Class One:
Introduction- Dispelling the myths: Images of Africa
1. I Didn’t Know There Were Cities in Africa! Challenging children’s and adult’s
misperceptions about the African Continent. By: Brenda Randolph and Elizabeth
DeMulder. Teaching Tolerance Magazine. Number 34, Fall 2008
2. Physiographic Map of Africa
3. Powerpoint: Africa/ World Cities ID’s
Class Two:
Key Geographic Features of Africa (J#1: What is modern Africa like geographically, politically,
and socially?)
 Rivers (Nile, Niger, Congo)
 Deserts( Sahara, Kalahari)
 Sahel
1. Blank Political Map- Label Countries/ Shade and divide by region
2. 10 Days in Africa Board Game
3. Chapter 1 Notes: Early Prehistory of Africa
Class Three:
Regions of Africa…What are the regions of Africa and why do we divide them this way? (J#2)
 North, South, Central, West, East
1. Map Quiz: North/ East/ Western Africa
2. Powerpoint: Geography
3. GA! Tour of the Nile: Source to Mouth
4. Comic Strip: Origin Stories- Egypt,
Class Four:
Settlement Patterns…Why have people settled where they settled? (J#3: Draw a typical SBHS
student- how have they adapted to their environment?)
 Bantu Migrations
1. Map Quiz: Eastern and Southern
2. GA! Sahara/ Sahel
3. Travel Poster Group Project
Class Five:
Adaptations to Environment…In which regions were these practices most prevalent and how
did people adapt to their environments? (J#4)
 Hunter-Forager Societies
 Pastoral
 Agriculture
1. Quiz: Central Africa
2. Mad Men Pitches- Africa
3. Chapter 2 Notes: Later Prehistory- Farming and Pastoralism in Tropical Africa
and Ancient Egypt
4. Video Clip: Bob Breyer’s Real life mummification
Class Six:
J#5: What are some common misperceptions of Africa and what is the role of the media?
1. Excerpt- Tarzan Book
2. Video Clip: Tarzan 1930’s
3. Video Clip: Tarzan 1999
4. Study Guide: Test #1
Class Seven:
1. Test #1 and Notebook Check
2. Analysis of Tarzan
Additional Resources
 UNC-Chapel Hill African Studies Department. www.africa.unc.edu
o I Didn’t Know There Were Cities in Africa! Challenging children’s and adult’s
misperceptions about the African Continent. By: Brenda Randolph and Elizabeth
DeMulder. Teaching Tolerance Magazine. Number 34, Fall 2008
 Google Earth Tour http://earth.google.com/support
Unit II: The Economics of Africa
At the end of this unit, students will be able to:
1. Identify
key economic resources in each of the following regions: Northern Africa, West
Africa, Central Africa, East Africa, Southern Africa.
2. Explain how the aforementioned economic resources impact economic relationships in each
of the following regions: Northern Africa, West Africa, Central
Africa, East Africa, Southern Africa.
3. Compare and contrast the regional economies of Africa in terms of methods of production
and regional versus international trade.
Class Eight:
Economics of East Africa
 What are the major imports and exports of the Swahili Coast?
 What are the major imports and exports of the Indian Ocean Trade and how is it
impacted by the monsoon winds?
 What nations or societies were involved in the slave trade in East Africa? Why?
1. Group Project: Regional Economies within Africa
2. Library Day
3. DEAR: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
Class Nine:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Group Project: Regional Economies within Africa on Map
Summary of Current Events
Chapter 3 Notes: The Impact of Iron in North and West Africa
Comparative Essay: Compare and Contrast the regional economies of two
African Regions (how are they similar and different and Why?)
5. DEAR: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
Class Ten:
Economics of Southern Africa- (J#6) What are some possible connections between resource rich
areas and civil conflict?
 Where was gold found, how is it mined, and what are the conditions like for the
laborers?
 How are cattle raised in Southern Africa and what is their integral role in pastoral
lifestyles?
 Where were diamonds found, how are they mined, and what are the conditions like for
the laborers?
1. Chapter 4 Notes: The Early Iron Age in Central, Eastern, and Southern Africa
2. Documentary- Blood Diamonds (History Channel)
3. DEAR: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
Class Eleven:
Economics of Central Africa (J#7): How have the Refugee All-Stars adapted to the world around
them?
 Where was gold found?
 Where does ivory come from, how is it obtained, and what is the environmental impact?
 How are cattle raised in Central Africa and what is their integral role in pastoral
lifestyles?
 Where does rubber come from, how is it obtained, and what are the conditions like for
the laborers?
1. Finish Blood Diamonds Documentary
2. Clips: Refugee All-Stars
3. DEAR: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
Class Twelve:
(J#8) Who was Wangari Muta Maathi?
1. HA! Economics: Women as micro-entrepreneurs
2. Storytime: Mama Miti by: Donna Jo Napoli (True Story of Wangari Muta Maathi)
3. DEAR: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
Classes Thirteen and Fourteen:
Economics of West Africa
 Why have gold and salt been so highly prized in Trans-Saharan trade?
 What role(s) did West African people and societies play in the slave trade? Why?
1. Chapter 5 Notes: North and North-eastern Africa to 1000 CE
2. Video: Hannibal the Annihilator
3. Movie Presentation: A Far Off Place
(J#9): Do you think that A Far Off Place is a fair depiction of Southern Africa? Did you like A
Far Off Place? Why or why not?
4. DEAR: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind- turn in Reflection Journal
Class Fifteen:
(J#10): Do you believe the arguments that there was Pre-Columbian contact between Africa and
the Americas? Why/why not? What is the significance of the debate over Pre-Columbian
contact?
1. Powerpoint: Pre-Columbian Contact Theories
2. Sundiata Assignment
3. Chapter 6 Notes: Trans-Saharan Trade and the Kingdom of Ancient Ghana
Class Sixteen:
Test #2- Multiple Choice/True & False/ Identification questions and a Comparative Essay.
**EXTRA CREDIT OPPORTUNITY: Students are invited to attend the Loudoun County Public
Libraries Event, An Evening with William Kamkwamba, author of The Boy Who Harnessed the
Wind.
Unit III: The Socio-Cultural Dimensions of Africa
At the end of this unit, students will be able to:
1. Identify several groups of people that reside in each region of Africa and
describe their social structures.
2. Compare and Contrast societies with others within the same region as well as
with different regions of Africa, and be able to explain why certain similarities
and differences may exist.
3. Describe the factors that have shaped these societies throughout the history of
Africa and explain how these factors affected the way people lived from day to
day.
Class Seventeen:
 East Africa…What social structures or statuses exist in these societies? How have
different religious or cultural traditions impacted these societies?
 Axum
 Ethiopia
 Swahili Coast
(J#11) What do you know about the Kingdom of Kush? Location? Type of Empire?
Religion?
1. Chapter 7 Notes: Islam and the Sudanic States of West Africa
2. Video Clips- Safari Montage- In Search of Kush
3. Sundiata
Class Seventeen:
 Southern Africa…What social structures or statuses exist in these societies? How have
they dealt with differences in religious tradition, ethnicity, or cultural practices? (J#11)
 South Africa
 San, Khoisan, Xhosa, Zulu
 Great Zimbabwe
1. (J#12) Why does the video refer to Africa as having a “history denied?” What is the best
way to remedy that situation?
2. DEAR: Sundiata
3. Chapter 8 Notes: Eastern Africa to the 16th Century
4. Video: Time Life- Africa: A History Denied
Class Eighteen:
 Central Africa…How have these societies dealt with migration and the mix of different
cultures or ethnicities?




Bantu Migrations
Kongo
Lunda State
Luba State
1. (J#13) What social structures/ stratifications are present in Southern Africa?
What are some differences in religious traditions, ethnicity, and cultural
practices?
2. Library: Sundiata Project
Classes Nineteen, Twenty, Twenty-One
 West Africa…What are the main religions and languages of West African societies?
Have these had an impact on social structures or inter-ethnic relations? (J#13)
 Ghana
 Mali
 Songhai
 Wolof
 Nok
 Hausa
1. The Influence of Islam on West Africa
2. The Cultural Legacy of West Africa
5. Nigeria: A Country of Many Cultures
6. Powerpoint: Sufi Islam in Senegal
7. Niane, D.T. (1995). Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali. Harlow, England: Longman Publishing
Group.
8. Sundiata/Griot Project: Students will read the entire epic and be responsible for “storytelling” one chapter of the story to the class. Students will also complete a visual journal
for the story- putting the story into their own words and illustrating it.
9. 2 Article Reviews Due by end of 1st Quarter
Class Twenty-Two (End of 1st Quarter)
1. Test #3
2. Notebook Check
3. 2 Article Reviews Due
Class Twenty-Three and Twenty-Four:
1. (J#14) What parallels can you draw between the epic of Sundiata and Disney’s
The Lion King?
2. Critical Analysis Sheet: Disney’s The Lion King
Classes Twenty- Five:
 Northern Africa…To what degree has Islam or Christianity been accepted in North
Africa? How have indigenous religions and traditions responded to these
monotheisms? Why? (J#15)
 Egypt
 Nubia/Kush
 Carthage
1. Chapter 9 Notes: Trading Towns of the East African Coast to the 16th Century
2. Video: Ibn Battuta
3. Reading: BBC World Service’s “The Story of Africa”: “Religious Conversion and
Resistance”(HTML)
4. Reading: BlackPast.org: Ryan Hurst’s “Mahdist Revolution, (1881-1898)” (HTML)
Additional Resources






National Museum of African Art- http://africa.si.edu
South African Folk-Tales by James A. Honey, MD- www.sacredtexts.com/afr/saft/index.htm
African Folktales for Kids- http://africa.mrdonn.org/fables.htm/
Internet African History Sourcebook- www.fordham.edu/halsall/africa/africasbook.asp
African Voices- www.mnh.si.edu/africanvoices/
Sufi Islam in Senegal- powerpoint- www.africa.unc.edu
Unit IV: The Politics of Africa
At the end of this unit, students will be able to:
1. Identify major civilizations, nations, and countries within each region of Africa.
2. Analyze how political boundaries have been established within Africa over time.
3. Describe the factors that have shaped the political boundaries of Africa, as well as its
political institutions over time.
4. Explain how historical political factors have affected the way people live in various
African regions in 2012.
Classes Twenty-Six:
 East Africa…How have the political boundaries of East Africa shifted over time and
what caused these changes?
 Ethiopia…What is the nature of political leadership within Ethiopia and the changes and
continuities?
 What is the nature of political leadership along the Swahili Coast and its changes and
continuities?
1. Chapter 10 Notes: Later Iron Age States and Societies of Central and Southern
Africa to 1600
2. Article Analysis due
3. HA! Gold- Salt Activity
Classes Twenty-Seven:
* East Africa…What are the political ramifications of the interaction between the Swahili Coast
and both the Middle East and India? (J#16)
1. Reading: BlackPast.org: Professor Jonas Ray’s “The Battle of Adwa (Adowa), 1896”
Classes Twenty-Nine, Thirty, Thirty-One:
 East Africa…What are the major events of the 20 and 21st centuries in East Africa and
what makes them “major”? (J#17)
1. John Green- Sub-Saharan Africa
2. Jones, Jim. (2010). East Africa in the 19th Century. West Chester University.
3. Lugard, Capt. F.D. (1893). The Rise of our East African Empire.
4. Continuity and Change Over Time Essay: East Africa
Classes Thirty-Two, Thirty-Three, Thirty-Four:
 Southern Africa…How did the political boundaries of Southern Africa shift over time
and what caused these changes? (J#18)
 San, Khoisan, Xhosa, Zulu…What is the leadership structure of each of these groups,
and how have they interacted with one another and others in Southern Africa? (J#19)
1. Reading: BBC World Service’s: “The Story of Africa:” “Southern Africa: Oppression of
Khoikhoi and Xhosa.” (HTML)
2. Reading: South African History Online’s “Colonization and Land Supremacy”: “Frontier
or Xhosa Wars, 1779 to 1879” (HTML)
3. Reading: US Country Studies: Rita M. Byrnes (ed.), South Africa: A Country Study:
“Background to the Mfecane” (HTML) and “Shaka and the Rise of the Zulu State”
(HTML)
4. Reading: US Country Studies: Rita M. Byrnes (ed.), South Africa: A Country Study:
“Formation of the Union of South Africa, 1910” (HTML)
5. Reading: Project Gutenberg’s version of Sol Plaatje’s Native Life in South Africa: “Chapter
Three: The Natives Land Act” (HTML)
6. Book Project (Things Fall Apart, or King Leopold’s Ghost, or Tsotsi)
Class Thirty-Five: On or around December 1st (World AID’s Day)
1. Powerpoint: AIDS in Africa
2. Video: We Are Together
3. (J#20): What is the global impact of AIDS in 2013? What is the impact of AIDS in
Africa in 2013?
Class Thirty-Six:
1. Chapter 11 Notes: North and North-East Africa to the 18th Century
2. Review for Test
3. Book Project DEAR time
Class Thirty-Seven:
1. Assessment on recent material Chapters 7-10
2. Book Project DEAR time/ reflection
Class Thirty-Eight
* Southern Africa…What are the political ramifications of the interaction between Southern
Africa and both Europe and the Indian Ocean? (J#21)
1. Reading: South African History Online’s “Governance and Politics,” “A Land
Dispossession History.” (HTML)
2. Roosevelt, Theodore, et al. British Rule in Africa: Address Delivered at the Guildhall,
London, May 31st, 1910.
3. Millerand, Alexandre. (1903). Reformist Socialism (“The Black Man’s Burden”)
4. Book Project DEAR time/ reflection
Class Thirty-Nine:
1. Chapter 12 Notes: The Atlantic Slave Trade, Sixteenth to Eighteenth Century
2. DEAR time/ reflection
3. (J#21)
Class Forty:
1. COT Chart to 1750
2. DEAR time/ reflection
Class Forty-One:
1. Chapter 13 Notes: West African States and Societies to the Eighteenth Century
2. COT Essay to 1750
Class Forty-Two:
1. Chapter 14 Notes: Central and Eastern Africa to the Eighteenth Century
2. Amistad
Class Forty-Three:
1. Primary Sources: Amistad
2. Amistad
3. (J#22)
Classes Thirty-Nine, Forty, Forty-One, Forty-Two:
 What are the major events of the 20th and 21st centuries in Southern Africa and what
makes them “major”? (J#22)
1. Cry Freedom! (1989) (Story of South African activist Steven Biko)
2. Amandla!: A Revolution in Four-Part Harmony (Story of anti-apartheid protest music in
South Africa)
3. Web Media: Vimeo’s version of the BBC’s “The Herero Massacre.” (Adobe Flash).
4. Reading: Michigan State University’s South Africa: Overcoming Apartheid: “Unit 4: Protest
and Resistance through the Rivonia Trial, 1964” (HTML)
5. Millenarian Movements: Cattle-Killing
6. Continuities and Change Over Time Essay: Southern Africa
7. 2 Article Reviews due by end of 2nd Quarter
Classes Forty-Three, Forty-Four:
 Central Africa…How did the political boundaries of Central Africa shift over time and
what caused these changes? (J#23)
 Central Africa…What have been the routes, time periods, and impact of the Bantu
Migrations? (J#24)
Classes Forty-Five, Forty-Six, Forty-Seven, Forty-Eight:
 Central Africa…What are the political ramifications of the interactions between Central
African societies, and between Central Africa and Europe? (J#25)
1. Hochschild, Adam. (). King Leopold’s Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in
Colonial Africa
2. Mills, Wallace. Belgian Colonial Policy. St. Mary’s University.
3. Excerpts from film: Peter Bates’ Congo: White King, Red Rubber, Black Death (2005, 111
minutes).
Classes Forty-Nine, Fifty, Fifty-One, Fifty-Two, Fifty-Three, Fifty-Four, Fifty-Five, Fifty-Six,
Fifty-Seven:
 Central Africa…What are the major events of the 20th and 21st centuries in Central Africa
and what makes them “major”? (J#26)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Combres, Elisabeth. (). Broken Memory: A Novel of Rwanda
Hotel Rwanda, (2004)
Reading: BlackPast.org: Alys Beverton’s “Maji Maji Uprising (1905-1907)” (HTML)
Web Media: A24Media’s: “Itungati: the Mau Mau Story” (Adobe Flash) 18 minutes
Reading: Fordham University: Paul Halsall’s Internet African History Sourcebook: Jomo
Kenyatta’s “The Kenya Africa Union is not the Mau Mau, 1952” (HTML) Speech
6. Film: War Dance (2006 106min.)- (3 Ugandan youngsters who attend school in a refugee
camp and find home through a rich tradition of song and dance…)
7. Film: God Grew Tired of Us: The Story of Lost Boys of Sudan (2006)
8. Continuities and Change Over Time Essay: Central Africa
Classes Fifty-Eight, Fifty-Nine:
 West Africa…How did the political boundaries of West Africa shift over time and what
caused these changes? (J#27)
 Ghana…What is the leadership structure of Ghana? How did it develop? (J#27)
 Mali…What is the role of the Mansa and the supporting bureaucracy within Mali? (J#28)
 Songhai…What is the leadership structure of Songhai? How has it developed? (J#28)
Classes Sixty, Sixty-One, Sixty-Two, Sixty-Three, Sixty-Four:
 West Africa…What are the political ramifications of the interaction between West Africa
and both Europe and the Americas? (J#29)
1. Tribal Scars or the Voltaique. In Tribal Scars (pp. 102-116). London: Heinemann
Educational Books.
2. Hawthorne, W. (2003). Strategies of the Decentralized: Defending Communities from
Slave Raiders in Coastal Guinea-Bissau. 1450-1815. In S. Diouf (Ed.), Fighting the
Slave Trade: West African Strategies (pp. 152-169). Athens: Ohio University Press.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Achebe, Chinua. () Things Fall Apart
Jones, Jim. (2010). The British in West Africa. West Chester University.
Jones, Jim. (2010). The French in West Africa. West Chester University.
Reading: Time. “Business: Burnt Cocoa.” (1938) (HTML)\
2 Article Reviews due by end of 3rd Quarter
Classes Sixty-Five, Sixty-Six, Sixty-Seven, Sixty-Eight, Sixty-Nine, Seventy:
 West Africa…What are the major events of the 20th and 21st centuries in West Africa and
what makes them “major”? (J#30)
1. Reading: BlackPast.org: Ali Bilow’s “Tiraillieurs Senegalese.” (World War I
document)
2. Web Media: University of South Florida: Florida’s Center for Instructional
Technology’s “Post-WWI Africa Map, 1920” Map (HTML)
3. Book: A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by: Ishmael Beah (firsthand account
from a boy soldier from Sierra Leone)
4. Reading: Michigan State University: African E-Journal Project: Institute of African
Studies Research Review, Vol. 7, No. 1-2 (1991): Kwadwo Afan-Gyan’s “Kwame
Nkrumah, George Padmore, and W.E.B. DuBois.” (PDF)
5. Reading: Paul Halsall’s Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Kwame Nkrumah’s “I
Speak of Freedom, 1961” (HTML) Speech
6. Film: Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars (2005 79min.) (The film captures the
triumphant story of six musicians who escaped Sierra Leone’s horrific civil war and
formed a band that traveled the world)
7. Continuities and Change Over Time Essay: West Africa
Classes Seventy-One, Seventy-Two:
 Northern Africa…How did the political boundaries of Northern Africa shift over time
and what caused these changes? (J#31)
 Egypt…What is the nature of political leadership in Egypt, from the pharaohs to the
present? (J#31)
 Kush/Nubia…What is the leadership structure of Kush, and what has been the nature of
its interactions with other civilizations? (J#32)
 Carthage…What has been the leadership structure of Carthage, and how has it
interacted with other civilizations? (J#33)
 Ottoman Empire…Why has the Ottoman Empire been involved with North Africa?
What has been its impact? (J#33)
1. PBS- Wonders of the African World with Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Classes Seventy-Three, Seventy-Four:
 Northern Africa…What have been the political interests of North African societies, and
how have they pursued them in the Middle East, Asia, and Europe? (J#34)
1. Breasted, James. (1926). The Conquest of Civilizations (excerpts). New York: Harper
and Brothers.
2. Reading: West Chester University: Dr. Jim Jone’s “The Fashoda Incident.” (HTML)
Classes Seventy-Five, Seventy-Six, Seventy-Seven:
 Northern Africa…What are the major events of the 20th and 21st centuries in North
Africa and what makes them “major”? (J#35)
1. Reading: Marxists Internet Archive: Walter Rodney’s How Europe Underdeveloped
Africa “Chapter 5”(PDF).
2. Web Media: iTunes U: Marcus Garvey’s “Explanation of the United Negro Improvement
Association.”
3. Web Media: CriticalPast.org: “Benito Mussolini and His Troops Invade Ethiopia.”
(Adobe Flash)
4. Continuities and Change Over Time Essay: Northern Africa
5. 2 Article Reviews due by end of 4th Quarter
Classes Seventy-Eight, Seventy-Nine, Eighty
 Review
 Assessment: Final Exam- Multiple-Choice/ True-False/ Essay
Additional Resources

*BBC: The Story of Africawww.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/africa/features/storyofafrica/index.shtml

PBS- Wonders of the African World with Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
www.pbs.org/wonders/

Free online course in Modern Africa (Hist 252)- www.saylor.org/courses/hist252
(Sub-Saharan Africa from late 19th century to present day).