Session 1: Session Title

UKS2 Topic: Early Islamic Civilisation Block C: Trade and Travel

Session 7: Set out your stall
National Curriculum / Geography: Describe and understand key aspects of human geography, including: economic activity.
Teaching Objectives / To synthesise and apply elements of learning from across the block.
Resources
Images of bazaars. / Weblinks
http://www.orangeblossomwater.net/index.php/category/syrian-baking-and-desserts/ - Wide selection of Syrian dessert recipes with clear photo prompts; http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/baklava_80243 - Simple, easy to follow baklava recipe; http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/rose_and_pistachio_12100 - contains nuts - Relatively complicated method but a very typical sweet of the region; http://freemusicarchive.org/genre/Middle_East/ - Easy access free music archive, good sound quality.
Whole class: This is an opportunity for the children to have lots of fun sharing the fruits of their labours by planning and holding a mock bazaar. Ideally, what the bazaar looks like and what goes on should be left for them to decide - under the teacher’s direction. Some images of bazaars and the commodities for sale are given for inspiration (session resource). Ask the chn what impressions they gain from the pictures, e.g. the bazaars are colourful, often brightly lit, with goods tastefully displayed (perhaps some of them have experienced this type of market on holiday).
It is hoped that the artefacts the chn have recently created will be available for sale or trade. The chn will enjoy creating an immersive experience by decorating the classroom/ space where the bazaar is held - perhaps with lengths of bright fabric to simulate the silks that may have been on sale. If such fabrics are not available, lengths of display backing paper/ sheets of coloured sugar paper might be used; bunting could be draped between stalls.
With the chn, consider the layout of the bazaar that best suits your school environment. Will all stalls be in one place, perhaps around the outside of the hall or playground, with a central coffee/ tea shop? Perhaps ‘avenues’ of stalls can be created, with fabrics draped across the top to enclose them? Maybe the school/ PTA has lots of gazebos that could be used for setting up stalls? Whatever you choose, encourage the chn to take ownership of creating an enjoyable experience for their customers. Don’t forget to give parents/ the wider school community plenty of notice of the date and time for your bazaar! Perhaps some advertising could be done in advance, linking with your persuasive writing learning in English? Consider asking some keen parents to serve in the tea shop, with chn assisting, selling foods that the class has made in advance: Turkish delight, baklava, Ma’rouk Ramadan and Namourrah could all be on the menu.
Hard/ Medium/ Easy
Once chn have decided on the layout, look and content of the bazaar, they set to work creating their stalls. Provide materials as agreed. Assign small groups tasks - perhaps to find and download some ‘authentic’ regional music to play / cook for the tea shop/ hang fabrics, etc. Before opening the bazaar you could prepare to ‘stage’ an incident of dishonesty among the merchants where the bazaar inspector (headteacher) has to arbitrate: perhaps one of the chn has rigged their scales so that they out weigh less than stated or they could be using ‘fake’ coins. Parents could use real money for their purchases (donations towards a class treat perhaps) or exchange a suftaja (letter of credit) that they have already been issued for plastic coins with which they can negotiate a price.
Ensure the chn know how to haggle and barter and that the visitors are encouraged to do so!
Do take lots of photos to record the event in chn’s topic books/ folders and to send to the Hamilton blog.
As a final act, you may want one more person to ‘appear’ at the very end: the tax collector. Taxes on trade were a fact of life in early Islamic times, just as they are now…!
Plenary / Ask the chn to compare their experiences at the bazaar with going shopping where they live. Which is more interesting? Why do they think we don’t/ can’t haggle in the supermarket? Ask the chn to think back to when the ‘silk road’ was first encountered. Chn to write a paragraph to accompany their photo(s) from the bazaar - what they have learned about trade across the early Islamic civilisation? Particularly how this flow of people across geographically distant areas resulted in the spread of Islamic ideas, traditions and knowledge. It would be good to use these observations to annotate the map that was used in Session 1.
Outcomes / Children will:
· Prepare for and hold a mock bazaar where some goods are traded, bought and sold. Chn carry out trades, while visitors to the bazaar (parents) buy products and the bazaar inspector (headteacher) watches out for dishonest merchants.

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