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课件网) Unit 5 Into the unknown Understanding ideas Learning Objective To understand the brilliant achievements of Maya civilization, and find out the possible reasons for the decline and disappearance of Maya civilization, perceive the language characteristics of the text, and grasp the structure and context of the text Look at the pictures and answer the questions. Do further research if necessary. 1. What do you know about these ancient civilisations 2. What might be the reasons behind their collapse 3. What other ancient civilisations do you know of Share what you know with the class. Pre-reading 1. What do you know about these ancient civilisations Ancient Greece has a long history which was made up of many Greek city-states. The ancient Greeks believed in gods, goddesses, and magical creatures. The Greeks built temples to honor their gods. They told wonderful myths about their gods. Ancient Babylon was a massive walled city, and everyone lived inside the walled city. Laws of Babylon were famous. To ensure that the laws were followed by everyone, one of the kings of Babylon had the laws written down on stone so that everyone would be treated equally under the law. Ancient Egypt had advanced science and technology for the time. Ancient Egyptians built a lot of grand Pyramids, which were the tombs of their kings. Ancient Egyptians left many works of art, which reflected the collective effort. The colors of the paintings in the rock tombs looked fresh and vivid. 2. What might be the reasons behind their collapse It might be the wars that led to their collapse. They were conquered by other empires. 3. What other ancient civilisations do you know of Share what you know with the class. The Mayan Indians lived in Mexico for thousands of years. Ancient Maya The Maya believed in many gods. They built large temples to honor them. Read the passage and find out the possible reasons for the disappearance of Maya civilisation. The way that the Maya people changed the landscape around them may have been one of the reasons behind the disappearance of their civilisation. Turning wetlands into fields for growing grains, digging huge canal systems and cutting down more trees for Fast reading Read the passage and find out the possible reasons for the disappearance of Maya civilisation. construction reduced their ability to cope with natural disasters. When those natural disasters, such as droughts, struck, the Maya would have faced food shortages, conflicts and, eventually, the downfall of their cities. Choose the topic sentences and write them on the lines to complete the passage. a. Maya civilisation has been surrounded by mystery since its rediscovery in the 19th century. b. But the greatest mystery of all is what caused the Maya to abandon most of their great cities. c. Although his theory has been dismissed by scholars, it shows how powerful the secrets of Ancient Maya civilisation are among people. ... ...
