New
New
Year 3

Who were the Shang?

I can describe some of the features of the Shang and where they lived.

New
New
Year 3

Who were the Shang?

I can describe some of the features of the Shang and where they lived.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. The Shang Dynasty began c.1600 BCE in the Yellow River Valley, later than the other major ancient civilisations.
  2. Like in Mesopotamia and Egypt, the Shang exploited the fertile land they lived in for extensive agriculture.
  3. Like in Mesopotamia and Egypt, the Shang built major cities including Anyang and Zhengzhou.
  4. Much like the Ancient Egyptians, bronze weaponry helped the Shang to build and maintain an empire.

Keywords

  • Yellow River - the Yellow River is a large river that flows from central to eastern China

  • Empire - an empire is a group of nations or peoples under one ruler

Common misconception

Pupils may think that all these ancient civilisations existed at separate times.

Although beginning thousands of years apart, by the time of the Shang Dynasty, the Ancient Sumerian, Ancient Egyptian and Indus Valley civilisations were still going!

Alongside Task B, students could also design and draw a Shang Dynasty style city using what they have learned in this lesson.
Teacher tip

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
The tomb of Fu Hao contained almost __________ objects.
100
200
1000
Correct answer: 2000
Q2.
Fu Hao’s tomb was found in which country?
Correct answer: China
Pakistan
India
Egypt
Q3.
Select all the different types of objects found in the tomb.
Correct answer: bone
Correct answer: jade
paper
Correct answer: bronze
Correct answer: shell
Q4.
The hard green stone used for making jewellery and other objects is called...
Correct Answer: jade
Q5.
Put the following into the correct order.
1 - People lived in the ancient Indus Valley cities.
2 - Fu Hao was a warrior queen in the Shang Dynasty.
3 - The tomb of Fu Hao was discovered in China.
Q6.
Fu Hao was a queen and an important army general of the Shang Dynasty.
Correct answer: True
False

6 Questions

Q1.
Put these civilisations into chronological order, starting with the one that began the earliest.
1 - Ancient Sumerian civilisation
2 - Ancient Egyptian and Indus Valley civilisations
3 - Shang Dynasty
Q2.
The Shang Dynasty was an empire.
Correct answer: True
False
Q3.
The Shang Dynasty began around the River.
Correct Answer: Yellow, yellow
Q4.
Select the features of Shang Dynasty cities.
No walls
Correct answer: Palaces in the middle
Correct answer: Water ditches from the Yellow River
Correct answer: Thick walls
Q5.
weapons and armour helped the Shang Dynasty to defend their empire.
Correct Answer: Bronze, bronze
Q6.
The Shang Dynasty lasted for over __________ years.
Correct answer: 500
5000
50,000

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