Lammi Interactive Notebook

A Look at the
Mississippian, Maya,

Aztec and Inca
Civilizations

By:

Bennett Lammi



Multiple-tier timelines use two or more rows of events.
While each row represents a different subject, the time
period is the same.

Multiple-tier timelines can be used to help us look at
cause and effect relationships or patterns and themes
among events in a specific period of time.

We will be using a multi-tier timeline to show the rise
and fall of four early civilizations in the Americas: The
Mississippian, Inca, Maya, and Aztec and look for
RELATIONSHIPS between the dates.

The
Mississippians

IImage 1

https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1CASMAF_enUS837&tbm=isch&q=mound&backchip=g_1:burial:eAlM0hBhahE%3D&chips=q:mound&usg=AI4_-kS9CvyVpNt8Fjnv2bSPBNQoDHLRtQ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiW9-eywc3gAhVDyoMKHSrSB9EQ3VYIJSgA

Image 2 (Three Sisters!)

Image 3

The Mississippians were a homocultural people in
the early AD. There culture involved the chiefs and
the Sun being gods, amongst some others. Their
government structure had chiefs leading
chiefdoms, made up of two social classes, Elites
and Commoners, with the Elites being leaders and
almost nobles, and the commoners lower-class
people taking up jobs such as fishing, farming,
construction, being recruited by their armies, and
so on (including potters). They farmed The Three
Sisters, or squash, beans, and corn, which
cooperate well, and other common edible plants.
They built mounds for spiritual reasons, for living in
or on, or to bury people AND animals sometimes.
The Mississipians lived in most of what is now the
United States, and in a small piece of what is now
Canada. This is my overview of the Mississipians
(or Mound Builders).

Where in the World…
Were the Mississippian Located?

What is the approximate latitude
and longitude of the location you
colored?
What might the weather be like in
this location based on the latitude
and longitude?

What is the approximate latitude and longitude of the location you colored?
40.6331N, 89.3985W (Illinois)
What might the climate be like in this location based on the latitude and longitude?
Some snow in Winter, rain and sun in Other Seasons.
How would this affect the way people live in this area?

They would have to protect their Three Sisters crops in Winter only. Some thick
clothing and insulation in the Winter too.



An Eye? What is
this?

What is the
circle on the
left side of the

drawing?

Why do you
think it was
made? What was
it used for?

Why do you
think they
chose this

shape?

How do you
think they
made this?

Read the Khan Academy article posted in your
Schoology course: Fort Ancient Culture: Great
Serpent Mound. After you read, complete the
page below with your team.

The serpent shape may point
true north, have some religious
meaning, have a use to tell
time, or could document a
solar activity.

Danielle Knight GO Interactive, 2015

Explore the Mississippian links in the Symbaloo posted in your
Schoology course as well as in the books and other resources available
in class to complete this organizer.

What was the government like?
Did powerful relationships exist

between the people and their
leaders?

How was their society set up?
What were the types of jobs
people had? Were the jobs people
did purposeful for the civilization?

Describe their religion. Did the
relationship the people had with
their gods and religious leaders

follow rules?

did the people invent, create,
or trade that allowed them to
exchange ideas or values with
others they had relationships
with?

What was the agriculture like?
What food did they eat? How

did they grow it? What
relationships did the people
have with their environment?



●

●

●
●
●
●
●

The Maya

The Mayan people were a homocultural society
who also hunted on occasion. The Mayan
kingdom was located on the Yucatan Peninsula,
and was made up of many warring city-states.
They used sundials to tell time, and used
knives, spears, bows, and axes to hunt and
fight. Their written language was very complex.
The social standings went from the King,
Priests, Nobles, and Commoners, to slaves.

The Mayans grew the Three Sisters, maize, and
a lot of other plants, including many exotic
fruits.. They used hoes, and shovels. Their
religious sacrifices and other practices were
performed in temples, and they lived in huts.
The Mayan society started to decline at about
900 A.D.

Where in the World…
Were the Maya Located?

Map from ducksters.com What is the approximate latitude and
longitude of the center of the Maya
Empire?
10E 9N

What might the climate be like in this
location based on the latitude and
longitude?
It is near the equator, so it would be
hot. It is near some rainforests, so it
would be wet. It would also be very
humid.

How would this affect the way people
live in this area?
They would need lots of shelter for
the rain, and they could make the
exotic gardens of my dreams. They
would also need thin clothing.

The Mayan Government/
Social Structure

King

The leaders of city-states, they
are influenced slightly by the

priests and nobles.

Priests

The priests influenced the
government, told the future

and were priests.

.Nobles

The nobles influenced the government and
formed councils to judge and help the king

with his decisions.

Military Leaders

The military leaders were called the nacom, and they
lead the military of their respective city-states, and
waged war on the King’s command.

Commoners

The commoners were common, and lived as normal people with pretty
much no control over the government (In sharp contrast with the
near-democracy of ancient Rome)

Overview of Mayan government: The Mayan government was divided into small city-states
with separate governments. Each city-state was ruled by a king, supported by priests and
nobles. The military leaders had less power in the government than the nobles and priests,
but they commanded the military. Of course, no civilization is complete without commoners,
and there were many of them. Also, the general military had a bit more power than the

Mayan Religion Mural

This mural shows a sundial, a
god, the afterlife, and temples, all
of which the Maya valued. This is
a decent mural, I guess.

Mayan Language and
Number Systems

This stelae/codex means (left) my
first name, Bennett, and on the
right, Lammi, my last name.

Explore the Mayan links in the Symbaloo posted in your Schoology
course as well as in the books and other resources available in class to
complete this organizer.

What was the government like?
Did powerful relationships exist

between the people and their
leaders?

How was their society set up?
What were the types of jobs
people had? Were the jobs people
did purposeful for the civilization?

Describe their religion. Did the
relationship the people had with
their gods and religious leaders

follow rules?

did the people invent, create,
or trade that allowed them to
exchange ideas or values with
others they had relationships
with?

What was the agriculture like?
What food did they eat? How

did they grow it? What
relationships did the people
have with their environment?

Ancient Maya
Concept Map

Replace this example with your own concept map!

The Aztec

At the end of this unit,
you will insert at least
three images on this page
that you feel represent
the Aztec people. Delete
this text box when this is
complete.

At the end of this unit, you will write a
well-developed paragraph in this space explaining
what you learned about the Aztec people. You
might want to include who the Aztec people were,
what they valued, how their society was set up, the
relationship generalizations you uncovered while
learning about the people, etc. *Note: Your pictures
on page 4 should relate to this paragraph!

Where in the World…
Were the Aztec Located?

What is the approximate latitude and
longitude of the center of the Aztec Empire?
16N 112W, give/take
Mexico, E- Pacific, W- Atlantic

What might the climate be like in this
location based on the latitude and
longitude?
Hot. Humid. Rainy. They would need shelter
and light clothing. Also, less insolation than
in colder climates would be needed. Due to
the elevation, some heat-saving devices
(insulation, etc) would be necessary.
How would this affect the way people live in
this area?
Exotic fruits, shelter, light clothing, and not
much insulation would be needed. The
Three Sisters and maize might also be
grown. Durable crops and some insulation
would be necessary due to the elevation.

Map from ducksters.com

-The Aztec Government-
-Social Structure-

Emperor
Self-Explan-
itory. The leaders
Of the society,
They never showed
Their faces to the
commoners.

Tecuhtli:
They were wealthy, and they were
Usually leaders of cities who were
praised for their work.

Pipiltin:
They are the last layer were they can wear their own clothes and
jewelry. They formed city councils and helped with the armies.
They were chosen carefully by the king. They were a sort of
nobles.

Pochteca:
Merchants. They were high-class since they traveled far to buy, sell, and
trade luxury goods. They were treasured b the nobles, and ad good
lives.

Macehualtin-
The common people. They had normal jobs, like, say, building, craftspeople, or other stuff.
Occasionally sacrificed, when no slaves or captured warriors were available. Had decent lives.

Aztec Sun Stone
Calendar

I drew a god in the middle of my calender, four
points out (seasons), 3 points in each of those
(Months), and days and weeks around that. The
colors are supposed to be faded, mossy and
unclear, since this should have been made such a
long time ago.

Explore the Aztec links in the Symbaloo posted in your Schoology
course as well as in the books and other resources available in class to
complete this organizer.

What was the government like?
Did powerful relationships exist

between the people and their
leaders?

How was their society set up?
What were the types of jobs
people had? Were the jobs people
did purposeful for the civilization?

Describe their religion. Did the
relationship the people had with
their gods and religious leaders

follow rules?

did the people invent, create,
or trade that allowed them to
exchange ideas or values with
others they had relationships
with?

What was the agriculture like?
What food did they eat? How

did they grow it? What
relationships did the people
have with their environment?

Ancient Aztec
Concept Map

Replace this example with your own concept map!



The Inca

At the end of this unit,
you will insert at least
three images on this page
that you feel represent
the Incan people. Delete
this text box when this is
complete.

At the end of this unit, you will write a
well-developed paragraph in this space explaining
what you learned about the Incan people. You
might want to include who the Incan people were,
what they valued, how their society was set up, the
relationship generalizations you uncovered while
learning about the people, etc. *Note: Your pictures
on page 4 should relate to this paragraph!

Where in the World…
Were the Inca Located?

Map from ducksters.com What is the approximate latitude and
longitude of the center of the Inca
Empire?

13.5320S, 71.9675W, At Cusco

What might the climate be like in this
location based on the latitude and
longitude?
Wet and hot and humid and hot. And
bleh. They would not struggle with
Water, but would need to grow
sun-loving crops. They would need
thick houses.
How would this affect the way people
live in this area?
They would not struggle with
Water, but would need to grow
sun-loving crops. They would need
thick houses to keep out the heat,
and thin clothing.

The Inca Government/
Social Structure

The Inca Government: The Inca Government went from Sapa Inca the emperor to Valuc
Umu they talked to the gods. Next is Inca they were in the High government. Last is the
commoners which were normal people in the village.

Inca Social Structure

Noble Classes

Sapa Inca means the great inca. With that name you can infer
that he holds the power. The first Sapa Inca was legend to be the
son of the sun god. This position was passed from father to son
ect. They lived with riches, servents, Wives and many other great

expensive things.
The Inca and Inca by Privilege were the noble class, made
mostly of descendants of the original Inca. The Inca by Privilege
were individuals picked for the noble class, mostly closer to the

downfall.
Villac Umu The Villac Umu were the priests, who could
supposedly speak to the gods, and interact with them.

There were 3 things in Public Administrators. One of them were the leaders
of the armies they captured. The second were the tax collectors. They all
collected taxes, but each family had their own. That's a bit weird.
They keep the taxes in order the third one.

These people had the lowest rank in the society and were normal people who had a normal life. Artisans were
higher-level craftsmen that made pottery and golden jewelry for the more superior people. The farmers had the lowest
rank. Most of the commoners were farmers. However, they were also important because they were the ones who grew

all the food and gave ⅔ of the supply to the government. The Inca government also needed to rely on them for
prosperity.

Explore the Incan links in the Symbaloo posted in your Schoology
course as well as in the books and other resources available in class to
complete this organizer.

What was the government like? …
Did powerful relationships exist
Quechua. Also their festivals. They
between the people and their had lots of festivals and they celebrated almost everything.
leaders?

How was their society set up?
What were the types of jobs
people had? Were the jobs people
did purposeful for the civilization?

Describe their religion. Did the
relationship the people had with
their gods and religious leaders

follow rules?

did the people invent, create,
or trade that allowed them to
exchange ideas or values with
others they had relationships
with?

What was the agriculture like?
What food did they eat? How

did they grow it? What
relationships did the people
have with their environment?

Ancient Inca
Concept Map

Replace this example with your own concept map!

Suomi on hämmästyttävä!