Ancient Indian Achievement: Zero

Introduction

By the end of this lesson, you should be able to: 

1. Explain how the invention of 'zero' is considered an achievement 

2. Explain how it has impacted other parts of the world today  

3. Explain how it continues to influence our lives today 

4. Explain how ‘zero’ provides evidence of how resourceful the Ancient Indians were

'Zero' is one of Ancient India's achievements that has an impact on today's world and continues to influence our lives today. It also provides evidence of how resourceful the Ancient Indians were. But, have you ever wondered what life would be like without 'zero'? 

Today, you and your group members will become time-travelling journalists who will discover answers to the following questions: 

  • How 'zero' came about 
  • How it changed the lives of people back then
  • How it continues to have a lasting impact on our lives today

Your job is to create a newspaper article informing present-day readers of your findings! 

Task

Task 1: Research

As time-travelling journalists, you and your group members have to travel back in time to Ancient India and find out about the invention of "zero".

Use these questions to guide your research and find some answers to them: 

  • When was 'zero' created?
  • Who invented it? 
  • How did it come about? 
  • Why was it invented?
  • How did it change the lives of people back then? 
  • How did the invention of 'zero' show resourcefulness?
  • How does it continue to have a lasting impact on our lives today?
  • Bonus question: Do you think it will continue to have an impact on the lives of people in the future? Why or why not? 

You may also use your textbook page 116 to help you as you travel back to Ancient India to learn about 'zero'! 

Task 2: Create a Newspaper Article 

With what you gathered from your research, your group would have to create a newspaper article informing present-day readers why "zero" is an achievement that continues to be important. 

Remember to include your sources (where you got the information from e.g. article links, textbook, or videos) 

Process

To successfully complete your tasks as time-travellers, use the following steps to guide your group in your quest. 

1. Decide who is going to assume the following roles (2 mins) 

Time keeper keep track of the time 
Task manager focus the group on the task 
Noise manager ensure your group is using their Green Voices 
Resource manager collect and return resources on your group's behalf 
The presenter shares the newspaper article with the class  

2. Decide who is going to research on which questions (3 mins) 

History of 'zero': When was 'zero' created? Who invented it? How did it come about?  1 member 
Reasons for invention: Why was it invented? How did it change the lives of people back then? 1 or 2 members 
Resourcefulness of 'zero': How did the invention of 'zero' show resourcefulness? 1 or 2 members 
Impact of 'zero' on today's world: How does 'zero' continue to have a lasting impact on our lives today? 2 members 
Bonus question: Do you think 'zero' will continue to have an impact on the lives of people in the future? Why or why not?  As a group

3. Use the following links to help in your research (15 mins) 

History of 'zero': When was 'zero' created? Who invented it? How did it come about?  https://tinyurl.com/historyof0
Reasons for invention: Why was it invented? How did it change the lives of people back then? https://tinyurl.com/reasonsfor0
Resourcefulness of 'zero': How did the invention of 'zero' show resourcefulness? https://tinyurl.com/resourcefulnessof0
Impact of 'zero' on today's world: How does 'zero' continue to have a lasting impact on our lives today? https://tinyurl.com/impactsof0
Bonus question: Do you think 'zero' will continue to have an impact on the lives of people in the future? Why or why not?  https://tinyurl.com/0bonus

You may also use your textbook page 116 to help you as you travel back to Ancient India to learn about 'zero'! 

Remember to share your findings with your group members so that everyone is on the same page. 

4. Create your newspaper article (15 mins) 

You may use the given template in the link below: 

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1NuGPls5PiqqS7Kz0NRN662KFrIuoSwV_47tvlGMT498/edit?usp=sharing 

While you are doing your newspaper article, please keep in mind the evaluation rubric to guide your process. 

Remember to include your sources (where you got the information from e.g. article links, textbook, or videos) 

 

Evaluation

 

Category/Score

Excellent

5

Good

4

Needs Improvement

3

Poor 

2

 Total Score
Amount of Information

All topics were addressed and all questions were answered with at least 3 sentences per topic. 

 All topics were addressed and most questions were answered with 2 sentences per topic.  All topics were addressed and most questions were answered with 1 sentence per topic.  One or more topics were unaddressed   
Spelling and Proofreading  No grammatical or spelling error Almost no grammatical or spelling error  A few grammatical or spelling errors Many grammatical or spelling errors  
 Group Work Group worked together for research, sharing of information and creation of newspaper article.  Group worked together for most of the research, sharing of information and creation of newspaper article.   Group worked together for some parts of the research, sharing of information and creation of newspaper article.   Group did not work together. Work was incomplete.    

 

 

Conclusion

You have successfully completed your group tasks but you have one last task before you can return to Singapore! 

Using your new knowledge, write down at least one thing you have learnt from today's lesson on 'zero' on your concept map. This will come in handy for your Town Hall Meeting next lesson. 

Credits