We love unit studies around here and incorporate many of them into our lesson plans. This year we are working our way through the continents and the boys choose to study the continent of Africa for their first stop around the world. This Africa unit study is easy to implement and simple to plan for.
This page contains affiliate links. If you choose to purchase after clicking a link, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you. For more information please read my full affiliate disclosure.
Africa Unit Study Objectives
I always try to come up with objectives for our unit studies and although we don’t do tests around here as a homeschool parent I’m usually fairly good at knowing their comprehension of a subject. Since the boys are still young this Africa unit study is geared more towards elementary school children. Here are the objectives I had for this level of study:
- Be able to point to Africa on the map and identify the continents surrounding Africa
- Know and identify at least 5 African countries
- Gain an understanding of the physical geography of Africa
- Be able to discuss animals native to Africa
- To learn about the diverse cultures of Africa
Too busy to make this right now? Pin for later to your favorite Pinterest Board!
Components of a Unit Study
We don’t do a lot of book work or worksheets for our unit studies instead we do a lot of ready alouds, games and videos. I like to save the book work and worksheets for subjects like math and language arts! This unit study can be put together over a series of days or weeks. It took us about a month or two to work through the resources below and we continue to reference them as we’ve moved on to other continents to do some compare and contrast work. Remember unit studies are great ways to incorporate a lot of different subjects into one!
Books are one the biggest resources I use in my unit studies and I’ll like some of our favorites below. I like to incorporate fiction and non-fiction books in our unit studies as both bring so much to a unit study and non-fiction can just be fun and encourages a love of reading. Thankfully, I have a terrific librarian at our local library and she’s great at putting together a pile of books for me to pick up on any subject I request including this Africa Unit Study!
Movies and Videos are another big resource. I have one reader and one non-reader and I like to cover subjects using both books and movies/videos so I can reinforce concepts and ideas using multiple learning methods. One of my favorite ways to find videos is to simply create a YouTube video list using a prompt like “Africa for Kids” and compiling a short list of videos that we watch during our Documentary Lunch Time.
We love playing games around here as part of our homeschool routine! I try to find games that relate to our unit study subject and found some great ones for Africa.
Food is another great idea when studying geography or cultures plus we love to cook….and eat! I love finding recipes related to our studies or creating a themed menu to go with our unit studies. Cooking has so many benefits for kids so I’m always bringing them into the kitchen to help! I’ve included some great recipes for this Africa Unit Study.
Books
We do a lot of audio books in the car, which makes for some very peaceful drives! Here are some of our favorite chapter books for Africa Unit Study.
Don't forget to check your local library for some great picture books and there are a lot of great African folklore picture books as well.
Where Is the Sahara Desert?
Who Was King Tut?
Where Are the Great Pyramids? (Where Is?)
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Picture Book Edition
Movies
There are not a lot of movies I thought were perfect for the elementary school age group so I opted for mostly fun movies.
Madagascar
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (2019) P 7.6 | Biography, Drama, History
Games
We love incorporating games into our unit studies. Games are a great way to learn about a subject while incorporating lessons in strategy, fair play and other life skills.
African Stone Game – Foldable Mancala Wooden Board Game
Ticket to Ride The Heart of Africa Board Game
Recipes
We love to eat and we love to cook so I always look for recipes or themed foods for our unit studies! Here's a few recipes to get you started!
African Peanut Stew
Ful Medames Recipe (Stewed Fava Beans)
Baked Harissa Chicken Recipe
Easy Malva Pudding Recipe – South Africa’s King of Puddings
Too busy to make this right now? Pin for later to your favorite Pinterest Board!
Conclusion
There are so many great resources for unit studies! This Africa Unit Study is simple and a great learning opportunity. I always use these are a launching point for deeper studies as we find thing we’re interested in. Don’t be afraid to follow your child’s interest! If you like unit studies, be sure to check out this Dinosaur Unit Study or this Skeleton Unit Study!
