a. Physical and political geography of Central and South Asia
1. On a physical map of the world, use cardinal directions, map scales, key/legend, and title to locate Central and South Asia. On a topographic map of Central and South Asia locate important physical features of the region (e.g. the Indian Ocean, the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal, the Ganges River, the Indo-Gangetic Plain, the Northern Mountains, the Khyber Pass, the Deccan Plateau, the Himalayan Mountains, and the Steppes). Use other kinds of maps (e.g., landform, population, climate) to determine important characteristics of this region.
2. On a political map of the region, demonstrate map reading skills to distinguish countries, capitals, and other cities and to describe their absolute location (using latitude and longitude coordinates) and relative location (relationship to other countries, cities, or bodies of water); use knowledge of maps to complement information gained from text about a city, country or region.
3. Explain how absolute and relative locations, major physical characteristics, climate and natural resources in this region have influenced settlement patterns, population size, and economies of the countries.
b. Early Indian and Central Asian civilizations, religions, and cultures
Supporting question: What was the most significant contribution of early societies in India and Central Asia to mathematics, science, the arts, and technology in the modern world?
1. Explain the ways in which early Indian and Central Asian societies interacted with East African, Western Asian, and European societies (e.g., by conquest, trade, colonization, diffusion of religion, language, and culture).
2. Describe important economic, political, and religious developments in Indian and Central Asian history and evaluate the ways in which they conform to or differ from developments in societies in other regions of the world.
a. the origins of Indian society in the Indus Valley, c. 3000–1300 BCE
b. the evolution and central principles of Hinduism
c. the teachings of Gautama Buddha in India in the 6th to 4th centuries BCE
d. the Mauryan Empire in the 4th to 2nd centuries BCE and the role of the Emperor Ashoka adopting Buddhism’s moral teachings and the philosophy of non-violence and supporting Buddhist missionaries in North Africa, Central and Southeast Asia, and Mediterranean Europe; the Gupta Empire in the 3rd to 6th centuries CE, sometimes referred to as the “Golden Age of India,” and its Sanskrit classic literature and art
e. the development of the caste system in India
f. achievements in art, architecture, technology, astronomy, and mathematics
g. the role topography and geography played in making trade along the several routes of the Silk Road viable and lucrative; connections through trade routes to Africa, Europe, and China