The Khmer Empire (AD 802-1431)

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The Khmer Empire (AD 802-1431)

A map of the Khmer Empire

Author: Laura Ouk
Grade: 6

Suggested Amount of Time: 120 minutes
Area of Study: Introduction to Cambodia's History

Compelling Question
  • How does learning about Cambodian history promote a greater understanding of Cambodian American experiences?
Lesson Question

  • What are the historical developments of Cambodian identity and nationhood? 

Lesson Objective

Students will demonstrate an understanding of the Khmer Empire's historical rise in the ninth century to its decline in the fifteenth century. Through facilitated discussions and hands-on activities about the city of Angkor, they will develop analytical skills.

Lesson Background

The Khmer Empire began in the ninth century and rose to prominence in Southeast Asia. The city of Angkor grew to include great feats of architecture including Angkor Wat as well as hydraulic engineering. The Khmer Empire thrived until the fifteenth century when climate changes as well as internal and external conflicts led to its decline.

Image Citation: File:Khmer Empire 1203 Map (cropped).png - Wikimedia Commons. (2021, July 18). https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Khmer_Empire_1203_Map_%28cropped%29.png 

Historical Thinking Skills

Historical Significance. This lesson will facilitate student proficiency in historical significance, one of Seixas’ historical thinking skills (Seixas & Morton, 2013). Students make personal decisions about what is historically significant, and then consider the criteria they use to make those decisions. Educators improve student familiarity with the criteria for historical significance.

Students consider events, people, or developments to have historical significance if they resulted in change. That is, they had deep consequences, for many people, over a long period of time. They will explore how the Khmer Empire had a lasting influence on the history of Cambodia.

Supplies 
  • Access to a computer with internet access
  • Khmer Empire. National Geographic Education Blog
Readings
  • The Khmer Empire 
  • The Khmer state (Angkor) 
  • Virtual Angkor 
  • Climate as a contributing factor in the demise of Angkor, Cambodia 
Handouts
  1. Warmup
  • Ask students the question, “how does water get to your home or school?”  
    • Have students discuss their answers in pairs.  
    • Have a few volunteers share their answers with the class.
    • Explain to students that we will be looking at how water was used in the Angkor in the past.
  1. Introduction to the topic (10 minutes): 
  1. Interaction with first source
  • Students will form groups of two or three.
  • They will read and analyze the following source: https://www.britannica.com/place/Cambodia/The-Khmer-state-Angkor
  • Each student will choose a particular section of the source to be responsible for:
    • Section 1: Foundation of the Kingdom and the perceived role and importance of the rulers.
    • Section 2: Read about the Angjorean civilization; discussing the reigns of various rulers (including Jayavarman VII), the cities that were chosen as capitals over the years, and the magnificent monuments and structures built in the kingdom (including the Angkor Wat temple complex).
    • Section 3: Read about and discuss the gradual decline of Angkor and the various reasons that could have contributed to this downfall.
  • As students read, have them jot down important facts pertaining to their sections.
  • Once all students are done with reading their section, have a group discussion and allow each student to share with their peers. Students are encouraged to add to their notes as their peers share about their respective readings. The groups should look for answers to the following questions:
    • How did Jayavarman II contribute to the foundation of the Khmer Empire, and what were the significant achievements during his reign?
    • What were the main reasons for the decline of Angkor, and how did internal and external factors contribute to this downfall?
  • Teachers should bring attention to the map on the website. Use the map to observe the geographical location and boundaries of the empire to discuss its modern-day equivalent location. Continue a discussion on the main rulers of the kingdom and their contributions.
  1. Interaction with second source
  • Source: Virtual Angkor https://www.virtualangkor.com/water 
    • This source has 360-degree visualizations, readings, and a map to explore Angkor virtually to learn about the important role of water and water systems (canals, reservoirs, and tanks) in the Khmer Empire. It wraps up with a discussion on the climate vulnerability of Angkor and climate variation as one of the causes of the downfall of the Khmer Empire.
    • Before each student's reading assignments, it may be helpful to have a note catcher with three sections titled: Water and Climate, The Hydraulic City, and Climate Vulnerability.
  • Students will work with the same groups to divide up the parts of the website. See below for reading assignments:
    • Student 1: Module “Water and Climate” will help your students explore the history of Angkor and the Khmer Empire in a hands-on, interactive manner, and learn about how climate-related factors may have played a crucial role in the decline of this empire.
      • First, navigate to Theme One (Living with Water) of this module: https://www.virtualangkor.com/water  
      • Read the introductory paragraph.
      • Ask students to play the video and explore the 360-degree views to learn about the role of water in the Cambodians’ lives.
      • Answer questions 1, 2, and 3 of this module.
  • Student 2: Module “The Hydraulic City”: https://www.virtualangkor.com/water-t2 
    • Read the introductory paragraph.
    • Ask students to play the video and explore the 360-degree views to visualize the rice fields and irrigation system in Angkor.
    • Ask students to study the map.
    • Answer questions 1 and 4 to learn more about the water and water features in Angkor, and the significance of water in the Khmer empire.
  • Student 3: Module “Climate Vulnerability”: https://www.virtualangkor.com/water-t3   
    • Read the introductory paragraph.
    • Navigate to the article “Climate as a contributing factor in the demise of Angkor, Cambodia” listed in this module (https://www.pnas.org/content/107/15/6748).
    • Encourage students to read the section, “Climate and Societal Vulnerability at Angkor”.
    • Students make note of the management system in Angkor, the barays, and the modifications to the water management infrastructure. Explain the role of climate-related extreme events (droughts and floods) in the downfall of the Khmer empire.
  • Once each student has completed their assigned reading sections, they will share with their group. Advise students to add to their notes from the different sections that their partners share.
  1. Cultural Production
  • Students will create a drawing or infographic of the Khmer Empire to answer the lesson question: What are the historical developments of Cambodian identity and nationhood?
  • The drawing should include the following:
    • Visual representations of the water systems (canals, reservoirs, and tanks) and reigns of various rulers.
    • One to two-sentence caption descriptions to label, identify, and describe the various elements in the infographic.
    • This can be done by hand, or using a digital application. Students can use the infographic from the warm-up as a model.
  • Once all products have been created, provide opportunities for students to share with their peers. This can be done through a gallery walk. 

Students will create a drawing or infographic of the Khmer empire to answer the lesson question: What are the historical developments of Cambodian identity and nationhood? 

The drawing should include the following: 

  • Visual representations of the water systems (canals, reservoirs, and tanks) and reigns of various rulers. 
  • One to two sentence caption descriptions to label, identify, and describe the various elements in the infographic. 
  • This can be done by hand, or using a digital application. Students can use the infographic from the warm-up as a model.

Engagement: Consider the following method to support with lesson engagement:

  • Include activities that foster the use of imagination to solve novel and relevant problems, or make sense of complex ideas in creative ways

Representation: Consider the following method to support with multiple means of representation:

  • Make connections to previously learned structures

Action and Expression: Consider the following method to support in presenting their learning in multiple ways:

  • Use story webs, outlining tools, or concept mapping tools

For additional ideas to support your students, check out the UDL Guidelines at CAST (2018) http://udlguidelines.cast.org. 

Emerging: Consider the following method to support with emerging students:

  • Listening: Restate/Rephrase and use oral language routines
    • Teacher paraphrases student responses as they explain their thinking in effort to validate content learning and encourage the use of precise language.

Expanding: Consider the following method to support with expanding students:

  • Listening: Use cognates to aid comprehension 
    • Students study the forms of words/word structure; draw words and phrases from the text that students will encounter and show them how shifts in word structure (i.e. suffix­ converge to convergent; diverge to divergent) affect meaning.

Bridging: Consider the following method to support with bridging students:

  • Listening: Extend content vocabulary with multiple examples and non-examples 
    • Students use a Frayer graphic organizer to support understanding of a key word or concept. Place the target word in the center amid four surrounding quadrants to support different facets of word meaning.

For additional guidance around scaffolding for multilingual learners, please consult the following resources:

English Learner Toolkit of Strategies, https://ucdavis.box.com/s/ujkdc2xp1dqjzrlq55czph50c3sq1ngu

 Providing Appropriate Scaffolding, https://www.sdcoe.net/educators/multilingual-education-and-global-achievement/oracy-toolkit/providing-appropriate-scaffolding#scaffolding

 Strategies for ELD, https://ucdavis.box.com/s/dcp15ymah51uwizpmmt2vys5zr2r5reu

ELA / ELD Framework, https://www.caeducatorstogether.org/resources/6537/ela-eld-framework

California ELD Standards , https://ucdavis.box.com/s/vqn43cd632z22p8mfzn2h7pntc71kb02 

  1. Students can further explore the Khmer Empire by reading Zhou Daguan’s The Way of Life in the Khmer Empire. https://www.nla.gov.au/digital-classroom/year-8/asia-pacific-world/angkorkhmer-empire-c802-c1431/themes/way-life-khmer# 
  2. Students could create an interactive timeline of the Khmer Empire.

Britt, K. 2020c, May 11. English learner toolkit of strategies. California County Superintendents. https://cacountysupts.org/english-learner-toolkit-of-strategies/

Buckley, B. M., Anchukaitis, K. J., Penny, D., Fletcher, R., Cook, E. R., Sano, M., Nam, L. C., Wichienkeeo, A., Minh, T. T., & Hong, T. M. 2010. Climate as a contributing factor in the demise of Angkor, Cambodia. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 107(15), 6748–6752. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0910827107 

California Department of Education & English Learner Support Division. 2012. California English Language Development standards (Electronic Edition) kindergarten through grade 12 (F. Ong & J. McLean, Eds.). California Department of Education. https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/el/er/documents/eldstndspublication14.pdf

California Educators Together. (n.d.). ELA / ELD framework. https://www.caeducatorstogether.org/resources/6537/ela-eld-framework

Cambodia | History, Map, flag, capital, population, Language, & Facts. 2023, December 7. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/place/Cambodia/The-Khmer-state-Angkor

carylsue. 2016, June 16. Khmer Empire. National Geographic Education Blog. https://blog.education.nationalgeographic.org/2016/06/17/15-things-we-learned-this-week/ngs-picture-id1249750/

CAST. 2018. The UDL guidelines. http://udlguidelines.cast.org

Plubins, R. Q. 2023. Khmer Empire. World History Encyclopedia. https://www.worldhistory.org/Khmer_Empire/ 

San Diego County Office of Education. (n.d.). Providing appropriate scaffolding. https://www.sdcoe.net/educators/multilingual-education-and-global-achievement/oracy-toolkit/providing-appropriate-scaffolding#scaffolding

Sexias, P. & Morton, T. 2013. The big six: Historical thinking concepts. Nelson Education.

The way of life in the Khmer Empire. (n.d.). National Library of Australia. https://www.nla.gov.au/digital-classroom/year-8/asia-pacific-world/angkorkhmer-empire-c802-c1431/themes/way-life-khmer#

Tulare County Office of Education. (n.d.). Strategies for ELD. https://commoncore.tcoe.org/Content/Public/doc/Alpha-CollectionofELDStrategies.pdf 

Water — virtual angkor. (n.d.). Virtual Angkor. https://www.virtualangkor.com/water 

Model Curriculum

Cambodian American Studies

Standard(s)

HSS 6.1.2 RI.6.1 W.6.2

Grade(s)

Grade 6