312

High school (ages 12+)
History & Culture

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/312

1. What is the calendar system?
2. What is the roman year designation?
3. What makes the year 312 special in the calendar?
4. Why was 312 called the Year of the Consulship of Constantinus and Licinianus?

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the calendar system?Julian calendar, functioning as a leap year
2. What is the roman year designation?Year of the Consulship of Constantinus and Licinianus
3. What makes the year 312 special in the calendar?312 was a leap year in the Julian calendar, so February had 29 days. It started on a Tuesday, and the extra day helped keep the seasons from drifting too much.
4. Why was 312 called the Year of the Consulship of Constantinus and Licinianus?In ancient Rome, years were named after the two people who served as consuls. In 312, those consuls were Constantinus and Licinianus.

Julian Calendar: A solar calendar introduced by Julius Caesar, characterized by a leap year every four years.
Consulship: The office and term of a consul, the highest elected political office in the Roman Republic and Empire.
Ab urbe condita: A Roman system of reckoning years from the traditional founding date of Rome (753 BCE).
Anno Domini (AD): A calendar era counting years from the traditionally calculated year of Jesus Christ's birth.