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News & Photos
What the Egyptians Taught Us
Egypt, both ancient and present day, was the focus of sixth-graders' studies for two weeks. They got to see connections between physics, ancient Egyptian craftsmen, ancient Egyptian culture, and modern Egypt.
Highlights included:
- Reading “The Egyptian Times,” a newspaper-style book about ancient Egyptian history. "I liked reading the Egyptian newspaper in reading because it was a summary of the Egyptian lifestyle in a thirty page book, and I learned a lot," said one sixth-grader.
- Studying simple machines and how ancient Egyptians used them. Taking it one step further, students calculated the mechanical advantage of using those machines to lift and move the stones for the great pyramids.
- Learning that the Nile river not only was vital to life in ancient Egyptian times but in modern-day Egypt, as well.
- Building a working shaduf, an ancient machine still used to gather water from the Nile to irrigate fields.
- Launching marshmallows with catapults.
The students learned that the catapult dates back to the ancient Egyptians. Sixth-graders got to build their own catapults, which were expected to launch a regular large marshmallow 10 feet with accuracy. They also had to identify the parts of their machines.
- Creating masks out of papier mache. Students discovered that Egyptians believed in an eternal afterlife and used elaborate masks for burials and rituals.
- Writing remembrance speeches, like eulogies, to commemorate the lives of pharoahs. Said a student, "I loved the writing assignment because I got to learn about a person--Sneferu-- and make it fun at the same time!"
The cross-curricular unit allowed teachers adjust class schedules and instructional techniques. Their goals: to make students think more deeply and regard their studies as relevant to their lives.
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Egypt, both ancient and present day, was the focus of sixth-graders' studies for two weeks. They got to see connections between physics, ancient Egyptian craftsmen, ancient Egyptian culture, and modern Egypt.
Highlights included:
- Reading “The Egyptian Times,” a newspaper-style book about ancient Egyptian history. "I liked reading the Egyptian newspaper in reading because it was a summary of the Egyptian lifestyle in a thirty page book, and I learned a lot," said one sixth-grader.
- Studying simple machines and how ancient Egyptians used them. Taking it one step further, students calculated the mechanical advantage of using those machines to lift and move the stones for the great pyramids.
- Learning that the Nile river not only was vital to life in ancient Egyptian times but in modern-day Egypt, as well.
- Building a working shaduf, an ancient machine still used to gather water from the Nile to irrigate fields.
- Launching marshmallows with catapults. The students learned that the catapult dates back to the ancient Egyptians. Sixth-graders got to build their own catapults, which were expected to launch a regular large marshmallow 10 feet with accuracy. They also had to identify the parts of their machines.
- Creating masks out of papier mache. Students discovered that Egyptians believed in an eternal afterlife and used elaborate masks for burials and rituals.
- Writing remembrance speeches, like eulogies, to commemorate the lives of pharoahs. Said a student, "I loved the writing assignment because I got to learn about a person--Sneferu-- and make it fun at the same time!"
The cross-curricular unit allowed teachers adjust class schedules and instructional techniques. Their goals: to make students think more deeply and regard their studies as relevant to their lives.