The role of tax in ancient societies

SubjectHistory YearYear 7 CurriculumAC v9.0 Time200

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Introduction

Students collaboratively investigate the role of taxes in one ancient society. This research task can be applied to any ancient society students are studying including:
  •  
  • Mediterranean world – Egypt, Greece or Rome
  • Asia world – India or China

Students develop questions to investigate and then work in groups to investigate the who, what, how and why of tax in the ancient society they are studying. Groups communicate their findings as a museum display and students individually develop a historical explanation and a bibliography of the sources they consulted.

Australian Curriculum or Syllabus

Achievement standard

By the end of Year 7, students describe the historical significance of the ancient past and the histories of early First Nations Peoples of Australia. They identify the causes and effects of events, developments and achievements connected to groups and individuals in Australia and other societies from the ancient past. Students describe the social, religious, cultural, economic, environmental and/or political aspects related to changes and continuities in these societies. They identify the roles and achievements of significant individuals and groups, and the influences on the development of ancient societies. Students explain the importance of heritage sites connected to Australia and other societies from the ancient past.

Students develop questions about the past. They locate and identify primary and secondary sources as evidence in historical inquiry. They describe the origin, content, context and purpose of primary and secondary sources. Students identify the accuracy and usefulness of sources as evidence. They sequence events and developments to describe causes and effects, and continuities and changes across societies and periods of time. They describe the perspectives, attitudes and values of the past in sources. They identify and describe historical interpretations about significant events and people. Students use historical knowledge, concepts, terms and evidence from sources to create descriptions, explanations and historical arguments.

Content descriptions

Historical Knowledge and Understanding

Key beliefs, values and practices of an ancient society, with a particular emphasis on one of the following areas: everyday life, warfare, or death and funerary customs. (AC9HH7K11)

Historical Skills

Develop historical questions about the past to inform historical inquiry. (AC9HH7S01)

Locate and identify primary and secondary sources to use in historical inquiry. (AC9HH7S02)

Identify perspectives, attitudes and values of the past in sources. (AC9HH7S06)

Create descriptions, explanations and historical arguments, using historical knowledge, concepts and terms that reference evidence from sources. (AC9HH7S08)

 

Teacher resources

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Visualiser

Writing paragraphs in History

Student learning resources

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Model

Bibliography example for History

 
How to

Writing a bibliography in History

 
Investigation

Class museum of tax

 
Worksheet

Sources recording table

 
How to

Writing paragraphs in History

Suggested activity sequence

This sequence is intended as a framework to be modified and adapted by teachers to suit the needs of a class group.

  1. Select an appropriate ancient society for students to investigate.
  2. Explain to students that they will be:
    • conducting a group investigation
    • creating a museum display illustrating the role of tax in the ancient society they are studying
    • developing a historical explanation
    • writing a bibliography of the references they consulted.
  3. Brainstorm as a class what information students might need to find out about the role of taxation in the ancient society students are studying.
  4. Use a grouping strategy to organise students into groups of 4.
  5. Students collaboratively complete part 1 and part 2 of the investigation. To complete the task, groups will need the recording table. Groups should be given at least 3 lessons for research and 3 lessons to create their museum display.
  6. Explicitly teach how paragraphs are structured using the Writing paragraphs in History – Visualiser and/or refer students to How to write paragraphs in History – Model.
  7. Students individually complete part 3 of the research task. They will need:
  8. Students write a historical explanation of the role of tax in the ancient society they investigated and construct a bibliography listing the sources they consulted.