Ancient Civilizations (Grade 6) Midterm — Quick Check, Units 1–3

Part 1: Multiple Choice

1. The cave paintings at Lascaux, France, were made during which period?
   1. A. The Paleolithic era
   2. B. The Iron Age
   3. C. The Neolithic era
   4. D. The Bronze Age
2. Before farming began, most Paleolithic people lived as what?
   1. A. Merchants in walled cities
   2. B. Ranchers on fenced land
   3. C. Nomadic hunter-gatherers
   4. D. Farmers in large villages
3. What does it mean to domesticate a plant or animal?
   1. A. To trade it with other groups
   2. B. To paint pictures of it in caves
   3. C. To hunt it until it disappears
   4. D. To tame or raise it for human use
4. What does the name "Mesopotamia" mean?
   1. A. Land of the pharaohs
   2. B. Land of the rising sun
   3. C. Land between the rivers
   4. D. Land of many mountains
5. What was a ziggurat in Sumerian city-states?
   1. A. A stone marketplace
   2. B. A wall around the city
   3. C. A large stepped temple
   4. D. A royal burial pyramid
6. What was the writing system developed by the Sumerians called?
   1. A. Cuneiform
   2. B. Sanskrit
   3. C. Hieroglyphics
   4. D. The Greek alphabet
7. Why was the Nile River so important to ancient Egypt?
   1. A. It kept Egypt divided into rival kingdoms
   2. B. It protected Egypt from all outside trade
   3. C. It flowed into the Persian Gulf for trade
   4. D. Its yearly floods left rich soil for farming
8. How did the Rosetta Stone help historians?
   1. A. It helped scholars decode hieroglyphics
   2. B. It showed where pharaohs were buried
   3. C. It recorded the length of the Nile
   4. D. It explained how pyramids were built
9. The Nile flows from south to north. Where was Upper Egypt located?
   1. A. In the east
   2. B. In the south
   3. C. In the north
   4. D. In the west
10. According to tradition, which ruler first united Upper and Lower Egypt?
    1. A. Menes
    2. B. Khufu
    3. C. Tutankhamun
    4. D. Ramses II