The mysteries of the Indus Valley civilisation
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can describe some of the mysteries that still remain about the Indus Valley Civilisation.
Key learning points
- 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.
Keywords
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 misconception
Pupils might think that it will never be possible to read the ancient Indus Valley civilisation script.
A new discovery similar to the Rosetta Stone could unlock the key to deciphering the writing and help to solve some of the mysteries!
Teacher tip
Pupils could create figurines of people or things important to them in their lives to help them understand why the ancient civilisations made their figurines.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Historians can read the ancient writing of the people of the Indus Valley.
Q2.A brownish-red mineral that was often used to make jewellery is called...
Q3.The people of the Indus Valley made art from...
Q4.When something is of great worth or value it is...
Q5.Clay seals with animals and writing on them were...
Q6.The people of the Indus Valley used things they could see around them as inspiration for their...
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Something that we aren't able to explain yet is a...
Q2.Select the things we know about the Indus Valley civilisation.
Q3.Match the discovery to what it tells us about the people of the Indus Valley civilisation.
Q4.Which of these are still mysteries of the Indus Valley civilisation?
Q5.Things like figurines and clay seals give us about the Indus Valley religion.
Q6.Granary circles are a mystery because…
To help you plan your 3 history lesson on: The mysteries of the Indus Valley civilisation, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 3 history lesson on: The mysteries of the Indus Valley civilisation, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 2 history lessons from the The Indus Valley civilisation: What have archaeologists found out about it? unit, dive into the full primary history curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.