with four other students. Wow you are very busy. My class is also in the blogging challenge and I hope to be in the next one . Once again thanks for the reply.
http://room162e.edublogs.org/.