Grades 6 - 8

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Africa True or False? Come Explore! Online Tutorial

"Must-have": highly recommended teaching material

How Big Is Africa? poster

Teaching Tips

Below are teaching tips for educators interested in incorporating African content into their curriculum. We also have handouts available on this site, accessible via the Lending Library link.

Stereotypes and Misunderstandings

• Africa: Myth and Reality
• Teaching About Africa in Elementary Schools
• Selecting Books on Africa
• Criteria for Evaluating Materials on Africa
• What can outsiders do for Africa?
• How to Write about Africa, by B. Wainaina

Key Concepts and Pedagogy for Africa

Teaching About Wildlife

Lesson Plans & Resources

Introductory lessons:

What Do We Know about Africa?
Bingo!: The African Connection
Guiding Principles for Best Practice: & three introductory lessons
A Short List of Recommended Books, Videos and Curricula for All Grades

Geography:

African Culture for Teaching Geography
Africa Isn't a Country
How Big Is Africa? Lesson Plans
Key Concepts & Core Resources for Teaching African Geography
The Swahili: an annotated bibliography for teaching
Using BU's Resources for Teaching Afr. Geography
Photos for Teaching (uses of visual materials and where to obtain them)

History:

Al-Bakri's On-Line Guide to the Ghana Empire
Ancient Manuscripts from the Desert Libraries of Timbuktu
Bibliography of teaching materials
Downloadable African and European Images of Eachother
Historical Fiction: Suggested Readings
Kingdom of Ghana
Kingdom of Mali
Kingdom of Songhay
Mali Empire and Djenne Figures
The Story of Africa: West African Kingdoms (BBC)
Trekking to Timbuktu: Trade in Ancient West Africa - Student Version
Uncovering an African Scholary Heritage (PBS)

Literature:

The 2007 Award Winners
Exploring's Africana Book Awards (CABA) Winners (includes brief book descriptions)
Award-winning Children's Books
Assignment for Children Reading Books on Africa
Middle School Literature
Bibliography of Children's Literature
Selecting Books on Africa
How to Write about Africa, by B. Wainaina
Guide to Multicultural Literature

Other Lesson Plans:

Introducing African Art

Proverbs (useful for learning about culture)
       Botswana
       Ghana
       Nigeria
       Swahili

more lesson plans can be found here and handouts here

Lending Library

Websites of great usefulness