•This slide is made for you to:

•Locate India on a world map

•Identify India’s flag

•Explain why the Taj Mahal was built

•Compare several Indian customs to American customs

•Given a selection of animals, choose those native to India

•Express himself/herself through Indian art

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To find India on a world map:

1. Locate Asia.

2. India is a large country in southern Asia.

3. India has a long “tale” that sticks out into the Indian Ocean.

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Location: South Asia

Capital of India: New Delhi

Official Language: Hindi

Currency: Rupee

(34 rupees = 1 dollar)

Republic of

India is a large country in southern Asia. It is separated from the rest of Asia by the Himalayan Mountains. Because it is so big and cut off from the rest of the continent, it is called a subcontinent. To the south of India is the Indian Ocean.

India is the seventh largest country in the world. It has deserts, jungles, mountains, forests, and farms.

The major rivers are the Indus River and the Ganges River. Big cities include New Delhi, Calcutta, Bombay, and Bangalore.

*India has half as many states as the U.S. has.

Exports: tea, clothing, jewelry, iron ore, leather

Imports: food, gems, iron and steel, chemicals

Main crops: rice, wheat, tea, sugar cane, spices

________________________________________The top stripe is dark gold, the middle stripe is white, and the bottom stripe is green. The blue wheel in the middle is the Wheel of Life.

December to March ~~~~ Cold

April to May ~~~~ Very hot (Often over 100 degrees)

June to September ~~~~ Monsoon season

October to November ~~~ less rain

MONSOONS

Monsoons are huge rain storms that come in from the Indian Ocean. They bring enough rain to supply water for the whole year. These storms have strong winds. They can flood and destroy farms and houses. Some have even killed people.

Long ago, India was ruled by Mogul emperors. Then the empire fell apart into smaller kingdoms, ruled by maharajas.

By the 1600’s, Europeans had come into India to trade for Indian spices, silks, cotton cloth, and tea.

In 1857, the British took control of India and ruled there until 1947. One very important man, Mohandas Gandhi helped India gain independence.

Gandhi practiced civil disobedience. That means that he would not do what the British wanted, but he was never violent.

At about the same time the pilgrims were landing at Plymouth Rock, the Taj Mahal was built. That was almost 400 years ago.

It took over ten years to build. More than twenty thousand people and one thousand elephants helped build it.

The Taj Mahal is in Agra near the capital of India.

Shah Jahan was the emperor of India from 1628 to 1658. He deeply loved his wife Mumtaz Mahal. She died in 1631 when she was giving birth to their fourteenth child.

The emperor was so heartbroken that he decided to build a massive tomb in honor of their love. The two of them were buried together inside the Taj Mahal.

Since Shah Jahan loved his wife so much, he used only the finest marble. He also made sure that beautiful gems decorated her tomb.

The Taj Mahal is one of the wonders of the world.

It is also a great tribute to love.

Cricket

In India, the popular sport is cricket.

The game of cricket is played with a batsman, a wicket keeper, a bowler, and fielders.

The bowler rolls the ball toward the batsman. The wicket keeper stands behind the batsman. The batsman hits the ball with a bat and runs back and forth between the bowler and the wicket keeper to score runs. The fielders try to catch the ball to get the batsman out.

The Hindu New Year falls in October or November of each year.

It is called Diwali, the Festival of Lights.

For Diwali, people get dressed up in new clothes, send cards to friends and family, and give out presents.

Since it is the Festival of Lights, fireworks light up the sky.

We love to watch movies in America. Hollywood is the biggest producer of films in the world, right?

WRONG! India produces about eight hundred movies a year. That’s even more than Hollywood. Indian families love to go to the movies just as much as we do.

Animals found in India.

Below is a list of animals that can be found in India:

Lions Deer Bears Rhinoceroses Snakes Elephants Camels Monkeys Tigers (National animal) Peacocks (National bird)

Many women in India wear beautiful saris. Their clothing is brightly colored. For special events, women wear saris with gold embroidery and sequins.

Men usually wear dhotis. They are loose pants, similar to pajamas. In big cities, men wear American style clothing.

Children wear jeans, T-shirts, and skirts at home. They usually have uniforms for school.

Indian women love to wear jewelry. They wear earrings, nose rings, bangles (bracelets), anklets, rings, necklaces, and even jewelry in their hair!

Can you think of anything that we have in the U.S. that came from India?

Meditation exercises; you can take these classes at the YMCA

YOGA

Hindi phrase meaning loose trousers

PAJAMAS

Game of skill played on a checkerboard with moveable pieces

CHESS

Expensive sweaters made from goat hair in a region of India

CASHMERE

This digit means nothing, but can greatly change the value of a number when added onto the end of a number

ZERO

A brand of clothing; also a game played while riding horses

POLO

You may or may not know these other Indian words. In your groups, discuss what you think these words mean. If you don’t know what they are, look them up! Each group will explain to the class the meaning of one of these words, so make sure you know what they all mean!

Jungle

Thug

Bungalow

Veranda

Guru

Nirvana

Karma

Bazaar

Many Indian children play Kabaddi, which is a game similar to tag.

There is no equipment. You just need four or more people to play.

HERE’S HOW TO PLAY: 1. Divide players into two equal teams. Each team is on opposite sides of the playing area. Whichever team starts has to pick a player to run to the other team’s side.

2. The runner takes a deep breath. The runner tries to tag the other team’s players without taking another breath. The runner has to keep saying “kabaddi-kabaddi” so he/she can’t take another breath.

3. The other players try not to get tagged. Those who get tagged try to catch the runner before he/she runs back to his/her side.

4. If the runner does not make it back to his/her side without taking a breath, the runner is out. If the runner doesmakes it back without taking a breath, then the players who got tagged are out.

5. Teams take turns sending runners. The team with the most players left wins.

Rangoli is the traditional art of decorating walls and courtyards with designs. Indian women make a paste out of flour and color it with crushed flowers and spices. They often compete to make the best designs.

We will make Rangoli designs using paint and mural paper.

1. Each group will start with a basic design made of shapes.

2. You will keep using that design to make a bigger design to fill your mural paper.

3. You may use any colors available and any design made of shapes. There are patterns of triangles, circles, rectangles, squares that you may trace if you want.

4. Make sure everyone in your group takes part in the mural in some way.

5. We will display the murals in the room.