Pagan Kingdom · 1044-1287

Bagan: the kingdom of temples

On a dry plain by the Irrawaddy River, the kings and people of Bagan built more than 10,000 temples and pagodas. Students explore how Theravada Buddhism shaped the first great Burmese kingdom and why it broke apart after the Mongol invasions.

Teach it live New Open on the map
Length
45 minutes
Ages
11–14
On the map
3 steps, AD 1200 to AD 1279
Live lesson
7 rounds, 3 on the map
Worksheet
Two A4 pages, with Classroom
You need
A projector; phones for live

Live lesson · new in Classroom

Teach it live. The class answers on their phones.

Put the board on the projector. Students join with a six-digit code, no account needed, and tap the map: where was the frontier, where did the grain come from. Their pins drop in together when you reveal, and the closest student takes the round.

€19 per month: every lesson live, every worksheet, cancel anytime. Rome at its height runs live for free.

A live lesson on the projector: the class's pins on the map around Alexandria, the closest students listed beside it A student's phone: the question and a map to tap
7 rounds
3 places to find on the map, quiz questions, a class vote and a one-line answer.
About 15 minutes
Run it as the map step, or to open the discussion. You move on with the space bar.
A report
Every answer, per student and per round, to read back or print after the lesson.
1

Introduction

5 min

Read aloud

On a dry plain by the Irrawaddy River, the kings and people of Bagan built more than 10,000 temples and pagodas. Students explore how Theravada Buddhism shaped the first great Burmese kingdom and why it broke apart after the Mongol invasions.

By the end of the lesson, students can

  • Locate Bagan and the Irrawaddy valley and explain why the kingdom grew there.
  • Explain how Theravada Buddhism shaped Bagan and its temple-building.
  • Describe the end of the Pagan kingdom after the Mongol invasions.
2

Explore the map

12 min

Project the map, or let students follow on their own devices. Each step opens the map at the right year and place.

a

AD 1200

A city on the river

Open the map in 1200 and zoom in on Bagan on the Irrawaddy River. Why might a capital grow on a big river in a dry plain?

Open this view on the map
b

AD 1057

Down to the coast

Follow the Irrawaddy south to the coast, the lands of the Mon people. Bagan's chronicles say King Anawrahta conquered the Mon city of Thaton in 1057. What could a river kingdom gain from the coast?

Open this view on the map
3

Class discussion

14 min

Pick two or three. They run from what happened to why it mattered.

  1. How could a kingdom on a dry plain become rich?
  2. Anawrahta brought monks and holy texts from Thaton. Why would a king bring in a new form of religion?
  3. Why would ordinary families spend their savings on building temples?
  4. The Burmese script was based on the Mon script. How do peoples borrow writing from each other?
  5. Bagan broke apart after the Mongol invasions. Was the Mongol attack the main cause, or were there weaknesses inside?
4

Game round

9 min

Rule History has no Burmese ruler, so play Genghis Khan, whose grandson Kublai's armies invaded Bagan. Let students take turns ruling. Then switch sides: how should the king of Bagan have answered the Mongol demand for tribute?

Open Rule History
5

Worksheet

5 min

This worksheet comes with Classroom

€19 per month unlocks every worksheet, every live lesson and the class workspace. The free lesson prints without a subscription.