Ancient Civilizations · 6th Grade

Active learning ideas

The Roman Empire & Pax Romana

Active learning helps students grasp the complexities of the Roman Empire and Pax Romana by moving beyond memorization of dates and names. By analyzing Augustus’ strategies, infrastructure, and political messaging, students see how power and peace functioned in practice rather than in theory.

• Common Core State Standards
• C3: D2.Civ.6.6-8
• C3: D2.His.14.6-8
• C3: D2.Eco.1.6-8

• 25–35 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 3 activities

Activity 01

• Think-Pair-Share
• 25 min · Pairs

Think-Pair-Share: Whose Peace Was the Pax Romana?

Students receive brief first-person accounts from four people living under the Pax Romana: a Roman senator, a provincial merchant, a freed person in Rome, and an enslaved laborer. Students write which person they would rather be and why, discuss with a partner whether it is accurate to call this period 'peaceful,' then share with the class.

Analyze how Augustus transformed Rome from a Republic into an Empire.

Facilitation Tip

For Think-Pair-Share, assign specific roles to pairs to ensure diverse perspectives are represented during the discussion phase.

What to look for

Facilitate a class debate using the prompt: 'Was the Pax Romana truly a 'peace' for everyone living under Roman rule?' Assign students roles representing different groups (e.g., a Roman senator, a merchant in Gaul, a farmer in Egypt, a soldier on the frontier) to argue their perspective.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 02

• Stations Rotation
• 35 min · Small Groups

Collaborative Analysis: Augustus's Image

Small groups analyze two primary source images: the Augustus of Prima Porta statue and a coin with Augustus's image. Students identify what messages each communicates about his authority and how he wanted to be seen. Groups compare their readings and discuss how visual propaganda works to build and legitimize political power.

Evaluate the benefits and drawbacks of living under the Pax Romana.

Facilitation Tip

During Collaborative Analysis, provide students with a graphic organizer to compare Augustus’ public image with his actual policies.

What to look for

Provide students with a map of the Roman Empire at its height. Ask them to identify three major cities and draw a line representing a Roman road connecting them. Then, ask them to write one sentence explaining why that road would have been important for trade or military movement.

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

Activity 03

• Gallery Walk
• 30 min · Individual

Gallery Walk: Pax Romana Infrastructure

Post stations for roads, aqueducts, the grain supply system, Roman law, and the army as a policing force. Students write one benefit and one cost of each system for different groups in the empire. Closing discussion asks: what is the difference between stability and justice?

Explain how the vast network of Roman roads facilitated trade and communication across the empire.

Facilitation Tip

For the Gallery Walk, place a map of the empire’s borders next to each infrastructure image so students can visualize how infrastructure reinforced control.

What to look for

On an index card, have students answer the following: 1. Name one specific action Augustus took to become emperor. 2. List one benefit and one potential drawback of living during the Pax Romana.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Create
• Relationship Skills
• Social Awareness

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teachers should emphasize the gap between perception and reality when teaching Augustus and the Pax Romana. Use primary sources like coins, statues, and road maps to show how Augustus crafted his image. Avoid framing the period as uniformly peaceful; instead, highlight regional differences and conflicts. Research shows that students better grasp nuanced topics when they analyze artifacts and conflicting viewpoints rather than lectures.

Successful learning looks like students recognizing Augustus’ subtle consolidation of power while maintaining Republican forms, understanding that Pax Romana stability varied across the empire, and connecting infrastructure to imperial control. They should also be able to articulate multiple perspectives on what 'peace' meant in this context.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During the Gallery Walk: Pax Romana Infrastructure, students may assume the empire was uniformly peaceful because of the infrastructure shown.

  During the Gallery Walk, ask students to pair each infrastructure image with a region on the border map, noting which areas required military roads and why. This will ground the discussion in the reality of constant frontier warfare.

• During Collaborative Analysis: Augustus's Image, students may think Romans immediately recognized Augustus as an emperor rather than a restorer of the Republic.

  During Collaborative Analysis, have students examine Augustus’ titles and imagery on coins or statues, then ask them to explain how these elements would have been interpreted by a Roman farmer versus a senator. This will reveal the subtlety of his power.

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Methods used in this brief

• Think-Pair-Share
• Stations Rotation
• Gallery Walk