The Big Idea Activity

What makes empires rise and fall?

TV Interview

Students working on the Activity


Team up with a classmate. The two of you will create a TV interview in which you will play a TV host and your classmate will play a politician. As the interviewer, you will ask the politician how his or her ideas of government have been influenced by the ancient Romans. You might need to research and write down the politician’s answers before having the interview! California Standard 6.7 Students analyze the geographic, political, economic, religious, and social structures during the development of Rome.

Research RoadmapPrint the Research Roadmap. Use it to take notes and hand it in to your teacher when you make your presentation.

 

Topic Finder

Need help finding a topic? Explore these ideas for research...California Political Candidates.

Case Study

Here's an example of a topic you could choose for the Big Idea Activity: What Role Should People Have in Government? Through its history, Rome had several different kinds of government. The Roman republic had a constitution which split the rule among different representatives. The two main groups of people who were represented were patricians and plebeians. The group you belonged to was determined by whether or not your family was among the nobles. The right to vote was limited to citizens, but not everyone who lived in Rome was a citizen. Only men who owned land and met other conditions could become citizens. The rules about citizenship changed over time.

Fun Facts The early Roman Empire had two consuls who shared power. If one consul thought the other was getting too powerful he could veto the other consul's actions. We get our word "veto" from the Latin word which means "I forbid."

 
 

How has technology changed your life? Create a timeline about how people send and recive messages. Be sure to include the latest trends—E-mail and Instant Messages!

Timeline of the U.S. Postal Service

Explore an Internet Timeline

 
 

Ancient Rome

The Geography of Ancient Rome

Geography determines the best places to start a settlement. How did the location of Rome provide a safe and prosperous place to live?

Early Rome

The development of early Rome was influenced by a number of different cultures. How did the Greek civilization affect the Romans?

The Rise of the Republic

A number of bodies shared the control of the government of the Roman Republic. This balanced the interests of different groups of people. Compare the organization of the Roman government to that of our federal government.

The Republic Falls

The author of this Web site lists four steps to the fall of the Roman Republic. Can you think of differences between the United States and the Roman Republic that would prevent these four steps from taking place in the United States?

The Roman Empire

The Beginnings of the Roman Empire

The emperor of Rome did not have all of the power. On this Web site, you can investigate other parts of the government of the early Roman Empire. How does it compare to our government?

The Height of the Roman Empire

Governments are responsible for the networks of communication and transportation that connect different parts of the nation. How did the Roman road system help keep the empire strong?

Daily Life in the Roman Empire

The government affects how people live. How do laws and government policies affect the lives of different people in different ways?

The Fall of Rome

The Rise of Christianity

Because religion is important to people's lives, it is also important to their governments. How did the influence of religion change during Rome's history?

Rome Declines

Many people have come up with reasons why the Roman Empire declined. Which of these ideas seems most likely to you and which seems least likely?

The Byzantine Empire

How did Byzantium continue some of the traditions and laws of the Roman Empire and how did it replace some of them?