Ancient India – The British Museum
The British Museum’s online offerings are impressive. The Ancient Civilizations websites highlights achievements of some remarkable world civilizations and explores cross-cultural themes of human development. Explore the people, culture, beliefs, and history of ancient India using animations, 3D models and objects from The British Museum’s collections.
Daily Life in Ancient India
Teacher Don Donn of the Corkran (Maryland) Middle School provides complete units on various historical topics with daily lesson plans and resources. The numerous lesson plans and resources available at this popular site have been developed by Mr. Donn and other contributors. Lessons cover: The Mysterious Indus Civilization 3000-1500 BCE, Aryan Civilization Daily Life 1500-500 BCE, Vedic Period 1500-1000 BCE, Epics Period 1000 – 500 BCE, and Age of Empires Daily Life 500 BCE-700 CE. Lessons are most appropriate for students in grades 5-8.
SikhNet
This website provides a large list of links to useful videos, articles and primary sources about Sikh History, such as Women in Sikh History and an archive of resources on the 1947 Partition.
Harappa
This is a very helpful site for learning about the Indus Valley and the Indus culture. It has many slide shows, pictures, photographs, and details concerning the culture and heritage and places of the Indus Valley. Three are six category links named Images, Indus news 3, Movies, Sound, Indus Valley, and Bazaar.
Mr. Dowling’s Electronic Passport: India and the Himalayas
Mr. Dowling’s Electronic Passport helps kids browse the world in his virtual classroom. He introduces you to many civilizations with clear explanations, engaging graphics for kids, and “cool links”. His study guides, homework assignments and exams are free and available for you to print or to edit.
BBC: India Facts
A concise “fact box” that includes information on India’s population, religions, languages, etc.
“Hindu-Muslim Violence Imperils India,” TIME.com
A good description of the historical significance of the holy site in Ayodhya, and how extreme violence has been justified by both Hindus and Muslims in the name of preserving holy sites for their people.
“Religious Tension Hangs Heavy in Sacred Hindu City,” Christian Science Monitor
An excellent article about the fear among Indians in Mathura, a town with its own disputed holy site.
“Analysis: Why Is Gujarat So Violent?” BBC News
A brief overview of the history of violence in the state of Gujarat. Also addresses the rise of Hindu nationalism in the past 20 years.
Architecture of India
Rated as the Web’s Best Site for “Architecture of India” by Encyclopaedia Britannica
Lesson Plans, Teacher Guides, Activities, and more
Classroom Activities about India
Classroom Activities about India are written by Fullbright scholars who traveled to India in 1998. Some of the lesson topics (Arranged Marriages, Education in India) compare/contrast Indian and American cultures and should appeal to students. In the Arranged Marriages lesson you’ll find interesting Indian advertisements for brides. “What is Sacred?” compares and contrasts the places considered sacred in US and Indian culture. Eye for an Eye is about teaching Modern Indian History through the film Gandhi. Education in India examines four Indian schools the scholars visited. There is also a “Self-Directed Exploration of Hindu Mythology” aimed at younger students.
Asia Society Education Resources
The Asia Society makes a variety of resources available to teachers. The Countries section also has a page on India to provide additional information.
The Ramayana in Southeast India
Grade 6 students are instructed to write a shadow puppet scene drawn from a Southeast Asian variant of the Ramayana to perform in class and to work collaboratively on a class sewing project to construct a Ramayana story cloth in the tradition of Southeast Asia.
Ramayana: Connecting Communication Arts and Social Studies
These lessons are taken from Spotlight on Ramayana: An Enduring Tradition, a curriculum guide published by the American Forum.
India/Pakistan Dispute over Kashmir
Four day mini-unit debate for Grade 9.
Brief Review in Global History and Geography: Document Based Essays and Practice Tests
PH@School’s Brief Review in Global History and Geography Web site provides multiple-choice questions from actual Regents exams. You can also practice your test-taking skills on document-based essay questions (DBQs), with the option of e-mailing answers directly to your teacher for review.
Monsoons: A Key to Understanding India
This lesson plans uses water and weather as a conduit for teaching students about life in India.