Songhai Teacher Resources

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...

Middle schoolers study and identify the empire of Songhai through research and describe Timbuktu's role in its economy. They investigate how Timbuktu became an important spiritual and intellectual center of Islam. Students describe the...

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...

Students access online information regarding education in Timbuktu and the mighty Songhai Empire. They write an essay comparing and contrasting the curriculum of the university at Sankore with that of their own school.

Middle schoolers go on an information gathering hunt on the Internet to study West African empires. They work in teams; meteorologists, bankers, writers, and archaeologists. They collect data on all sorts of topics related to West...

Fourth graders recognize and can describe the settlers of Early America. In this American colonies lesson, 4th graders research using primary and secondary sources, Native Americans, Europeans, and African Americans role in the...

Students examine the geographic characteristics of Western and Central Africa, the impact of geography on settlement patterns, cultural traits, and trade. They compare political, social, economic, and religious systems of...

Students read a portion of the narrative, The Transatlantic Slave Trade, to explain the ethnic origins of enslaved Africans brought to the US. They create charts and bar graphs comparing ethnicities in the lowlands and tidewater regions.

Young scholars examine factors leading to the demise of ancient civilizations. They list causes that led to the downfall of these societies. Students conduct Internet research and participate in online archaeological investigations.

In this African history study guide worksheet, students read a brief overview pertaining to the history of Africa from 1500 to the present.

Learners practice balancing different interests involved in social problems.  In this informative lesson students are given social problems and come up with realistic solutions based on the advantages and disadvantages of each. 

Learners study to artifacts from Ghana and discuss how these aid in understanding the civilization.

Engrossing site that explores the settlement and decline of Mali and Songhai. The site examines the city of Timbuktu and the impact of years of turmoil and conquest on the settlement.

This site provides a brief explanation and picture of Timbuktu, part of the Songhai Empire.

This site provides a brief article about the Songhai Empire, the last major empire of the western Sudan.

Explore different ancient civilizations to learn about some of the reasons these civilizations collapsed. Looks at Maya, Mesopotamia, Chaco Canyon, Mali and Songhai. Includes interactive activities.

Why did great civilizations fall? War, disease, overpopulation or natural disasters? Interactive content and activities allow you, by sifting through archaeological evidence, to investigate the collapse of the Mayan civilization, the...

An image of Songhai.

Students develop and express claims through discussions and writing which examine the impact of relationships between ideas, people, and events across time and place. To accomplish this, they recognize recurring themes and patterns in...

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.

This site from the COCC provides a very large and informative website providing a historical summary plus links to many aspects of the slave trade. Detailed timeline describes the development of African civilizations from the 15th...

Article from the University of Calgary that examines the development and growth of Islam in West Africa. The Islamic religion is traced from the beginning of the period through today.

Article provides a brief examination of the merchants and traders of Africa during the early period of African history.

Read about The Gambia's role in the slave trade, its importance in WW II, and its subsequent independence. Information is from the U.S. State Dept. Background Notes.