Teacher's Guide for CALLIOPE: Song Dynasty

December 2002

Teacher guide was prepared by Gloria W. Lannom, a regular contributor to CALLIOPE®.

Let's start by looking at the map on page 2 and the timeline on page 3. The Song Dynasty is divided into two parts, Northern and Southern.

What are the dates of the Northern Song? (A.D. 960 - 1127) What was the capital? (Kaifeng) Find it on the map.What are the dates of the Southern Song? (A.D. 1127 - 1276) What was the capital? (Hangzhou) Find it on the map.

Read the article titled "An Age of Inventions" and fill in the blanks in the following sentences:

To become doctors or civil servants men were required to pass _______. (examinations)

In the Song Dynasty, people used money made of ______, a Chinese invention. (paper) Look at page 34 to see what other materials were used for currency. (iron, copper) What advantages did paper have? (lightweight, more convenient to carry)

The Chinese developed a system called ________, meaning wind and water, which is still used today to determine the flows of cosmic energy and therefore to establish the best place to put a house, garden, or tomb for good fortune. (fengshui) What is the Chinese word for cosmic energy? (qi)

_________ was one of the most important inventions of the Song Dynasty. (gunpowder)

In addition to its military use, the Song Chinese used it to treat _______, ________, and ______ and also to kill ________. (sores, ringworm, fevers; insects)

The high-fired ceramic developed during the Song is _________. (porcelain)

The first true _______ for determining the four directions was made during the Song. (compass) What are the four directions? (north, east, south, west) In order to make a compass, it is necessary to understand the science of _________. (magnetism) What naturally magnetized mineral did the Chinese use to magnetize iron? (lodestone)

Look at the article on page 8 to find out how the first Song emperor unified the various parts of China and laid the groundwork for a dynasty that lasted for more than 300 years. (He separated political power from military power with himself as controller of both.) What is a dynasty? (a period in which a single family is in power)

WHO WERE THEY? You will have to look through the whole issue to find these important people! Notice that their family names appear first while our family names follow our first names.

Ye Shi (Southern Song scholar, A.D. 1150 - 1223). What did he say about government? (see page 3)

Li Qingzhao (famous female poet)

Su Song (inventor of the mechanical clock)

Zhao Kuangyin (founder of the Song Dynasty)

Huizong (Northern Song emperor)

Gaozong (Southern Song emperor)

(By the way, these two names are those they received after they died. Their family name was Zhao, the same as that of Zhao Kuangyin, the founder of the dynasty.)

Zhu Xi (most famous Song Neo-Confucian thinker)

Ma Yuan (Southern Song landscape artist)

During the Song, China's border territories were invaded by foreign enemies. Who were the Khitans? Who were the Jurchens? (nomadic groups who controlled the northern part of Song China and formed the Jin Dynasty)

Which of the following is true?

During the Song Dynasty, Buddhism was a. thriving, b. in decline, c. outlawed. (b.)

During the Song Dynasty, scholars and thinkers argued for a return to the teachings of a. Confucius, b. Buddha, c. Laozi. (a.)

Describe the arguments raised in support of Confucianism and against Buddhism. (The Chinese should follow Chinese teachings about duty and respect in the family and in society. Buddhism was a foreign religion and the Buddha did not understand what was best for the Chinese.)

Look at the article titled "Women's Lives in the Song Dynasty," page 26. Where did upper class Song women receive education? (at home) Since they could not become civil servants working for the government, why were they educated? (so that they could help teach their sons who would take the examinations for civil service that led to official positions) This issue mentions one Song woman who became very famous in her own right. What is her name? (Li Qingzhao, mentioned above in the section called WHO WERE THEY?)

What was the main reason for Song prosperity? (page 32 - agricultural develoment which contributed to the growth of commerce and trade)

The Song Dynasty finally came to an end for various reasons. What was the main cause of the downfall? (the arrival of the Mongols) Who was their leader? (Khubilai Khan) What was the name of the dynasty that the Mongols founded with Khubilai Khan as its first emperor? (Yuan)

Read the article on landscape painting during the Song Dynasty, p. 42. Why did the style change from scenes of monumental landscape to small vistas? (When the Northern Song fell and the court and government moved to Hangzhou, the painters saw a different kind of countryside. Instead of the huge mountainous landscape of the north, they saw a gentler terrain with low hills and streams in the south. We could say that artists were influenced by what they saw around them.)