6th Grade Social Studies
Country Reports
Bastion (optional) Bastions differ from medieval towers in a number of respects. Bastions are lower than towers and are normally of similar height to the adjacent curtain wall. The height of towers, although making them difficult to scale, also made them easy for artillery to destroy. A bastion would normally have a ditch in front, the opposite side of which would be built up above the natural level then slope away gradually.
Turrets (optional): a small tower rising above and resting on one of the main towers, usually used as a look out point
Towers (required): They of medieval castles were usually made of stone or sometimes (but rarely) wood. Often toward the later part of the era they included battlements and arrow loops.
Outer Curtain Wall (required): wall surrounding the entire castle
Drawbridge (required): This was a wooden bridge in front of the main gate of the castle. In the early centuries of castles it was moved horizontal to the ground and in the later centuries it was built so it could raise up in a hinged fashion.
Arrow Loops (optional): These were slots in the walls and structures that were used to shoot arrows through. They came in a wide variety of shapes and sizes
Battlements (optional): These are the structures at the tops of the walls surrounding a castle. Picture what you have seen in the movies where archers are at the top of the wall and firing arrows between open slots down on the attackers. These shapes at the top (Where the archers position themselves for battle) are called battlements.
Courtyard (required): The open area within the curtain walls of a castle.
Curtain Wall (required): Stonewalls around a castle.
Gatehouse (required): A strongly built and fortified main entrance to a castle. It often has a guardhouse and or living quarters.
Keep (required): This definition changed slightly over the centuries of castle building. In the early years of stone castle building the Keep was a standalone structure that could be defended and often square in shape. Over the centuries these structures were improved upon and built around. Thus a castle was made that was a larger and more complex structure. The main tower that this was built around was still called the Keep and it was usually the tallest and strongest structure in the castle. It was also used as the last line of defense during siege or attack.
Portcullis (optional): This is a metal or wood grate that was dropped vertically just inside the main gate to the castle.
Postern (optional): A small gate at the back of a castle. Often considered to be a "Back Door".
Rampart (optional): Picture the battlements in the previous definition. The battlements are the top sections of the outer wall of the castle. Now to access these battlements the archers would stand on a walk way that was a wall in it's own right. This walkway is built right up against the outer wall and is called the Rampart.
Links to Christmas
Christmas Around the World-Winter Solstice
Country Reports
- 1. Prehistoric Times
- 2. The Rise of Civilization
- 3. Ancient Egypt
- 4. Ancient Greece
- 5. Ancient Rome
- 6. Middle Ages
- Castle Project-Idea
Bastion (optional) Bastions differ from medieval towers in a number of respects. Bastions are lower than towers and are normally of similar height to the adjacent curtain wall. The height of towers, although making them difficult to scale, also made them easy for artillery to destroy. A bastion would normally have a ditch in front, the opposite side of which would be built up above the natural level then slope away gradually.
Turrets (optional): a small tower rising above and resting on one of the main towers, usually used as a look out point
Towers (required): They of medieval castles were usually made of stone or sometimes (but rarely) wood. Often toward the later part of the era they included battlements and arrow loops.
Outer Curtain Wall (required): wall surrounding the entire castle
Drawbridge (required): This was a wooden bridge in front of the main gate of the castle. In the early centuries of castles it was moved horizontal to the ground and in the later centuries it was built so it could raise up in a hinged fashion.
Arrow Loops (optional): These were slots in the walls and structures that were used to shoot arrows through. They came in a wide variety of shapes and sizes
Battlements (optional): These are the structures at the tops of the walls surrounding a castle. Picture what you have seen in the movies where archers are at the top of the wall and firing arrows between open slots down on the attackers. These shapes at the top (Where the archers position themselves for battle) are called battlements.
Courtyard (required): The open area within the curtain walls of a castle.
Curtain Wall (required): Stonewalls around a castle.
Gatehouse (required): A strongly built and fortified main entrance to a castle. It often has a guardhouse and or living quarters.
Keep (required): This definition changed slightly over the centuries of castle building. In the early years of stone castle building the Keep was a standalone structure that could be defended and often square in shape. Over the centuries these structures were improved upon and built around. Thus a castle was made that was a larger and more complex structure. The main tower that this was built around was still called the Keep and it was usually the tallest and strongest structure in the castle. It was also used as the last line of defense during siege or attack.
Portcullis (optional): This is a metal or wood grate that was dropped vertically just inside the main gate to the castle.
Postern (optional): A small gate at the back of a castle. Often considered to be a "Back Door".
Rampart (optional): Picture the battlements in the previous definition. The battlements are the top sections of the outer wall of the castle. Now to access these battlements the archers would stand on a walk way that was a wall in it's own right. This walkway is built right up against the outer wall and is called the Rampart.
- 7. Renaissance
- 8. Revolutions
- a. Scientific Revolution
- Galileo Galilei in a Nutshell
b. French Revolution
Khan Academy: The French Revolution
Kids Konnect: French Revolution Facts
Kids Past: The French Revolution
French Revolution in a Nutshell
c. The Enlightenment
d. King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette
Angelfire: Louis the XVI
Eyewitness to History: The Execution of Louis XVI
e.Bastille Day
Social Studies for Kids: Bastille Day
f. Robespierre and the Reign of Terror
g. Napoleon Bonaparte - 9. World Wars I & II
- PBS World War I
TedED-World War 1 in 6 minutes - WWII Legends of Flight
- 5 Day Lesson WWII Webquest
- 10. Current Events
- 11. Hill Air Force Base
- 12. U.S. Decades
- 13. Where in the World
Links to Christmas
Christmas Around the World-Winter Solstice