The Renaissance9th Grade Social StudiesFall 2011 Unit 2

The Big PictureMajor changes in Europe caused the medieval

period to give way to a new period. As trade with the East increased, Europeans

rediscovered the classical knowledge of ancient Greece and Rome.

In Italy the growth of wealthy trading cities and new ways of thinking helped lead to a rebirth of the arts and learning known as the Renaissance.

These ideas soon spread to northern Europe by means of trade, travel, and printed material, influencing the art and ideas of the north.

Why we study this unit:

Renaissance art and literature still influence modern thought and modern art.

Renaissance ideas such as the importance of the individual are a strong part of our popular culture and modern thought.

It marks a turning point in history as we enter into a more modern era, where people live more like we do today.

Essential Questions:

1. What changes caused the beginning of the Renaissance?

2. What ideas formed the foundation of the Italian Renaissance?

3. What contributions did artists make to the Italian Renaissance?

Essential Questions:

4. How did the Renaissance spread to northern Europe?

5. What contributions did writers and philosophers make to the northern Renaissance?

6. How did the works of northern artists differ from those of the Italian Renaissance?

Units:

• Last Unit: The Middle Ages•Current Unit: The Renaissance•Next Unit: The Reformation

Learning Activity/Assessment

• 10/5: Italian Renaissance Part 1• 10/7: Black Death Internet Search• 10/12: Italian Renaissance part 2• 10/14: Renaissance Themes ppt.• 10/14: Seeing the Changes• 10/18: Writers of the Italian Ren.• 10/18: Ren. Art ppt.• 10/18: Ren. Art Qs

Learning Activities

•10/20: Renaissance Circle Diagram•10/20: Da Vinci Tech•10/20: Ch. 15, S1 Review•10/24: Northern Ren. Qs•10/26: Northern Ren. Ppt•10/26: Ch. 15, S2 Review•10/26: Unit Review

Italian Renaissance Terms• Renaissance• Humanism• Secularism• Individualism• Castiglione• Machiavelli• Lorenzo de Medici• Leonardo da Vinci• Michelangelo

• Raphael• Bramante• Vernacular• Petrarch• Galileo• Patron• Perspective

Northern Renaissance Terms• Hanseatic League• Gutenberg• Printing press• Christian Humanism• Erasmus• Thomas More• Utopia

• Shakespeare• Christine de Pisan• Durer• Jan Van Eyck• Brueghel• Elizabeth I

1. What changes caused the beginning of the Renaissance?

• During the 1300s the Black Death weakened the feudal and manor systems and undermined the Catholic Church. • In Italy, the city-states became the center

of trade, which resulted in increasing wealth. • The rich Italian merchants used their

wealth to support new ideas and the Renaissance artists.

2. What ideas formed the foundation of the Italian Renaissance?

• Humanism shifted one's focus away from the afterlife and toward the here and now. • Secularism caused religion and the church

to become less important in daily life. • Individualism shifted the focus from one's

role in the feudal system to individual achievement.

3. What contributions did artists make to the Italian Renaissance?

• The artists of the Italian Renaissance broke from their medieval past by depicting the natural world realistically. • The use of perspective allowed artists to create

three-dimensional objects on flat surfaces. • Shading made objects appear round and more

real. • Finally, the study of human anatomy allowed

artists to portray the human body more accurately.

4. How did the Renaissance spread to northern Europe?

• The Italian Renaissance spread to the north as trade increased between the two areas. • Artists and scholars traveled between Italy and

the north, bringing with them Humanist ideas and new painting techniques. • Finally, the printing press allowed easier

bookmaking and helped quickly spread the Renaissance ideas.

5. What contributions did writers and philosophers make to the northern Renaissance?

• Erasmus' writings encouraged the growing discontent against the Catholic Church. • More challenged the English government and

created an ideal society in Utopia• Shakespeare helped spread Renaissance ideas

to a mass audience through his plays. • Pisan advocated women’s rights and equality.

6. How did the works of northern artists differ from those of the Italian Renaissance?

• The Italian Renaissance painters tried to capture the beauty of Greek and Roman gods and depicted mythological scenes. • Northern Renaissance artists adopted the

Italian techniques of perspective and realism. • However, Northern artists depicted scenes of

everyday life and oil paints allowed them to pay close attention to details.