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History, Civics & Social Studies · Grade 7

African, Asian and American Networks

Learners follow gold and salt across the Sahara to the empires of Ghana, Mali and Songhai, ride the monsoon winds to the Swahili coast, Great Zimbabwe and the fleets of Zheng He, and study how the Aztec and Inca organized huge states. They compare these networks and source the outsiders' and insiders' accounts that describe them.

  • 4 lessons
  • About 105 minutes
  • Networks check: 9 questions
  • Ways to answer: fill in the blanks, choose an answer, highlight a text, pin a map, pick map regions and match pairs
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What learners will discover

  • Explain how trans-Saharan trade in gold and salt supported the empires of Ghana, Mali and Songhai and spread Islam and scholarship.
  • Describe Indian Ocean trade, including the monsoon winds, the Swahili city-states, Great Zimbabwe and Zheng He's voyages.
  • Describe how the Aztec and Inca states organized land, labor, tribute and records.
  • Compare trade and tribute networks and evaluate sources written by outsiders and insiders.

Lessons

  1. Gold, salt and West African empires 7 steps4 practiceabout 27 min
  2. The Indian Ocean world 6 steps4 practiceabout 26 min
  3. The Aztec and Inca states 5 steps3 practiceabout 26 min
  4. Comparing networks and their sources 6 steps3 practiceabout 26 min
  5. Networks check 9 questions at the end

Keep exploring

More 7th grade social studies

Guide for grown-ups