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Trekking to Timbuktu—Teacher VersionCurriculum Unit Overview—Teacher VersionClick Here for Student Version—Salt comes from the north, gold from the south, and silver from the country of the white men, but the word of God and the treasures of wisdom are only to be found in Timbuktu. Introduction:For many people, Timbuktu is a metaphor for the mysterious, the remote, or the unobtainable. But the Malian city of Timbuktu was, in fact, once a thriving center of commerce and intellectual activity. Situated along the Niger River on the edge of the Sahara Desert, it was a crossroads of trade routes stretching as far away as Cairo. At its peak in the 16th century, its universities drew scholars from many great cities of the Islamic world. Today, Timbuktu is but a shadow of its former glory, its ancient mosques and precious manuscripts threatened by desert sands and other factors, environmental and manmade. Fortunately, steps are being taken to preserve the city's fabulous past.In the lessons of this curriculum unit, students will learn about the geography of Mali and the early trade networks that flourished there. They will study how the spread of Islam influenced the cultures and economies along the Niger River. They will find out about the three kingdoms that evolved in ancient and medieval West Africa. They will discover how Timbuktu rose from a simple watering place to the most important city in Islamic West Africa. And they will find out what is being done today to protect the city's antiquities.
Guiding Questions:Where is Timbuktu?What is the geographical landscape of Mali? How did trade develop in ancient West Africa? How did the spread of Islam influence the development of cultures in Mali? What were the origins of Timbuktu? What kingdoms flourished in this region in earlier times? How did Timbuktu become a center of commerce? Why did it become a center of Islamic scholarship and culture? What caused the decline of Timbuktu, and how was it "rediscovered" by Europeans? What problems does the ancient city face today, and what is being done about them? Learning Objectives:After completing this unit, students will be able to:
Preparing to Teach This Curriculum UnitRead each lesson and/or activity. Select appropriate materials to use in class discussions and bookmark them. Download and print out the selected documents and duplicate copies as necessary for student viewing. You might wish to visit the following websites for general background information:
When reference is made during these lessons to taking a photo ("photo op"), the student should consider downloading relevant graphics for his presentation. Unit Lesson PlansLesson 1: The Geography of MaliLesson 2: Trade in Ancient West AfricaLesson 3: Timbuktu - A Center of TradeLesson 4: Mansa Musa Takes a TripLesson 5: Timbuktu's Golden Age of ScholarshipLesson 6: The Search for TimbuktuLesson 7: Restoring the PastLesson 8: Review and Assessment of the curriculum unit on TimbuktuNote: The suggested lessons can be taught either separately (as "stand-alone" units) or consecutively as an entire curriculum unit.Selected EDSITEment WebsitesAfrican Studies WWW[http://www.sas.upenn.edu/African_Studies/AS.html]
[http://www.ipl.org]
[http://www.georgetown.edu/labyrinth/]
Standards Alignment View your state’s standards |
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