DO NOW: Want 3 Merits?• Copy and complete:• Want to get a perfect score on the “Lessons from Rome”

letter to Obama? It might help to write 8 paragraphs.

• Paragraph #1: Introduction

• Paragraph #2: Slavery in _____________

• Paragraph #3: Slavery in ____________________ (past)

and exploitation in __________________ (present)

• Paragraph #4: Political corruption in ________________

• Paragraph #5: Political corruption in ________________

• Paragraph #6: Economic troubles in ________________

• Paragraph #7: Economic troubles in ________________

• Paragraph #8: Conclusion

Rome

United StatesRome

RomeUnited States

United States

United States

Friday, October 4, 2013Monday, October 7, 2012

SWBAT explain how the growth of slavery contributed

to the fall of the Roman Empire.

SWBAT explain how the growth of slavery threatened the United States.

Tuesday, October 8, 2013Wednesday, October 9, 2013SWBAT explain

how corrupt leadership

contributed to the fall of the Roman

Empire.

SWBAT explain how corrupt leadership

threatened the United States.

Thursday, October 10, 2013SWBAT explain how economic

troubles contributed to the fall of the Roman Empire.

SWBAT explain how economic

troubles threaten the United States.

“Lessons From Rome”Letter to Obama (or Romney)

• Due Tuesday, October 15th

• How can the United States learn from the mistakes of Rome?

• 5 paragraphs– Paragraphs #1: Intro

• Example: I’m a seventh grader at Valor Academy in Los Angeles, California. In history class, we’ve been learning about Ancient Rome. The Romans made a lot of mistakes, and we’re making the same mistakes in the United States, too!

– Paragraph #2: Slavery / exploitation– Paragraph #3: Political corruption– Paragraph #4: Economic troubles– Paragraph #5: Conclusion

• Example: I hope you take my advice to ensure that the United States does not fall like Rome. You should…

Rubric

Go Above and Beyond!Body #1 and #2

Go Above and Beyond!Body #3 and #4

Go Above and Beyond!Body #5 and #6

The Decline and Fall of Rome• Rome’s economy was based on ________ and __________ goods

with its provinces, but Rome couldn’t afford to maintain an ________ large enough to protect the growing Empire

• To pay for the army, Rome decided to raise _________

• When high taxes didn’t work, Rome printed more _________, but that didn’t help either… it just led to ___________.

• Rome still couldn’t afford to maintain the __________

• To better manage the Empire, Emperor Diocletian split the Empire into _____ pieces, but that still didn’t help!

• The edge of the empire started to crack! The Visigoths, Vandals, and other _____________ tribes invaded the Roman Empire

TAXING TRADING

ARMY

TAXES

MONEYINFLATION

ARMY

TWO

BARBARIAN

Government Spending

• Rome– Where money

went:• Huge army to

protect the Empire’s frontier

• “Bread and circuses” to prevent the poor from rebelling

– Where money did not go:• Internal problems

like crumbling buildings, roads, aqueducts, etc.

• United States– Where money

goes:• Huge army to fight

war in Afghanistan• Social Security,

Medicare for elderly• Medicaid for poor

– Where money does not go:• Internal problems

like collapsing cities (Detroit, Cleveland, etc.)

$3.6 trillion in total!

Defense Spending

• The United States spends more money on the military than the next fourteen countries combined!

Department of Defense: $700 billion

Department of Housing and Urban Development: $48 billion

19% of the federal budget is dedicated to defense.

Meanwhile, cities like Detroit are just left to fall apart…

Department of Defense: $700 billion

Department of Housing and Urban Development: $48 billion

Do we live in a glass house?

• People who live in glass houses should not throw stones!

• If you have flaws, you should not criticize other people.

• How does this apply to the situation in the United States?

• The United States already has tons of problems at home, yet we spend tons of money on defense.

The government spent $3.6 trillion in total!

But the government collected only $2.3 trillion in taxes and other revenue…

Debt

• The USA is $16 trillion in debt!If you stacked up 16 trillion $1 billls, the stack would go to the moon…and back to Earth…and back to the moon…and back to Earth…and back to the moon AGAIN!!!

Debt• Rome• Rome did not really

go into debt because they had a “solution”

• United States• $16 trillion in debt!

• On the news, we’ve seen the bankrupt countries of Greece and Italy. Could we be next? How do we solve this problem?

The solution is…

THE ROMAN “SOLUTION”

THE DEMOCRAT “SOLUTION”

THE REPUBLICAN “SOLUTION”

Inflation

• Rome– Instead of raising taxes or

spending less, Rome made more money

• Nero’s coins had 90% silver content

• Two centuries later, coins had only 0.2% silver content

– Inflation: The money was worth less, so everything cost more!

• A measure of wheat went from 8 drachmas to 120,000 drachmas

• United States– Instead of raising

taxes or spending less, we keep printing money without the gold to back it up

– Inflation: Now our money is worth less than ever before, so everything costs more!

As coins became worth less, soldiers demanded to be paid more.

Inflation

Exit Ticket

• 1 thing that surprises me

• 1 thing that upsets me

• 1 thing that scares me

• 1 thing that still confuses me / 1 question I still have

Homework: Letter to Obama

• Rough draft due Tuesday, October 15th

• How can the United States learn from the mistakes of Rome?

• 5 paragraphs– Paragraphs #1: Intro

• Example: I’m a seventh grader at Valor Academy in Los Angeles, California. In history class, we’ve been learning about Ancient Rome. The Romans made a lot of mistakes, and we’re making the same mistakes in the United States, too!

– Paragraph #2: Slavery / exploitation– Paragraph #3: Political corruption– Paragraph #4: Economic troubles– Paragraph #5: Conclusion

• Example: I hope you take my advice to ensure that the United States does not fall like Rome. You should…