1743 French Map of Northwest Africa, depicting the areas covered in this curriculum unit. Courtesy of American Memory at the Library of Congress.
	Subject Areas Art and Culture    Anthropology    Architecture History and Social Studies    World History - Africa    World History - Ancient World    World History - Asia/Far East   Time Required   Activity 1: 2 class periods (1 for lesson; 1 for assessment) Activity 2: 2 class periods Activity 3: 2 class periods Activity 4: 2 class periods Activity 5: 2 class periods Activity 6: 2 class periods Activity 7: 2 class periods Activity 8: indeterminate   Skills   Map skills Observation and description Historical interpretation and analysis Critical Thinking Information gathering Visual analysis Communication   Additional Data   Date Created: 10/16/03

Trekking to Timbuktu: Making The Pitch to Globe Trekker — Student Version

Mission Eight of Curriculum Unit:
Trekking to Timbuktu

Using several pieces of poster board taped together, make an illustrated timeline of the history of Timbuktu. For the illustrations, use graphics downloaded from websites visited during this unit or draw pictures freehand. As a guide for important dates, consult Timeline.

Your Final Presentation:

Well, you've gone “all the way to Timbuktu.” And you've made it home alive!

You've certainly discovered many of the mysteries, intrigues, and realities of life in that remote part of the world—and you're now armed with plenty of good reasons why someone might want to visit there.

Now it's time to convince the producers of Globe Trekkers to film an episode there.

Hope you've saved all the notes and pictures you've taken as well as the essays you wrote on your adventure. Your final task is to create a large poster exhibit in which you highlight - through image and written word—the most interesting aspects of each topic you've investigated—ie, geography, trade, early years of Timbuktu, Mansa Musa's pilgrimage and mosque-building, the Golden Age of scholarship, the search for the lost city of Timbuktu, and efforts currently being made to restore the past.Use colorful language and any strategy you can think of to grab the attention of the viewer. Remember, you're selling your idea! Once you've completed the visual part of your presentation, start practicing your speech.

When you're all set, make your presentation to your classmates, who will dutifully carry out the role of the Globe Trekker producers. Good luck!

Not ready to go home? Tell your producer you have some more hot tips to explore.

• The fame of Sundiata, a ruler of the ancient empire of Mali, is documented in the epic poem “Sundjata.” Read this story (available in libraries and online) and learn about his rise to power. For background information, go to Epic Poetry and Sundiata.
• Ibn Battuta's trip—Not long after the death of Mansa Musa, a famous traveler—Ibn Battuta—arrived in Mali and wrote about Timbuktu. Learn more about this man and his descriptions of trip by visiting the following websites: Battuta's Trip Twelve, Ibn Battuta and Ibn Batuta: Travels in Asia and Africa
• Watch a video in which an Islamic scholar of Timbuktu is interviewed. Go to Retelling the Story and click on the videos about Sankore and the ancient manuscripts.
• Take a visit to modern Timbuktu by accessing Travel (to Timbuktu)

Previous Mission

Return to Curriculum Unit: Trekking to Timbuktu

Other Information

Standards Alignment

1. NCSS-1
   
   Culture and cultural diversity. more
   
   
2. NCSS-2
   
   Time, continuity, and change. The ways human beings view themselves in and over time. more
   
   
3. NCSS-3
   
   People, places, and environments. more
   
   
4. NCSS-4
   
   Individual development and identity. more
   
   
5. NCSS-5
   
   Individuals, groups, and institutions. more
   
   
6. NCTE/IRA-12
   
   Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information). more
   
   
7. NCTE/IRA-4
   
   Students adjust their use of spoken, written, and visual language (e.g., conventions, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes. more
   
   
8. NCTE/IRA-7
   
   Students conduct research on issues and interests by generating ideas and questions, and by posing problems. They gather, evaluate, and synthesize data from a variety of sources (e.g., print and nonprint texts, artifacts, people) to communicate their discoveries in ways that suit their purpose and audience. more
   
   
9. NCTE/IRA-8
   
   Students use a variety of technological and information resources (e.g., libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge. more
   
   
10. NGS-1
    
    How to Use Maps and Other Geographic Representations, Tools, and Technologies to Acquire, Process, and Report Information from a Spatial Perspective
    
    
11. NGS-12
    
    The Processes, Patterns, and Functions of Human Settlement
    
    
12. NGS-17
    
    How to Apply Geography to Interpret the Past
    
    
13. NGS-2
    
    How to Use Mental Maps to Organize Information About People, Places, and Environments in a Spatial Context
    
    
14. NGS-3
    
    How to Analyze the Spatial Organization of People, Places, and Environments on Earth’s Surface
    
    
15. NGS-9
    
    The Characteristics, Distribution, and Migration of Human Population on Earth’s Surface