Han dynasty, China · 138-101 BC

Zhang Qian and the opening of the Silk Road

In about 138 BC Emperor Wu sent Zhang Qian west to find allies against the Xiongnu. He was captured, escaped and came home 13 years later with news of rich lands no one in China had known. Students follow the journey that opened the Silk Road.

Teach it live New Open on the map
Length
50 minutes
Ages
11–14
On the map
3 steps, 130 BC to 126 BC
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

In about 138 BC Emperor Wu sent Zhang Qian west to find allies against the Xiongnu. He was captured, escaped and came home 13 years later with news of rich lands no one in China had known. Students follow the journey that opened the Silk Road.

By the end of the lesson, students can

  • Trace Zhang Qian's journey from Chang'an to Central Asia on the map.
  • Explain why Emperor Wu sent Zhang Qian west and what he found there.
  • Describe what traveled along the Silk Road in both directions.
2

Explore the map

15 min

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

a

130 BC

Who is where

Open the map in 130 BC and zoom out. Find the Han Empire, the Xiongnu and Parthia. Zhang Qian had to cross Xiongnu lands to go west. Can you see a way around them?

Open this view on the map
b

100 BC

The Silk Road

Jump to 100 BC and turn on the Trade Routes layer. Click the Silk Road and read its description. Follow it from Chang'an to Samarkand. Which deserts and mountains does it pass?

Open this view on the map
c

126 BC

Heavenly horses

Type "Where is the Ferghana Valley?" in Ask the atlas. Zhang Qian found famous horses there. Why would a Han emperor fighting horsemen want them?

Open this view on the map
3

Class discussion

15 min

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

  1. Zhang Qian was held by the Xiongnu for about ten years but did not give up his mission. What does this tell you about him?
  2. His mission did not win an ally. Why do historians still call it one of the most important journeys in history?
  3. Silk went west, while horses, grapes and alfalfa came east. Who benefited most from this trade?
  4. Few traders traveled the whole Silk Road; goods passed from hand to hand. Why?
  5. The name "Silk Road" was invented in 1877 by a German geographer. Is it a good name? What would you call it?
4

Game round

10 min

Play Alexander the Great in Rule History. About two centuries before Zhang Qian, Alexander marched into the same lands from the west: Bactria and the edge of the Ferghana Valley. After the round, discuss: what did Zhang Qian achieve without an army?

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.