Follow the 13th century trail of Marco Polo into the legendary Mongolian kingdom of the Kubla Khan and discover the wonder of spice, silk, tea, ivory, jade and porcelain as well as the hospitality of a true oriental nobleman, the Khan. Information based on Il Milione (the diary of Marco Polo's travels). Games, crafts, interactive and cross curricular activities, free printable lesson plans. Includes literature, poetry, science, economics and social studies lessons.
In the 1200s, Marco Polo
traveled in medieval times to explore the magical Xanadu, summer palace of the Mongol leader
Kubla Khan (son of Ghengis Khan). Polo brought back exotic spices, jade, silk and strange beasts
(elephants) to the western world. His travels ushered in the Silk Road and Spice Road trade systems.
Marco Polo wrote about his travels in "Il Milione" or "The Travels of Marco Polo." Read his biography in social studies and have students create a character map for interactive biography lesson plans.
For geography and history lesson plans, follow the travels of Marco Polo. Here's a freeprintable map of the Marco Polo expedition, which became the Silk Road. Expand it and
attach it to a cheap roll up window shade to make a Silk Road map for social studies lesson plans. Have students
color and label map and make icons to symbolize elements of the Marco Polo story.
For biography, literature and culture lesson plans, explore the history of Kublai Khan and the rise of the Mongol Empire under Ghengis Khan. Have students create a Facebook profile for Marco Polo, Ghengis or Kublai Khan to put their lives into modern perspective.
Mr. Donn offers free printable Marco Polo lesson plans and activities on the Mongol Empire and Kublai
Khan, geared for lower elementary to middle school students. ABC teach has free printable MarcoPolo lessons. Activities cover Kublai Khan,
Xanadu and the travels in the Mongol Empire. These
lessons work well students in grades 4-8.
Here's a more descriptive discussion on Xanadu andMongol Empire with re-enactors dressed in Mongolian battle dress and villagers costumes. There are
images of artifacts from the Kublai Khan dynasty which students could make replicas of. Last, for creative writing and art lesson plans, have students draw what they imagine the Mongol Empire and Kublai
Khan may have looked like using Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem Xanadu, the Ballad of Kubla Khan. This would be perfect literature lesson plans for National Poetry Month in April.
