African Kingdoms Empires Unit 2 | Mali Songhai Egypt Kush Great Zimbabwe | Grades 6 to 12

This is the unit most history books skip entirely.

Before any European set foot on the continent, Africa had some of the most powerful and sophisticated civilizations on Earth. This unit covers kingdoms and empires across all five regions. Ancient Egypt, the Kingdom of Kush, the Mali and Songhai Empires, the Kingdom of Benin, Great Zimbabwe, the Swahili Coast, and more. Students learn who built them, how they were governed, and why this history matters.

Includes a reading guide with Did You Know fact boxes, 16 vocabulary terms, a kingdom matching activity, map work, discussion questions, a crossword puzzle, a two-level quiz for middle school and high school, and a complete answer key.

This is Unit 2 of the 12-unit KARIBU African Studies curriculum.