Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Take Your Students on a Journey Through Ancient Egypt! The Twinkl Ancient Egypt Map Lesson is a fantastic resource for helping students explore the geography of this fascinating civilization. Students will learn about key locations like the Nile River, pyramids, temples, and ancient cities with detailed maps, interactive activities, and guided lessons, This ready-to-use lesson makes it easy to connect geography with history, helping students understand how the landscape shaped Egyptian life, trade, and culture. Perfect for an engaging and visual learning experience!

tag(s): asia (125), egypt (59), map skills (64), maps (224)

"What Life Was Like As An Incan" is a twelve-minute YouTube video highlighting the ancient Incas. The video highlights surgery, food, travel, astronomy, architecture, babites, marriage, and mummification.

tag(s): south america (77)

The Discover Peru website's page on Andean and Inca music offers an accessible introduction to the musical traditions of the Inca civilization. It explains that the Inca primarily utilized wind and percussion instruments, such as panpipes (zamponas), flutes (quenas), and drums (tinya and wankara), in their music. These instruments played a significant role in various aspects of Inca society, including religious ceremonies, agricultural festivals, and daily life. The site also notes that string instruments were introduced later by the Spanish.
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tag(s): musical instruments (54), south america (77)

Discover an interactive digital lesson that explores how the Inka Empire engineered a 25,000-mile road network across challenging Andean terrain without the use of wheels or metal tools. The lesson incorporates maps, videos, historical illustrations, and inquiry-based activities to examine Inka innovations in transportation, agriculture, and water management. It also highlights how Indigenous communities continue to use and preserve these technologies today.

tag(s): inquiry (30), south america (77)

National Geographic: The Mali Empire is an article highlighting how King Sundiata Keita, also known as the "Lion King," brought wealth, culture, and Islamic faith to West Africa's Mali Empire. It also discusses the fall of the empire after his death. The article includes a vocabulary section.

tag(s): africa (170)

The Griot tradition of West Africa featuring Sibo Bangoura is a six-minute video featuring Sibo playing the Kora. Sibo sings a traditional West African song called Nan Fulie, which focuses on the importance of the Griot people. He additionally features an improvisation on the Djembe.
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tag(s): africa (170)

PBS's Timbuktu | Religion & Ethics Newsweekly is a six-minute video featuring what appears to be an ancient manuscript found in Timbuktu. It highlights the city's history and the Islamic religion. Share the video via Google Classroom or from the provided link. Teachers can also build a lesson with the video. The video aligns with the New York State Core Curriculum.

tag(s): africa (170), religions (112)

Sundiata, Lion King of Mali is a Reader's Theatre script for middle school students. Sundiata was the prince and founder of the Mali Empire. The play focuses on life before he was born and continues throughout his adult life.

tag(s): africa (170)

Inca Empire for Kids: Myths, Legends, and Stories highlights how studying myths, legends, and stories tells the story of the civilization. Featured are links to the Incan creation myth video, the llama legend, the myth of Mano Capac, the myth of the Rod of Gold, and more.
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tag(s): myths and legends (41)

View this in-depth look at how the Inca civilization thrived through practical innovation. The site explores topics such as the role of llamas in daily life, strategies used to unite newly conquered tribes, the purpose and design of Incan roads, and how messengers navigated the empire. The site also covers the empire's defense systems, the way Incan architecture blended with the landscape, and how they communicated without a written language. Rich in content, the site includes photos, videos, and maps to enhance student understanding.

tag(s): architecture (84), south america (77)

Ghosts of Machu Picchu is a free site that explores careers related to Machu Picchu. The site offers a video on the Ghost of Machu Picchu, an interview on the Incas' ice mummies, a profile of a climate expert, and a lesson on ice mummies. The lesson is divided into grades 5-8 and 9-12, with an extension activity on falling on the leaning tower.

tag(s): climate (85), south america (77)

Peru's Machu Picchu site offers a virtual tour of Museo de Sitio and a link to Machu Picchu viewed through the eyes of Fernando Astete. The site can be translated into Spanish and French.

tag(s): cultures (211), south america (77)

Discover an entire unit in which students will gain knowledge of the geography of South America, how mountains affect climate, plant and animal ecology and the daily life of humans living in the region, the history of the Incas, the economy and social life of the Inca Empire, the impact of the Spanish Conquest on the Andean people, the archaeological site of Machu Picchu, and more. The lesson plans themselves consist of materials needed, an overview, an introduction, procedures including inquiry questions, discussion, assessment, and homework. A teacher and student guide are included as well as additional resources, word match, and glossary. The unit aligns to the Connecticut Social Studies Framework.

tag(s): cultures (211), south america (77)

The Google Arts & Culture "Inca Exhibition" offers an interactive and visually rich exploration of the Inca civilization, ideal for upper elementary through high school students. Through curated images, artifacts, and concise text, the exhibition covers key aspects of Inca life, including architecture, engineering, religion, and societal structure. Students can virtually explore items like Inca textiles, tools, and ruins, making it a powerful tool for visual and inquiry-based learning.

tag(s): art history (106)

View these resources related to Ancient Africa and the Kingdom of Kush. Find art, civilizations, daily life, people, geography, culture, government, and war. Under each topic are many resource links. The resource links include a Q&A or questions and answers at the very bottom.
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tag(s): africa (170)

Share this site with your students that offers a clear overview of the Kingdom of Kush, highlighting its emergence as a significant civilization in the Nile River Valley. It discusses Kush's expansion over regions of present-day Sudan and its period of ruling Egypt for over a century. The resource is suitable for middle-grade students, offering an accessible introduction to the history and influence of Kush in ancient Africa.
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tag(s): africa (170)

Discover this accessible and engaging overview of this ancient African civilization for young learners. It covers Kush's origins in Nubia, its interactions with Ancient Egypt--including periods of both conflict and cooperation--and its eventual rise to power, culminating in the Kushite pharaohs' rule over Egypt during the 25th Dynasty. The article highlights Kush's achievements in trade, ironworking, and architecture, notably the construction of pyramids at Meroe. Accompanied by printable worksheets, this resource is well-suited for upper elementary and middle school students studying ancient civilizations or African history.

tag(s): africa (170)

The Britannica Kids article on the Kingdom of Kush offers a clear, student-friendly overview of this ancient African civilization. It explains how Kush, located in what is now Sudan, began as an Egyptian colony and later rose to power, even ruling Egypt during the 700s BCE. The article highlights Kush's wealth from gold mining, agriculture, and trade, as well as its cultural blend of Egyptian and African influences. It also notes the kingdom's eventual decline after being conquered by Aksum around 350 CE. This resource is ideal for upper elementary and middle school students studying ancient civilizations or African history.

tag(s): africa (170)

View this site about Ancient Africa, which has links to information on Ancient Africa, Medieval African Kingdoms, stories, fables, and proverbs, religions, art, and geography. Additionally, the site contains links for lesson plans, animals, Kwanzaa, crafts, and the continent today. Don't miss the site's interactive games.

tag(s): africa (170), kwanzaa (12)

The Louisiana Department of Education's "Unit 4: The Inca and Aztec Empires" resource provides teachers with a structured collection of activity pages, assessments, and learning materials focused on the rise, achievements, and decline of the Inca and Aztec civilizations. This PDF includes reading passages, vocabulary exercises, map activities, comprehension questions, and writing prompts to support student engagement and understanding. This resource is designed to align with curriculum standards, and is ideal for reinforcing key concepts, assessing student knowledge, and facilitating discussions on Mesoamerican and Andean civilizations.

tag(s): aztecs (10), letter writing (20), maps (224), south america (77), vocabulary (242)