If you’re world history teacher aiming to enhance your curriculum or find additional resources, you’ve come to the right place! My goal is to help you excel teaching West Africa Empires, the Ghana, Mali and Songhai Empires as well as bring Askia Muhammad and Mansa Musa to life for your students. I personally use each World History Rawks activity. Finally, each unit includes bell ringers, map and reading activities, interactive role play simulations, zero prep, projects, engaging reading comprehension activities, documentary handouts and tests.
West African Empires Bell Ringers
I kick off my medieval West African unit with dynamic, no-prep, skill-based bell ringers. Each bell ringer engages students by reviewing content and practicing crucial reading and writing skills such as subject/verb identification, citation, and sentence writing, with fun drawing prompts included. This helps prepare students for the day’s lesson while making classroom management a little easier.
Africa Map & Reading Activity
I start every ancient or medieval world history unit with an immersive map activity. This FREE Africa Map & Reading Activity provides students with a hands-on approach to understanding Africa’s geography and its impact. Each lesson includes interactive map labeling, coloring tasks, followed by a short reading passage and writing activity on geographic influences, as well as a Google Classroom or printable quiz.
Report Card Reading Activities
When I plan a reading comprehension activity, I want to make it interesting for students. In the Report Card Reading Activities, I transform my students into teacher-historians as they study the Ghana, Mali and Songhai Empires. Students read GRAPES thematic reading passages and answer questions based on each theme then grade each theme. Finally, they calculate the empire’s GPA and write teacher comments.
I use the same approach for the following empires.
Ghana Empire Report Card Reading Activity
Mali Empire Report Card Reading Activity
Songhai Report Card Reading Activity
Hexagonal Thinking Activities
When I teach writing, I begin with organization. I use one of three Hexagonal Thinking Activities for West African Empires. These are a great way for students to visualize what key terms they will use and how their paragraph will be organized.
West Africa GRAPES Puppet Project
We’ve all had classes that just won’t participate. Whether it’s personalities or just how kids are these days, sometimes it is hard to get a good discussion going in class. The way I promote active participation is by using Gen Z and Alpha slang in the West Africa GRAPES Puppet Project. Students use slang and key terms to write a script bragging about West African Empires. They then translate their slang into academic language. Finally, they talk with other students or perform a puppet show about West African history.
West African Mosque Project
Projects should not be hard to prep. I engage students with a hands-on project where they build a West African Mosque Project. This end of unit activity integrates key terms and historical events, encouraging collaborative learning and creative expression. Finally, the are great classroom decorations.
Decline and Fall of the Mali Empire Simulation
As a history teacher, I want my students to develop an understanding of cause and effect. Part of that is understanding how empires rise and fall. In the Decline and Fall of the Mali Empire Simulation, students explore the complexities of an empire’s decline in an interactive simulation. Students experience the forces that contribute to the decline of the Mali Empire. And they do this while working to prevent the collapse of their simulated empire. This simulation fosters critical thinking and historical empathy, leaving a lasting impact on student learning.
West African Empires Test
I used to dread making tests for my ancient and world history units. If you need help writing your unit test for the West African Empires Test, use this assessment covering Africa’s geography, Ghana, Mali and Songhai Empires. Finally, there is a regular and modified version, a study guide and writing tests.
West African Empires Unit
The West African Empires unit is designed with teachers in mind. It is full of time-saving activities. You will get more student buy-in with interactive simulations, hands-on projects, and insightful discussions on historical figures. Designed for flexibility, the West Africa unit helps teachers be their best!