Students in middle school world history have completed a unit on chiefdoms and early kingdoms in Africa and the Americas, drawing important connections and making key comparisons. We’ve also been practicing and applying our geography knowledge throughout this unit. Tomorrow, students will have a quiz to demonstrate their understanding of this material, including the geography and physical features of Africa and the Americas.

Our next unit is focused on the Byzantine Empire and its importance to the post-classical era. Among topics to be discussed are separation of church and state, the Code of Justinian, and a plague that decimated the population of Constantinople. This will provide a great segue to the “dark ages” in Europe, the birth of Islam and its impacts, and the highly advanced cultures of the Tang and Song dynasties in China.