My students are beginning their study of mesopotamia in their social studies class. What activities/writings/readings can I do to reinforce this material in my language arts class? Any writing portfolio ideas?
They could write their own version of Hammurabi's Code for modern day? They could create their own pictogram stories - perhaps using magazine photos and captions to tell a present day news story? Or a modern day Epic of Gilgamesh using the major themes of that poem to describe their own quest for the meaning of life?
I like Ludmilla Zeman's picture book trilogy of the epic of Gilgamesh. They are wonderful read-alouds and the pictures are gorgeous, done very well in the Sumerian/'Mesopotamian style.
Great ideas! I'm going to start my Mesopotamia unit right after I finish up early humans! I'll use a couple of these!