Zagwe Ethiopia · about 1180-1270

Lalibela: churches carved from rock

High in the Ethiopian mountains, King Lalibela had eleven churches cut down into solid rock. Students find out how they were made, why a king might build a new Jerusalem in Africa, and why pilgrims still come today.

Teach it live New Open on the map
Length
45 minutes
Ages
10–13
On the map
3 steps, AD 1279
Live lesson
7 rounds, 3 on the map
Worksheet
Two A4 pages, with Classroom
You need
A projector; phones for live

Live lesson · new in Classroom

Teach it live. The class answers on their phones.

Put the board on the projector. Students join with a six-digit code, no account needed, and tap the map: where was the frontier, where did the grain come from. Their pins drop in together when you reveal, and the closest student takes the round.

€19 per month: every lesson live, every worksheet, cancel anytime. Rome at its height runs live for free.

A live lesson on the projector: the class's pins on the map around Alexandria, the closest students listed beside it A student's phone: the question and a map to tap
7 rounds
3 places to find on the map, quiz questions, a class vote and a one-line answer.
About 15 minutes
Run it as the map step, or to open the discussion. You move on with the space bar.
A report
Every answer, per student and per round, to read back or print after the lesson.
1

Introduction

5 min

Read aloud

High in the Ethiopian mountains, King Lalibela had eleven churches cut down into solid rock. Students find out how they were made, why a king might build a new Jerusalem in Africa, and why pilgrims still come today.

By the end of the lesson, students can

  • Locate Lalibela in the Ethiopian highlands and compare its position with Aksum and Jerusalem.
  • Describe how a monolithic church was carved from the top down.
  • Explain why the churches are linked with the idea of a new Jerusalem.
2

Explore the map

12 min

Project the map, or let students follow on their own devices. Each step opens the map at the right year and place.

a

AD 1279

The Ethiopian highlands

Open the map in 1279, soon after the kings who built Lalibela lost power. Find the label Ethiopia in the highlands. Which other state lies to its east, towards the Red Sea?

Open this view on the map
b

AD 1187

Jerusalem far away

Move the slider to 1187 and zoom out until you see both the Ethiopian highlands and Jerusalem. That year Saladin took Jerusalem. Why might Ethiopian Christians want a holy city closer to home?

Open this view on the map
c

AD 1279

Ask the atlas

Type in Ask the atlas: "Why were the churches of Lalibela cut into the rock?" Compare the answer with what you have learned. Does the guide mention the idea of a new Jerusalem?

Open this view on the map
3

Class discussion

14 min

Pick two or three. They run from what happened to why it mattered.

  1. The churches were cut downward into solid rock, not built up. What planning would that need?
  2. Tradition says King Lalibela wanted a "new Jerusalem" in Ethiopia. Why might a king build a copy of a faraway holy city?
  3. Priests still hold services in these churches about 800 years later. What is different about a monument that is still in use?
  4. Legends say angels helped to carve the churches. What do such legends tell us about how people saw the work?
  5. Ethiopia stayed a Christian kingdom while many of its neighbors were Muslim. How did mountains help it keep its own path?
4

Game round

9 min

Play one round of Rule History as Saladin, who took Jerusalem in 1187, during King Lalibela's lifetime. Discuss: how could one ruler's victory change the plans of a faraway king?

Open Rule History
5

Worksheet

5 min

This worksheet comes with Classroom

€19 per month unlocks every worksheet, every live lesson and the class workspace. The free lesson prints without a subscription.