DBQ: Hammurabi’s Code provides the evidentiary foundation for critical historical inquiry. As a pivotal session in the Human Rights and the Rule of Law unit, this lesson moves students from experiencing history to documenting it. By analyzing primary source documents, students learn to identify how power is codified and maintained across millenniums.
The lesson kicks off with a modern-day connection, using a news report on bathroom legislation to spark a discussion on who the law protects and who it harms. Students then transition into collaborative small groups to dissect ancient Mesopotamian texts. Using a structured DBQ recording sheet, they practice the essential ELA and Social Studies skills of close reading and note-taking, preparing them for their final summative argument essay.
The session concludes with tiered reflection prompts—Newbie, Level Up, and Boss Level—that push students to evaluate if protecting one group’s rights must inevitably come at the cost of another’s.
What’s Included
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Complete 1-period lesson plan with integrated literacy scaffolds.
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L8.1 Primary Source Documents featuring specific codes from Hammurabi.
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L8.2 DBQ Recording Sheet designed to facilitate evidence collection and analysis.
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Media Analysis Guide for connecting historical laws to contemporary gender-neutral bathroom legislation.
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Tiered Reflection Prompts to differentiate critical thinking for all learners.
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Alignment with WAESN Elements of Liberation, C3 Framework, and CCSS Literacy standards.
Why Educators Use This Lesson
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Builds Research Stamina: Introduces middle schoolers to the rigor of DBQs in an accessible, high-interest format.
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Intersectionality in Action: Explicitly connects ancient social hierarchies to modern debates over gender identity and public space.
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Scaffolded for Success: The DBQ recording sheet acts as a roadmap, helping students organize complex thoughts into clear notes for future writing.
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Critical Consciousness: Challenges the status quo by asking why certain groups are consistently targeted by legislation.
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High-Level Discourse: Encourages students to use primary evidence to back up claims about justice and systemic oppression.
This lesson turns your students into historical detectives, digging through the past to find the truth about the present.