Materials

• Class notes on sub-Saharan African civilizations (see bolded text in Instructional Activities below)
• Blank map of Africa

Instructional Activities

NOTE: The following Web resources may be helpful in teaching this session:

• “Civilizations in Africa: Axum.”<http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/CIVAFRCA/AXUM.HTM>.
• “Accounts of Meröe, Kush, and Axum, c. 430 BCE - 550 CE.”
  <http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/nubia1.html>.

1. Review with students the content covered to this point in the organizing topic.
   
   
2. Put the following notes on the board or overhead:
   • African civilizations developed in sub-Saharan west and east Africa.
   • Trade brought important economic, cultural, and religious influences to African civilizations from other parts of the Eastern Hemisphere.
   • States and empires flourished in Africa during the medieval period, including Ghana, Mali, and Songhai in west Africa, Axum in east Africa, and Zimbabwe in southern Africa.
   
   
3. Explain that over the next few sessions, students will study about these African civilizations. Distribute a blank map of Africa. Instruct students to attach this map to their notes for reference during the discussion of the African civilizations.
   
   
4. Use a map of Africa to indicate the location of the Axum kingdom. Provide a brief background of this kingdom. Ensure students understand that Axum was a Christian kingdom. The Web sites listed above may be of assistance in locating information on the Axum kingdom.
   
   
5. Instruct students to reflect the location of the Axum kingdom on their maps.
   
   
6. Assign a teacher-selected reading, worksheet, or other reinforcement activity, using available teacher resources.