Taylor+B


 * The Silk Road**

Dusty Trails is a travel writer for //Explore// magazine and keenly interested in the Silk Road. A self-proclaimed renaissance man, Mr. Trails enjoys outdoor activities, photography, and attending cultural events. To help Mr. Trails decide which features of the Silk Road he should travel back in time to visit, you'll need to research the Silk Road and present your key findings on the following questions:

= **Key Questions:** =


 * 1) What was the Silk Road? How was the Silk Road created? How was it protected? How were cities and territories connected?
 * 2) What type of goods or ideas- physical, intellectual, or religious- crossed the Silk Road?
 * 3) Why is the Silk Road important to World History? What is the relationship between the Silk Road and the Han Dynasty and Roman Empire?

=Resources= Your research will be confined to the following web resources and library databases. If you wish to use a resource not on this list you must seek approval from your teacher.

**The Silk Road**
 * []
 * []
 * [|http://www.ess.uci.edu/~oliver/silk.html]
 * [|http://www.ess.uci.edu/~oliver/silk2.html]
 * []


 * Library Databases **
 * @http://www.micdslibrary.com/databases.html

Scroll down to the History/Social Studies menu; the ABCCLIO Ancient World History database is particularly helpful.

=Research and Citations= Use the space below to record your research for each question. Remember that you will need to cite your sources using the format found on the MICDS Library resource page.

What was the Silk Road?
=== The Silk Road was the most well known trade route in ancient China. It passed through deserts and mountains which made it very difficult and dangerous to travel along. Merchants traveled along the route in caravans filled with goods to sell. Along the route there were trading posts to stop and sell your items because most people did not go the entire length. It is about 5,000 to 7,000 miles long. The Silk Road started in places around Changan, the capitol city of ancient China, and ended in places by the Mediterranean like Antioch and Tyre. Silk was the most remarkable item traded but there were many other goods traded too. The Silk Road started under the Han Dynasty and declined under the T 'ang Dynasty because traveling and trading by water was safer and faster. ===

How was the Silk Road created?
=== It started when Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty wanted to form an alliance with Central Asia. Wu sent his general Zhang Qian there to convince the people of Central Asia that they should create an alliance. Qian was captured and brought west. When he finally returned he told everybody about the amazing goods people had in the west. Wu then decided that they should make a route to communicate with the west. Later military strength allowed the Han Dynasty to extend the road further into the Western World. ===

How was it protected?
=== After merchants had been already traveling the Silk Road bandits and robbers realized that these caravans carrying valuables were not protected they started to attack and raid the caravans. People soon realized that something had to be done. So, for protection walls and forts were built and in some areas the military protected the route. The protection made the Silk Road even more popular than ever. ===

How were cities and territories connected?
===The cities and territories along the Silk Road were connected visibly and by cultures. The cities were connected by the dirt road that stretched about 5,000 miles. You can visibly see that the cities and territories were connected. The Silk Road also connected the different cities by culture. Culture connected many places along the Silk Road because places like Rome had pieces of the culture in India. Some parts of the cultures that connected the different cities are religion, language, social structure, economy, technology, and many more parts. The Silk Road was very important and connected cities in two main ways.=== === What type of goods or ideas- physical, intellectual, or religious- crossed the Silk Road? === === The Silk Road was named after the most popular item that was traded, which was silk. Some other goods are fur, bamboo, medicine, pottery, foods, metals, and many more items. Also religion was traded. Religion was probably one of the most significant ideas that was spread throughout the Silk Road. Religion spread because of trading and communication between the merchants. Some religions that spread are Islam, Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Nestorianism, Manichaeism, and many others. Also music and language were passed on by traders. It was the traveling merchants jobs to keep religion, culture, and other ideas spreading. Those were the two main things that crossed the Silk Road, ideas and goods. ===

=== Why is the Silk Road important to World History? What is the relationship between the Silk Road and the Han Dynasty and Roman Empir e? === ===The Silk Road was and still is very important to World History because it was an easy way communicate and spread ideas, inventions, goods, and religions. Spreading cultures and communicating was very significant because it shows that different civilizations and people interacted with each other. The relationship between the Silk Road and the Han Dynasty and the Roman Empire is that even though they were so far apart bits of each culture ended up about 6,000 miles away from where it was "born".===

Similarities and Differences
Before deciding which dynasty your client should visit, you may wish to create a simple Venn Diagram to compare/contrast the two empires. You may use [|this template] or create one online at Read-Write-Think.

Which empire should Mr. Trails, a travel writer, visit? Why?
= **Travel Poster Components:** =

The travel poster should be attractive, persuasive, and highlight the major features of the Silk Road as they relate to each empire. You will create the poster using Glogster.edu (instructions will be provided in class) and it should contain the following components:

__**Travel Poster Components**__
 * 1) One Glogster.edu poster for the Silk Road
 * 2) At least six "must see" tourist destinations/features with detailed text and relevant images
 * 3) At least two audio recordings

//Note: For the Silk Road, "destinations/features" may be physical, intellectual, or religious.//

The **[|Poster Rubric]** will be used to evaluate your work; you should refer to it before handing in your final product. When you have completed the poster, embed it below the "Travel Poster" heading below:

Travel Postermedia type="custom" key="6215539"
= **Oral Presentation Guidelines** = The presentation is your opportunity to explain why the Silk Road is an ideal tourist destination and should follow these guidelines:


 * 1) Less than 3 minutes in length
 * 2) Should address/explain the "must see" features of the Silk Road
 * 3) Should explain why the client should visit these features

This presentation is about speaking skills and the use of your poster. You will be permitted to use notecards but are NOT to simply read your notes to the audience. The **[|Presentation Rubric]** will be used to evaluate your work; you should refer to it before giving your final presentation.