Islamic Civilizations

The seventh unit in my World History curriculum covers the rise of Islamic civilizations, the growth of the religion as a whole, and the Islamic Golden Age.

This is an important unit for students to learn about one of the world’s largest religions. Many resources are available to help students understand the rapid growth of Islam across the Middle East and North Africa, while also looking at diverse empires like the the Persians and Seljuk Turks.

The complete unit bundle can be downloaded here with all the resources and lesson plans or you can join Students of History and access to everything online.

The unit begins with a lesson on the rise of Islam as one of the world’s most powerful religions. Given the complexity of religion, students will benefit from starting things off with a thorough PowerPoint and guided notes (with flipped classroom video or Google Slides options) on Muhammad and the beginning of Islam before delving into the activities.

Next are several interactive notebook activities you can select from. Students can create interactive maps of Islam's growth, complete a page on the key beliefs of Islam, or review the religion's origins. Digital interactive pages are available as well if you prefer students to complete the activities online. A worksheet on the Kaaba is available as an exit ticket here as well.

The next lesson has students looking at the growth and spread of Islam. Another PowerPoint and guided notes is available here (also with video and Google Slides options). There's also a video guide for an excellent documentary you can show here and several more printable or digital notebook activities that can be paired with readings. 

The last lesson of the unit focuses on the Islamic Golden Age. Students work together in pairs or small groups to review and rank the achievements of Middle Eastern civilizations during Islam's "Golden Age". This can be followed with a short packet on the culture and achievements of these civilizations which is available as both a printable PDF and digital Google Doc.

The unit concludes with a complete unit guide packet and review games and activities before moving on to an editable unit test. There is also a Google Forms version included for easy grading!

You can download the entire unit here and save everything you need right on your desktop. You can also sign up for a Students of History subscription to access everything online. A subscription also grants you immediate access to the ENTIRE World History curriculum. That’s 24 complete units like this one full of engaging resources and lessons. 

If you’re not sure which option is better for you, you can read more about the differences between subscriptions and TpT purchases here. 

Thanks so much for checking it out!