The document discusses the geography of the Fertile Crescent region, specifically Mesopotamia between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. Early hunter-gatherer societies settled there around 12,000 years ago and began farming crops like wheat and barley due to the rich, fertile soil deposited by seasonal river flooding. As populations grew with stable food sources, villages formed which eventually developed into the world's first civilizations in Mesopotamia between 4000-3000 BC. Farmers needed irrigation systems and flood protection like canals and river banks to control the seasonal waters and ensure a consistent food supply.

1. GEOGRAPHY OF THE FERTILE
CRESCENT

2. RIVERS AND THE GROWTH OF CIVILIZATION
• Rivers supported early people with food and fresh water. So you
could find many civilizations started around rivers and streams.
• The land between the Tigres and Euphrates is one of the most
important areas where ancient civilizations started.
• This land is known as Mesopotamia. Its part of a larger area
called the fertile crescent.
• The fertile crescent extends from the Arabian gulf to the
Mediterranean sea.

3. THE RISE OF CIVILIZATION
• Hunter-gatherer settled in Mesopotamia around 12,000 years ago.
Over time these people learned how to plant crops for food around
the tigres the Euphrates.
• Slit was formed around these two rivers to make rich and fertile soil.
• Slit is a mixture of rich soil and tiny rocks.
• The first farm settlement was formed around 7000 BC. People grew
wheat, barley and other types of grain.
• Wherever food is plenty, there would be more people around. So
villages were made, and then they developed to become the world
first civilization.

4. FARMING AND CITIES:
• At the beginning, farming was not easy in the Mesopotamia. There was little
amount of rain so the two rivers raised during the flood season and went low for
the rest of the year. People needed a way to control the two rivers.
• People of the Mesopotamia used irrigation (a way of supplying water to an area
of a land) and used canals (human made waterways).
• They also built up banks around the rivers to protect their houses from the
flooding.
• A year after another, they could get food that was more than enough for them
so there was no need for all of them to work as farmers, some were farming and
others did other jobs like making clay pots or other tools to help raise the level
of life.
• Over time, Mesopotamia settlements grew in size and developed into cities
between 4000 and 3000 BC. But all of them were focusing on agriculture. But
gradually trading was invented.

5.  HOMEWORK:
• Where was Mesopotamia?
• How did the fertile crescent get its name?
• What was the most important thing that made Mesopotamia
farmlands very fertile?
• Why did farmers need to develop a system to control their
water supply from the two rivers?