The Rise of the Byzantine Empire

The Rise of the Byzantine Empire

"What were some of the accomplishments of the Byzantine Empire?" Questions such as this one appear on the margins of sixth and seventh grade textbooks. What a better way of starting a new lesson or chapter than with questions that will automatically led the student to think about the answer? That is the case in the lesson of "The Rise of the Byzantine Empire." Being that the lesson I revised was only a brief part of the chapter, it was interesting to see how precise the lesson on the Rise of the Empire came about. There was nothing wrong with the format and structure of the lesson. When I fist glanced at the lesson I had received, I became very mortified to see that the lesson only consisted of 4 pages. Can the lesson on the rise of the Byzantine Empire really be described in 4 pages? I would not know that answer, unless I read the lesson, and did further research on the topic. Surprisingly, I discovered that the lesson is pretty much accurate, although it does not have much detail. Perhaps the detail is not very rich, because this lesson, (which is titled to be lesson 3) is a continuation of the study on Rome; it's emperors, etc. It is not to say that the lesson did not have weaknesses, however, it had both its strengths, and its weaknesses.

Lesson 3, which is titled "The Rise of the Byzantine Empire," includes a timeline of the dates the certain lesson covers. In this case, the dates are from 532 A.D., to1453 A.D. Byzantium saw itself as the true descendent of Rome. In Byzanium many of the elements of Rome's cosmopolitan Mediterranean civilization continue. Gradually however, Greek replaces Latin as the primary language in both society and government, and distinctive social, political and cultural traditions emerge. The central figure in the revival of the power of Byzantium is the Emperor Justinian, from 527 to 565. The lesson was mainly focused on "the Byzantine Emperor Justinian." As the lesson starts, the story of how Justinian came about restoring order in the city of Constantinople is told in a brief summary of about 2 paragraphs. "Fights broke out between the rival groups, and the fighting escalated into rioting in Constantinople's streets. The rioting continued for a week while Justinian and Theodora, safe within their palace, debated whether to flee or to attempt to restore order.