Overview

The following learning tools build off the six-part series Spice Migrations, written by Jeff Koehler and illustrated by Linda Dalal Sawaya, to highlight social-studies concepts and explanations while building reading comprehension skills. Each learning tool builds a timeline and plots the locations of historical moments on a world map.

Cinnamon: Where did it come from?

Overview

The story Spice Migrations: Cinnamon, written by Jeff Koehler and illustrated by Linda Dalal Sawaya, focuses on one of the most-common spices around the world, one that was once scarce and mysterious. Early merchants kept the origins of cinnamon a secret and so kept a lock on the valuable spice trade. Eventually, the secret got out, and cinnamon became the ubiquitous spice it is today.

Key Terms

As you read the article, you will notice the words below. See if you can figure out what these words mean based on their context. Then click on the words below to see if you’re right.
  • Al-Ramhormuzi
  • Anointing oil
  • Ayurvedic medicine
  • Cremation
  • Dexterity
  • Embalming
  • Herodotus
  • Kibbeh
  • Malay
  • Monsoon
  • Nard
  • Pervasive
  • Pilaf
  • Pliny the Elder
  • Pungent
  • Sinhalese

Key Concepts

This learning tool lends itself to learning three foundational social studies concepts:

  • the economic concept of scarcity;
  • the historical concept of turning point;
  • and the concept of migration.

Warm up

Before reading the article or doing the activities, discuss these three questions.

  • What do you associate with cinnamon?
  • Is it common in the foods you eat? Explain.
  • Is it expensive, easily affordable, or somewhere in between?

Timeline

In this activity, build a timeline of events connected to the migration of cinnamon from the earliest times to the present.

Mapping Activity

In this activity, map the migration of cinnamon from Asia to Europe.

Pepper: King of the Spices

New mini lesson coming September 2022. Check back for updates.

Overview

The story Spice Migrations: Pepper, written by Jeff Koehler and illustrated by Linda Dalal Sawaya, focuses on one of the most-common spices around the world. History records show how pepper has been a food enhancer since the time of the Greeks and Romans. Originating from India, pepper has experienced trade that has carried it from Asia to the Middle East. In the 1500s its shortage in Europe helped spur the Age of Exploration.

Key Terms

  • Globalization
  • Ibn Battuta
  • Jiddah
  • Kerala
  • Kochi
  • Kozhikode
  • Levant
  • Madinah
  • Makkah
  • Malabar Coast
  • Zayton

Key Concepts

This learning tool lends itself to learning three foundational social studies concepts:

  • the economic concept of scarcity;
  • the economic concept of globalization;
  • the historical concept of turning point;
  • and the concept of migration.

Warm Up

Before reading the article or doing the activities, discuss these three questions:

  • What do you think of when you hear the word pepper?
  • Do you use pepper in the foods you eat? Explain.
  • Do you think pepper is expensive or easily affordable? Explain.

Timeline Activity

In this activity, build a timeline of events connected to the migration of pepper from the earliest times to the present.

Mapping Activity

In this activity, map the migration of pepper from Asia to Europe.

Nutmeg: A Spice For Food, Medicine And Geopolitics

Overview

The story “Spice Migrations: Nutmeg,” written by Jeff Koehler and illustrated by Linda Dalal Sawaya, focuses on one of the most-common spices around the world. For centuries, nutmeg had been known only to the people of the islands of South Asia and China. By 750 CE, Muslim traders brought it to the Middle East where it was used more for medicinal purposes than as a food enhancer. In the 17th century, however, nutmeg began playing a more global role, in a land swap that gave the Netherlands control of the nutmeg trade in South Asia, and Britain a very distant island in North America.

Key Terms

As you read the article, you will notice the words below. See if you can figure out what these words mean based on their context. Then click on the words below to see if you’re right.
  • Archipelago
  • Drupe
  • Extant medieval cookbooks
  • Melaka, Malaysia
  • Nationalize
  • Orang Kaya
  • Mauritius
  • Spice Islands

Warm up

Before reading the article or doing the activities, discuss these three questions:
  • What do you think of when you hear the word nutmeg?
  • How do you think nutmeg is used?
  • Do you think nutmeg is expensive or easily affordable? Explain.

Key Concepts

This learning tool lends itself to learning two foundational social studies concepts:
  • The economic concept of globalization;
  • and the historical concept of turning point.

Timeline Activity

In this activity, build a timeline of events connected to the migration of nutmeg from the earliest times to the present.

Mapping Activity

In this activity, map the migration of nutmeg from Asia to Europe.