Age 9-11: Cultural Contributions - the Sciences

Unit 4: Geography

Activity: Plan a Trip!

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Plan a Trip!

Plan a trip from Seville in Spain to Mecca. You have a Canadian passport for this assignment

Display your trip on posterboard. Include the following:

appropriate transportation: car, train, and/or boat
route:
1. draw a map showing the route
2. list the countries you travel through
3. outline the main geographical features you will see (rivers, mountains, deserts)
describe the clothing you will need
documents you need to take: passports, visas
security issues you may encounter
similarities and differences between travel today and travel during Ibn-Batuta’s time

The Islamic empire expanded dramatically. By 800 CE, the Islamic region spread from Spain to the Chinese border. Two famous Islamic geographers were Al – Idris and Ibn – Batuta.

Al – Idris

He worked for King Roger II of Sicily. He wrote a geography of the world and surmised that the circumference of the world was 37, 000 kilometres. He was very close…it is actually closer to 40,000 kilometres).

Ibn – Batuta

He completed a pilgrimage to Mecca in 1325. He then went on to visit Africa, Russia, India and China. He travelled more than anyone in that time period, travelling about 120,000 kilometres.