Curated OER
Life in Ancient Ghana, Mali, and Songhai
Students study the ancient African kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai. They brainstorm what they know about ancient African kingdoms before investigating the trade and barter situations, and researching one of the kingdoms for an oral...
Curated OER
West African Kingdoms
Explore the rise and fall of the great West African civilizations. Kids review specific vocabulary, discuss natural resources, and take notes on the empires of Ghana and Mali. The presentation begins with a great critical thinking...
Curated OER
Culture and Kingdoms of West Africa
Africa was home to many great ancient civilizations, this presentation covers aspect of 4 of them. Middle schoolers explore aspects of civilizations from Nubia, Ghana, Mali, and Songhay. Topics covered are achievements, culture, great...
Curated OER
Timeline of Ancient Africa
In this ancient Africa worksheet, students complete a timeline and respond to 4 short answer questions about the civilizations of Egypt, Ghana, Kush and Mali.
Curated OER
Medieval African Kingdoms
Seventh graders examine the geography and political history of West Africa. They role-play as applicants to a company that transports customers to any historic time period. Working in teams, they create promotional products encouraging...
Curated OER
The Civilization of Mali
In this ancient African civilizations worksheet, learners respond to 7 short answer questions about the civilization of Mali.
Curated OER
Community & Architecture
Young scholars investigate the Bamum people of Cameroon and the use of symbols in African societies. They read a handout, and design a palace using African symbols, presenting and describing their design to the class.
Curated OER
Trekking to Timbuktu: Restoring the Past
Students describe the environmental conditions that presently threaten Timbuktu. They explain what efforts are being made to restore the ancient mosques, describe the condition of the ancient manuscripts and tell what is being done to...
Curated OER
Trekking to Timbuktu: Trade in West Africa (Lesson 2)
Students examine the importance of trade in West Africa. Using a virtual time capsule, they travel back to ancient times and travel along with a caravan. They answer specific questions related to the journey and items they are trading....
Curated OER
Post-WWII De-Colonization
The end of WWII brought big changes around the world, not the least of which occur in the increasingly decolonized continent of Africa. This slideshow details the developing countries of Ghana, Kenya, Congo, Nigeria, and South Africa, to...
Curated OER
Examples of Justice Systems and Practices in Western Africa
Tenth graders explore African belief systems. In this West African lesson, 10th graders research these belief systems. Students create a wooden figure that represents these beliefs.
Curated OER
Trekking to Timbuktu: The Geography of Mali -Teacher Version
Students investigate the geography of Mali. They locate Mali on a satellite map, explore various websites, describe the landscape and climate, label a map, and write an essay about the Niger Riger.
Curated OER
Traveling the Silk Road: A Multimedia Approach
Students transfer what they have learned about China into an electronic project. In this collaborative project, students take what they have learned from their textbooks and synthesize the information in order to create an electronic...
Curated OER
Mali
Seventh graders begin the lesson by reading primary sources about the country of Mali. Using maps drawn in the past, they discuss what they can gather about the country from the map and how it has changed over time. They use a graphic...
Curated OER
The Sound of Music in Kenya
Students study Kenya's culture and see how people and things can be different and similar at the same time. They create a pictograph of objects from each culture that are used in similar ways and examine a few Swahili words.
Curated OER
Dig Magazine Archeology Quiz #66
In this Dig Magazine archeology quiz, students answer 4 multiple choice questions covering a variety of topics. Page contains answer and additional resources link.
Library of Congress
Loc: Ancient Manuscripts: From the Desert Libraries of Timbuktu
This is a collection of primary, historical documents from Timbuktu, Mali during the the 16th through 18th century. The documents cover all aspects of this advanced African civilization.
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of Africa Art: Ancient West African City of Benin
A photographic exhibit of art objects from Benin from the period of 1300 to 1897 C.E. Extensive commentary is given for each object. Requires Adobe Reader. [PDF]
Other
American University (Cairo): Theban Mapping Project
Explore the ancient city of Thebes at this amazing website that brings together zoomable maps, video, images, text, a glossary and timeline, and other resources to help learners understand the significance of the ongoing archaeological...
Understanding Slavery Initiative
Understanding Slavery Initiative: Africa Before Transatlantic Enslavement
The history of West Africa provides a context for learning about the transatlantic slave trade. Discover the rich cultural traditions and economic networks that existed in the West African empires such as Ghana, Mali, and Songhay long...
BBC
Bbc World Service:the Story of Africa
The history of Africa is documented from earliest times to the present. The menu bar divides it into time periods which then divide into sub-topics; also included is a visual timeline.
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: An Introduction to Africa's Arts and Cultures
The British Museum shares the background of its ancient pieces from Egypt, Aksum, ancient Ghana, Mali, Songhoy, Ile Ife, and the Benin kingdom. Also provided is information about its later pieces from the Asante Confederation, the...
PBS
Pbs: The Swahili People
This is a site from the PBS series "Wonders of the African World." This brief but detailed article gives information about the origins and history of the Swahili people.