Year 3 - History
The mysteries of the Indus Valley civilisation
The Indus Valley civilisation: What have archaeologists found out about it?
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Study Guides
This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.
Unit Summary
These units analyse the way in which archaeologists have found out about the Indus Valley Civilisation and the Shang dynasty. Whichever unit is chosen, pupils examine the archaeological record of an early civilisation and develop their knowledge of what claims are based on these remains.
Lesson Summary
You will learn to describe some of the mysteries that still remain about the Indus Valley Civilisation.
Key Notes
- Archaeologists do not understand everything about the Indus Valley civilisation because we cannot read their writing.
- There is no evidence of how these places were ruled or governed, but they were clearly very well organised.
- Their religion is a mystery to us, although they made lots of figurines that may have been offered to gods.
- There are pictures of figures with horns or controlling animals, which historians know other Asian people believed in.
- There are buildings that archaeologists thought were granaries, but now aren't sure because no grain has been found.
Vocabulary To Learn
- mystery: a mystery is something that we aren't able to explain yet
- figurine: a small statue or model of a person is called a figurine
- granary: a granary is a large building used to store grain from the harvest
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- Pupils might think that it will never be possible to read the ancient Indus Valley civilisation script.
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Summarise this historical learning in two key ideas.
Archaeologists do not understand everything about the Indus Valley civilisation because we cannot read their writing. There is no evidence of how these places were ruled or governed, but they were clearly very well organised.
2. Define this history term and explain why it matters in this topic. 'mystery'
a mystery is something that we aren't able to explain yet.
3. Correct this common history misconception using evidence language.
Mistake: Pupils might think that it will never be possible to read the ancient Indus Valley civilisation script. Correction: A new discovery similar to the Rosetta Stone could unlock the key to deciphering the writing and help to solve some of the mysteries!
More Lessons In This Unit
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