Alesia: Roman Conquest
of Gaul Game Created by Ruth Paget for AP Students
Objectives:
1-Learn
to break down books to learn more quickly
2-Obtain
a glimpse into ancient Roman culture
3-Obtain
a glimpse into ancient Gallic culture
4-Learn
about menu planning to manage food supplies
5-Learn
about storytelling
6-Write
a media release for radio about the battle at Alesia
7-Play
knucklebones the ancient Greek game that was also played in ancient Rome
8-Sample
ancient Roman food
Historical Background:
In
52 BC, the ancient Roman victory at Alesia outside modern-day Dijon, France was
hard won by Julius Caesar (100 BC – 44 BC) and confirmed his ascendancy as the
virtual ruler of Rome.
The
Romans used siege warfare against the Gallic fortress at Alesia, which was
under the command of Vercingetorix (80 BC – 46 BC).
Both
the Gauls and the Romans had supply problems.
Vercingetorix relied on his relief troops to win the battle. However, Julius Caesar had his troops
surround the Gallic fort to beat off reinforcements.
Battle
Outcome:
60,000
Roman soldiers defeated 80,000 Gallic warriors under siege and 130,000 to
200,000 Gallic relief soldiers.
Final
tally: 60,000 Romans defeated between 210,00 to 280,000 Gallic soldiers.
Managing Group Reading
To
divide reading up, imagine you have a book with 33 chapters and 8 team members.
If
you divide 33 chapters by 8 team members, you can reduce reading time and learn
the material quickly. The method for
doing this follows:
33
chapters ÷ 8 team members = 4 chapters for each team member to read plus 1
remaining chapter to be assigned as decided by the group. (Maybe a team member with a short assigned
chapter among their readings could the remaining chapter.)
For
each assigned chapter, team members will note 5 to 10 main points to be typed
up and sent to the team secretary for grouping into a single document.
Team Set-Up
Break
a group into two teams.
Both
teams will complete tasks 1 – 4 as a team.
For
task 5, the two teams will come together to write a media release for radio
about the Battle at Alesia 52 BC, play the ancient game of knucklebones (also
played in ancient Rome), and sample ancient Roman food.
Number of Tasks to
Complete: 5
Task 1: Learn About the
Battle at Alesia 52 BC
Read
about the Battle at Alesia 52 BC in encyclopedias and books and on
websites. Compare the information to
look for any differences. Note sources.
Read
about Julius Caesar in encyclopedias and books and on websites. Compare the information to look for any
differences. Note sources.
Read
about Vercingetorix in encyclopedias and books and on websites. Compare the information to look for any
differences. Note sources.
If
you find differences, set up guidelines about how to establish the facts to
use.
Task 2: Learn About
Food Supply Management
Food
supply management was a problem for the ancient Roman troops and the
Gauls. In the modern day, well-run
institutions and homes have some sort of food inventory system and menu
management system.
Read
the following book as a team, noting 5 to 10 main points for each assigned
chapter:
Management by Menu by Lendal H. Kotschevar
Task 3: Obtain a
Glimpse into Ancient Roman Culture
As
a team, read the following books about ancient Roman culture noting 5 to 10
main points for each assigned chapter:
The Aeneid by Virgil
This
national poem by Virgil recounts the story of the Trojan hero Aeneas who sets
out to find a new homeland after the sack of Troy.
His
quest leads him to Carthage, which he forsakes along with love to found Rome.
Other
books to read give background on the religious and civic life of Rome. Read the following books as a team, noting 5
to 10 main points for each chapter:
Mythology by Edith Hamilton
The Roman Way by Edith Hamilton
Read
the following book for ideas on how to write stories that remain in the memory like
myths as a team, noting 5 to 10 main points for each assigned chapter:
Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die by Charles Kahlenberg,
Chip Heath, and Dan Heath
Task 4: Obtain a
Glimpse into Gallic Culture
Very
little written information remains about ancient Gaul. Even the hilltop where the Battle at Alesia
52 BC took place (Mount Auxois) had a wooden fortress, which has perished.
Julius
Caesar wrote about Gaul, and it is his history which describes the Gauls for us
today.
Read
the following book as a team, noting 5 to 10 main points for each assigned
chapter:
The Gallic War by Julius Caesar
Preparing for Task 5:
Before
the combined teams meeting, team members will type up their main points from
their assigned chapters and send them to the team secretary via email to be
compiled into one document.
Team
secretaries will email the single document to their team members and the other
team’s secretary for distribution.
Team
members should read both documents before the task 5 combined teams meeting.
Task 5: Media Release
Writing and Party
The
combined teams will write a 2-minute media release for radio about the Battle
at Alesia 52 BC.
The
release should answer the following questions in order:
Who?
What?
When?
Where?
Why?
How?
Once
the release is written, read it to see if it is 2 minutes long.
If
it is too long, edit the text down to 2 minutes.
If
it is too short, add in details to make the release 2 minutes.
(This
activity should take 30 to 45 minutes to complete.)
Once
the meeting is over, play the ancient Greek game of knucklebones. Knucklebones was also played in ancient Rome.
Knucklebones
games are sold for $27.99 on Amazon as of 3/13/2020.
Sample
some ancient Roman food at your party from one of the oldest known cookbooks
written by the Roman writer Apicius. His
cookbook follows:
Cooking and Dining in
Imperial Rome by
Apicius
Alesia
Game Created by Ruth Paget, author of Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
Click here for: Ruth Paget's Amazon Books
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