Don't let "research paper" scare you--the length of this paper should be 2-5 pages (typed, twelve point font, one-inch margins, double spaced). The most important items to cover are the key biographical data:
- Where was this person born?
- Where did he/she live?
- When did this person live?
- What was his/her importance?
- What impact did he/she have on ancient Rome?
There are lots of other interesting angles you could explore, such as childhood/education, myths/legends, interesting encounters with other key figures, famous quotes, inventions, artistic contributions.
Find images of your persona and things related to him/her (these might include architecture, art, maps, etc.).
Your paper must be word processed. After it is finished, print it and save it on a disk. You will hand in the printed out version on the day it is due. We will use the version on the disk to begin to build a web page for your persona which will be linked to the Forum Romanum site.
Include a bibliography.
This should last exactly as long as it takes to communicate the key information of your report--no time limit/minimum. You must have your material pretty well under control; do not read your report or any other piece of paper; instead, use note cards or have it memorized. Prepare a one-page handout with the key information for the students (leave them room to take notes on it). If you want me to Xerox the handout for you, you must hand it in one day early. The primary impact on the grade will come from the quality of the presentation and its usefulness to others; content will be graded separately in the paper. As long as you hit the key points of your paper (not every detail) the content will be fine and take care of itself.
Choose a Historical Persona
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