Through the investigation of selected primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the importance of Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia, how and why it was constructed, why it was converted from a church to a mosque by the Ottomans in 1453, how its design inspired later western architects and why the great building is seen today as a cultural masterpiece.

Through the investigation of primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the details of Al-Andalus (Moorish Iberia), including how Muslim forces came to rule over Christian Iberia, the cultural contributions Iberian Moors developed, and ultimately what led to their downfall after such a long rule.

Through an examination of both primary and secondary sources on the subject, including various types of visual media in addition to electronic and written sources, Students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the basics of Surrealism as it developed as a movement in the aftermath of the Great War, how surrealism served as a vehicle for the rejection of traditional bourgeois culture, how Salvador Dalí specifically fit into the surrealist movement, and how he influenced other artists over the span of his long 20th century career.

Through an examination of both primary and secondary sources on the subject, including various types of visual media in addition to electronic and written sources, Students here will identify, understand and be able to explain the basics of Surrealism as it developed as a movement in the aftermath of the Great War, how surrealism served as a vehicle for the rejection of bourgeois culture prevalent after the war, and how Salvador Dali and Luis Bunuel specifically fit into the surrealist movement in Europe.

Through the investigation of primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the details of the Pax Romana (Roman Peace), how the emperors of the day used their wealth to bring prosperity to the citizens and why the era ended in 180 CE with the death of Marcus Aurelius.

Through an examination of both primary and secondary sources on the subject, including various types of visual media in addition to electronic and written sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain what happened to Pompeii and Herculaneum as a result of the Vesuvius eruption of 79 CE, what archaeologists believe the architecture, art and artifacts found in the cities can tell modern visitors about ancient Roman society, and what challenges conservationists might face in saving the ancient cites for generations to come.

Through the investigation of primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the story behind the School of Athens by Raphael, the techniques used by the artist to paint the masterpiece and how he used different images and people to convey his messages through the fresco.

Through the use of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain Michelangelo’s place in Renaissance art, how his famous frescoes on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel were created, and why those same frescoes are considered by many to be the very personification of Renaissance art itself.

Through the use of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain Michelangelo’s place in Renaissance art, how his famous sculpture, Pieta, was created, and why the statue is considered by many to be the greatest sculptural work of the Roman Renaissance.

Through the investigation of primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the story behind the painting of the Last Judgment by Michelangelo, the techniques used by the artist to paint the masterpiece and how he used different shading, tones and images to convey his message of fear and dread.

Through the use of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain Verrocchio’s place in Renaissance Florentine society, both in terms of the importance of his own artistic creations, especially his statue of David, and his link to and possible influence on his students, in particular a young inquisitive apprentice from Vinci named Leonardo.

Through the use of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain how the Medici family was able to come to power in Florence, how the family’s patronage of different artists and architects made Florence the very heart of the Renaissance and how the Medici family influence reached far beyond the borders of Tuscany to different countries in Europe and to the center of Christendom itself.

Through the use of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain Michelangelo’s place in Florentine society, how his most famous sculpture, David, was created, and why the statue is considered by many to be the personification of the Florentine Renaissance.

Through the use of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain Giotto’s role in revolutionizing artistic techniques in the late medieval period, how he used linear perspective to add a three-dimensional quality to his two-dimensional paintings and frescoes, and why he was so important to the Renaissance artists that would follow him over a century later.

Through the use of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain Donatello’s place in early Renaissance Florentine society, both in terms of the importance of his own artistic creations, especially his statue of David, and his link to and possible influence on artists such as Michelangelo and Leonardo who came to prominence in subsequent generations.

Through the use of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain why building the dome on Florence’s Duomo presented such a daunting task and Filippo Brunelleschi’s mathematical and engineering solutions to the problems. In an alternate and separate in-class activity, students will also try to replicate Brunelleschi’s dome using man-made materials (sugar cubes and play-doh) to understand the challenges of such an undertaking.

Through the use of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain Botticelli’s place in early Renaissance Florentine society, how and why he created his masterpiece The Birth of Venus, and why the painting personified such a radical shift in subject and techniques that in many ways helped usher in a new age of humanistic thinking.

Through the use of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the story behind the construction and style used in designing, building and decorating St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice, how and why the saint’s bones are in Venice in the first place when he died in Alexandria, and how the church became a symbol of Venetian wealth and power by the early Renaissance.

Through the use of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain how the Black Death swept across Europe in the late 1340s, what impact the plague had on how Europeans saw the Church and religion, and what modern scientific theories say about the calamity.

Through the investigation of primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the details behind the story of Romulus and Remus. The mythical/historical narrative behind the founding of the Eternal City, and how the myth of Romulus and Remus is central to understanding how Romans saw (and still see) their sense of identity, and why these stories are important to the development of western civilization.