A WebQuest for Grades 4 - 6

Social Studies

Designed by A. M. Misenheimer

TASKS

Work in groups of 4

PROCESS

Begin by brainstorming ideas, planning the projects, and assigning jobs to team members. Use a web graphic organizer to help you make connections between ideas. Use a story map graphic organizer to help you with the story/screenplay. For the itinerary, use a sequence chain graphic organizer.

Each student in the group is responsible for a specific job:

*Since each group has four members you may choose to pair-up to conduct your research.

Come together at different stages of your writing project to discuss, evaluate, exchange ideas and write down the information gathered by each member. Plan, receive input/ideas, draft, revise, and edit the letter-writing and story assignment as a group.

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

INFORMATION SOURCES

http://www.newafrica.com/maps/egypt.htm

http://www.touregypt.net/kids/History.htm

http://www.egypt.com

http://www.osirisweb.com/egypt/

http://www2.sptimes.com/Egypt/EgyptCredit.4.2.html

GUIDANCE

You may wish to conduct some research first to collect vocabulary and information for your tasks. Breakdown the tasks, and work in stages.

Pretend you are talking to your audience. Think about what you want to say in your story and in your letter. Include anecdotes, descriptions, and  details that will make your letter interesting to read.

Create a web or word cluster to begin. Follow an outline and write a draft for each sequential paragraph.

Use the rubrics and checklists to help you correct spelling, punctuation, and capitalization.

At the end of each groupwork assignment conduct a debriefing session, and allow yourselves time to reflect on how well you used your cooperative skills. Finally, discuss what skills need special attention.

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

EVALUATION

Each task contains a rubric. The rubrics evaluate students' ability to work on a variety of assignments with minimal supervision in cooperative learning groups. They also serve as a guide to help students work sequentially, stay focused, and do their best.

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

THE STORY

Rubric
 

Content Organization (7 points each)  

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

Letter/e-mail

RUBRIC  

Maximum 5 Minimum 1

RUBRIC

Maximum 5 Minimum  0

Listening & Talking

RUBRIC

MAXIMUM 5MINIMUM 1

CONCLUSION

Students conducted research on life in Ancient Egypt, and used the information to create a variety of projects:

In their letter or e-mail, they wrote a story, created the itinerary on PowerPoint, and constructed a map. They gained experience at writing an informal letter/e-mail message, and applied the five stages of the writing process -- prewriting, drafting, revising, editing and publishing -- to produce fictional writing and factual information. Students used the corresponding rubrics to help them fulfill each task.  

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

TEACHER'S PAGE

Inform students that they are going to work in small groups, but that each student is responsible for a particular task (gathering information that the group will use to compose a letter, a story/screenplay, write an itinerary, and construct a map).

Tell the students to remember to apply the 5 stages of the writing process:

1. Prewriting - discuss/identify the audience to whom you are writing.

2. Drafting - emphasize content rather than mechanics

3. Revising - reread own writing and make changes in your composition to reflect reactions/comments from your reading-partner. Take turns reading own composition aloud. Think about compliments or suggestions to offer the partner.

4. Editing - help each other proofread and correct mechanical errors.

5. Publishing - type compositions and add graphics. Although all 4 students will be required to conduct research, once they have gathered enough material, each students will have a specific job (leader, writer, coordinator and reporter).

The Students will come together at different stages of their writing projects to discuss, evaluate, exchange ideas and write down the information gathered by each member.

Using the overhead projector demonstrate how to use the various types of graphic organizers. Ask for volunteers to come up to the overhead projector and show the rest of the class how a graphic organizer might be used for their particular writing project. Let your students observe you compose a letter using a black felt-tip pen on large chart paper.

As you write, point out the placement of the heading, greeting, body, and closing as well as the use of paragraphs, capital letters, and punctuation marks. Display this model on your classroom wall so that students can refer to it when they write their own letters(Taken from "40 Rubrics and Checklists" by Adele Fiderer Scholastic).

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

EXTENSIONS

Flag of Egypt

• Instead of going back into ancient Egypt, pretend that your surroundings change into the future, 3,000 years. Write a letter, e-mail, or a story describing what you see and experience. As your surroundings begin to change describe: (a) your feelings; (b) the changes that take place around you (landscape, buildings, people and style of dress; (c) what you consider to be the most significant historical site and why -- use your imagination.

  Look at the current flag of Egypt. Design a flag, or the equivalent of a flag, that you think will be used 3,000 years from now.

• Write an e-mail/letter to the Cultural section of the Egyptian Embassy and request information on a particular historical site of your choice.

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

Click the links to take an exciting journey into the past. . .

The Land of the River Life by the Nile  

The Ancient Egyptian Religion

Ancient Egyptian Gods

Hieroglyphics and Writing

Death and Burial Customs

Mummification

The Pyramids and the Sphinx

Famous Kings and Queens  

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

The Land of the River

The ancient Egyptians called their country the black land. Because black was the color of the rich soil in the Nile Valley. The valley had once been a swamp, but as the climate changed only the Delta retained large areas of marshland. Every year summer rains in Africa cause the waters of the Nile to rise along its length, flooding the low-lying fields in Egypt for about two months. The area covered in water was known as the flood plain. When the waters went down they left a layer of fertile mud ideal for growing crops. A low Nile meant that only part of the flood plain would be covered and not enough crops could be grown to feed everyone. A very high Nile might flood villages and towns. To the east and west of the Nile valley lie the deserts, which the Egyptians called the Red Land. The valley dwellers thought of the Red Land as a dangerous and sinister place. South of Egypt the Nile becomes difficult to sail because of the rapids known as the Cataracts. To the North, Egypt was protected by the marshes of the Delta. These natural barriers made Egypt a difficult country to invade. Its isolation from the rest of the ancient world helps to explain its unique culture.

Egypt Before the Pharaoh's

The first inhabitants of Egypt were nomadic hunter-gatherers who lived on the savannah. Gradually people moved down the Nile valley and adopted a settled way of life based on agriculture. We know very little about the way these people lived but there were separate groups with different cultures.

The Two Kingdoms

The rulers of ancient Egypt were known as the Lord of the Two Lands--the King of Upper and Lower Egypt, or simply Pharaoh. The Nile river flows South to North Upper, it is the only river in the world to do this, as well as being the longest. Egypt was the narrow Nile valley. Lower Egypt was the north, particularly the Delta. The Two Lands were the first united under one ruler about 2920 BC. The site of the capital of the union changed as families from different areas cam to the throne. Several of these capital cities are located near the boundary of Upper and Lower Egypt, an area sometimes known as Middle Egypt.

  Administrative Centers

Until later times the population if ancient Egypt was probably never much higher than four million people. Both Upper and Lower Egypt were divided into districts called Nome's, each with its own administrative center. These centers would not have been large. Most Egyptians lived on farms or in small villages. Each village had a headman and each Nome a governor, or nom arch. The nomarchs ruled their districts on behalf of the kings but if the central government was weak they often tried to take power for themselves. Each Nome had a symbol. These symbols or end signs were often derived from the form of a local god or goddess. In temple reliefs the symbols are worn on the heads of figurines who represent the noes.   Some noes had more than one capital town during their history. In others the site of the capital is uncertain. Lower Egypt was divided into 20 noes. Nome boundaries in the Delta were formed by the branches of the Nile.

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

Life by the Nile

What was life like in Egypt 3,000 years ago?

Most people in ancient Egypt were employed by the state, which also often provided them with housing. Wages were paid in the form of food, clothing and other necessities. Surplus rations could be swapped for household items and luxuries. In one typical transaction a New Kingdom workman bartered two goats, one pig and two planks of sycamore wood for a decorated coffin.

FAMILY LIFE

The father headed the family in Ancient Egypt. Upon his death, his oldest son became the head. But women, unlike most ancient civilizations, had almost as many rights as men. They could own and inherit property, buy and sell goods, and make a will. A wife could obtain a divorce. Kings commonly had several wives at the same time. In many cases, a kings' chief wife was a member of the royal family, such as his sister or half sister. Children played with dolls, tops, and stuffed leather balls. They had board games with moves determined by the throw of dice. They also had several kinds of pets, including cats, dogs, monkeys, baboons, and birds.

  EDUCATION

Only a small percentage of boys and girls went to school in ancient Egypt, and most of them came from upper-class families. These students attended schools for scribes. Scribes made written records for government offices, temples, and other institutions. They also read and wrote letters for the large numbers of Egyptians who could not read and write. The king's palace, government departments, and temples operated the scribal schools. All the schools prepared the students to become scribes or follow other careers. The main subjects were reading, literature, geography, mathematics, and writing. The students learned writing by copying literature, letters, and business accounts. They used papyrus, the world's first paper like material, and wrote with brushes made of reeds whose ends were softened and shaped. The Egyptians made ink by mixing water and soot, a black powder formed in the burning of wood or other substances. Some boys learned a trade, but the majority became farmers. many parents placed their sons with master craftsman, who taught carpentry, pottery making, or other skills. Boys who wanted to become doctors probably went to work with a doctor after finishing their basic schooling. Most girls were trained for the roles of wife and mother. Their mothers taught them cooking, sewing, and other skills. Ancient Egypt had many libraries. A famous library in Alexandria had over 4000,000 papyrus scrolls, which dealt with astronomy, geography, and many other subjects. Alexandria also had an outstanding museum.

 FOOD, CLOTHING, AND SHELTER

Bread, beer, vegetables and a little fresh or dried fish was the diet of the poor. Better-off Egyptians enjoyed dates, pomegranates and figs. They ate meat, especially beef and goose, and drank date or grape wine. Decayed teeth of some mummies suggest an over-indulgence in cakes sweetened with honey and fruit. The Egyptians generally dressed in white linen garments. Women wore robes or tight dresses with shoulder straps. Men wore skirts or robes. Rich Egyptians wore wigs, partly for protection against the sun. Wealthy Egyptians also wore leather sandals. The common people usually went barefoot. Young children rarely wore any clothes. The ancient Egyptians liked to use cosmetics and wear jewelry. Women wore red lip powder, dyed their hair, and painted their fingernails. They outlined their eyes and colored their eyebrows with gray, black and green paint. Men also outlined their eyes and often wore as much makeup as women. Both sexes used perfume and wore necklaces, rings, and bracelets. Combs, mirrors, and razors were common grooming aids. Adult hairstyles could be very elaborate, and important people owned wigs on a range of lengths and styles. Houses were made from mud brick. The homes of ordinary people were small and built close together. Livestock such as goats and geese might be kept in the middle of towns. Cats, dogs and monkeys were popular pets. Cooking was done in domed clay ovens in kitchen-yards. The flat roofs were used as storage and work space. Many rich Egyptians had houses with as many as 70 rooms. Some of these homes were country estates with orchards, pools, and large gardens. Egyptian houses had small windows placed high in the walls to help keep out the sun. The people spread wet mats on the floors to help cool the air inside their houses. On hot nights, they often slept on the roof, where it was cooler. (Graphics and text taken from http://www.egypt.com).

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

The Ancient Egyptian Religion

What was the basis for all life for the Egyptians?

The Egyptians told many stories about the creation of the world. Most of them start by imagining a time when there was nothing but the Waters of Chaos. In some stories the first thing to emerge from the water is a blue lotus whose petals hide the infant sun god. Others start with the Primeval Mound, the first dry land, rising above the waters. To the mound comes a phoenix or hawk or goose called the Great Cackler who lays the world egg. Egyptian gods and goddesses (deities) were all forms of the Creator but they took on identities of their own. Some had special areas of interest: Thoth was a god of wisdom and writing, and Hathor a goddess of love and death.

STRANGE AND SACRED CREATURES

The deities were often shown in human form wearing distinctive headdresses and carrying sacred symbols. Some deities had several forms. The god Sobek could appear as a crocodile or, as a man with the head of a crocodile. The goddess Hathor might be shown as a beautiful woman, as the head of a woman with cow's ears, or as a cow or cow-headed woman. The sun god had numerous forms, some of them worshipped as separate gods. The rising sun was Khepri, shown as a scarab-beetle, the noonday sun was Horus, the hawk god, and the setting sun was Atum, shown as a ram-headed man. Late in Egyptian history the cult of sacred animals became very important. Creatures such as the ibises sacred to Thoth or the crocodiles sacred to Sobek lived in temples and were given elaborate burials when they died.

EGYPTIAN TEMPLES: PALACES OF THE GODS

A temple was the palace of the deity who lived in the cult statue. The statue was hidden inside a shrine or sanctuary, the holiest part of the temple. Every morning the chief priest entered the sanctuary and opened the shrine. Many rituals were performed, including clothing and perfuming the statue and presenting a meal. In return for these offerings the gods were asked to keep Egypt safe and prosperous. Ordinary people could not watch the daily ritual but they did join in festivals. At these festivals, divine statues were carried outside the temple so the gods might "speak" to the people. Some temples were centers of learning, artists and craftsmen made a wide range of goods in temple workshops. The major temples were state-controlled so the goods were distributed by the government. Kings gave estates, ships and slaves to support temples. In the 12th century BC the temple of Amon at Karnak had over 100,000 people working for it. This is a link that will take you to a page titled Ancient Egyptian Gods. On the page is a list of the ancient gods and what there purpose was. (Graphics and text taken from http://www.egypt.com).  

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

The Gods of Egypt

Why were there so many darn animal deities? Major gods of ancient Egypt. Click on the name of the god to see a picture. Anubis: God of mummification. Hathor: Goddess of love, birth and death. Horus: Son of Osiris, a sky god closely connected with the king. Isis:Wife of Osiris, mother of Horus and Mistress of Magic. Maat: Deity associated with justice and truth. Osiris: God of agriculture and ruler of the dead. Ra: The sun god in it's many forms. Set: Enemy of Horus and Osiris, god of storms and disorder. Sobek: The crocodile god, Lord of the Faiyum. Thoth: A moon deity and god of writing, counting and wisdom. (Graphics and text taken from http://www.egypt.com).

  INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

 Hieroglyphics and Writing

Being able to read and write was essential for a career in the Egyptian civil service. Not much is known about Egyptian schools. Some temples ran schools but many boys seem to have studied with local scribes (trained writers). Reading, writing and mathematics were the basic subjects. Pupils learned by copying out texts in the two main scripts, hieroglyphic and hieratic. They wrote with pens made from reeds on wooden tablets, pieces of pottery, or scraps of papyrus. Surviving school texts show pupils' spelling mistakes and teachers' corrections. Discipline was strict: "A boy's ear is on his back, he listens when he is beaten."

SCRIBES

Scribes were employed to write official or private letters and to draw up legal documents. Other common tasks were recording the progress of all kinds of work and making lists of goods. Educated people read for pleasure so scribes wrote or copied out literature such as proverbs, stories and love poems.

PAPYRUS

The Egyptians invented writing paper. This paper was made from the pith of papyrus, a common marsh plant. The tall stems were cut down and carried off in bundles. Each stem was stripped of it's rind and cut into short pieces. These pieces were then cut lengthwise into narrow strips. It was essential to keep the papyrus pith moist. Two layers of strips at right angles were put on a hard surface and beaten until they fused. The papyrus sheets were polished and then glued together to make scrolls.

HIEROGLYPHICS

The hieroglyphic script was mainly for royal or religious texts carved in stone. Simplified (cursive) hieroglyphs were used for writing religious texts on papyrus. Letters, records, textbooks and literature were written in hieratic, a kind of shorthand hieroglyphic. In the 7th century BC an even more abbreviated script called demotic was introduced. The hieroglyphic script has about 750 signs. Most are pictures of people, animals, plants or objects. To emphasize and protect royal or holy names, the Egyptians wrote then in a frame called a cartouche. There are two main types of sign: sound-signs and sense-signs. Sound-signs can represent from one to four consonants. The vowels were not written out. A sense-sign can be used to write a word or placed after a word to show the area of meaning. For example, verbs of motion have a pair of legs attached.

  THE ROSETTA STONE

The Rosetta Stone dates to 196 BC. It is inscribed with royal decree written in two different scripts, hieroglyphic and demonic and Greek. This helped the French scholar J.F.Champollion to decipher the hieroglyphic script. (Graphics and text taken from http://www.egypt.com).

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

  Death and Burial Customs

Where did the Egyptians believe that they went when they died? The ancient Egyptians took many precautions to make sure that the spirits of the dead could enjoy life after death. Those who could afford them had elaborate family tombs. People visited these tombs to make regular food offerings to their dead relations. In case the family neglected this duty, stone stele were placed in the outer area of the tombs. These often show the dead person sitting next to a table of food offerings. They are inscribed with a magical formula. The idea was that when this was spoken aloud the dead got everything they needed to live on.

  THE BOOK OF THE DEAD

One spell collection known as The Book of the Dead stresses that all spirits were judged before Osiris. The dead person's heart was weighed against a feather representing maat-- truth. If their heart was heavier than truth because they had lead a wicked life they would be eaten by a monster and die a second death. Those who passed the judgment became blessed spirits who lived with gods. Such spirits were still believed to want intact bodies to return to. Before the dead could reach the paradise known as the Field of Reeds they had to pass through an underworld full of monsters and demons. In the Middle Kingdom some coffins were painted with maps of the underworld and with spells against it's dangers. In the New Kingdom the spells were written on papyrus scrolls and placed in the tomb. In early times burial in hot dry sand preserved bodies naturally. When coffins came into use some artificial way of stopping decay was needed. At some periods the process of mummification was used to preserve bodies.

MUMMIFICATION

The exact treatment depended on what the family could afford. The most elaborate method took about 70 days. First the embalmers took out the brain through the nose. The vital organs were removed and treated separately, though the heart might be left in the chest. The inside of the body was cleaned and packed with scented resins. Natron, a natural drying agent, was put inside and all around the body. After about 40 days the body would have been completely dried out. The next stage was to put a packing material under the skin to imitate flesh and to refill the main cavity with scented materials. Finally the mummy was treated with perfumed oils and molten resin before being wrapped for burial. (Graphics and text taken from http://www.egypt.com).

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

 Mummification

Why was preservation so important?

The ancient Egyptians believed that after death their bodies would travel to another world during the day, and at night they would return to their bodies. In order for the person's spirit to live forever, it had to be able to recognize and return to the body. If a spirit could not recognize the body it belonged to, it would die. This is why the Egyptians wanted to preserve the bodies of the dead in as lifelike a state as possible. Mummification guaranteed eternal life for the spirit.

The Seven Steps to Immortality

I. After the body had been washed with wine and spices, all of the parts that might decay were removed. The embalmers first removed the brain through the nose using a long hook. Next they made a deep cut in the abdomen and took out the internal organs: the lungs, the stomach, the liver and the intestines. II. The body was stuffed with bundles of strong drying salt called niton. It was then completely covered with natron and placed on a slanted couch so that any fluids that dripped out as the body was drying could be collected and buried along with it. III. While the body was drying, the internal organs were also dried and preserved with natron. They were then wrapped in strips of linen, placed in tiny coffins and put in a chest divided into four compartments. Each compartment had a lid with the face of the pharaoh. IV. After 40 days the body, now completely dry and shrunken, was removed from inside the body cavity and the whole body was washed inside and out with oils and fragrant spices. V. The mummy's head and body were packed with linen soaked in scented oil so that they would regain the shape they had in life. Once this was done, the mummy could be covered with necklaces, rings and bracelets made of gold and gems. VI. The entire body was then covered in shrouds and bound with strips of linen until the mummy had returned to it's original size. This was a complicated job and could take as long as a week. Small magical objects were placed between the layers of wrapping to protect the mummy's spirit on its way to the afterworld. VII. After the wrapping was finished, the head of the mummy was covered with a portrait mask, just to make sure that the spirit would recognize it. The masked mummy was then placed in a series of gilded wooden coffins and put into a sarcophagus. (Graphics and text taken from http://www.egypt.com).

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

The Pyramids and the Sphinx

What was Napoleon doing in Egypt?

Throughout history, people have tried to understand the pyramids. Early Christians thought that they were places where priests watched the stars. In the 19th century, some people believed that the measurements of the Great Pyramid were devised by God, and that from them they could predict the future! But by then, scholars could read ancient Egyptian writing and they had started to dig up ancient sites. They pyramids were finally known as the last resting places of Egypt's ancient kings.

PYRAMID CONSTRUCTION

Building the Old Kingdom pyramids was a gigantic task. The Great Pyramid at Giza contains about 625 million tons of stone. The individual blocks weigh between 2 and 15 tons. To complete this pyramid during Khufu's Reign, the blocks must have been produced at a rate of one every two minutes each day for 23 years! Some scholars believe this theory to be untrue, while others argue at its possibility. The stonemasons who quarried, shaped and smoothed the blocks must have formed a highly skilled workforce. Many of the blocks were quarried close to the pyramid site. Granite from Aswan and fine limestone from Tura were brought by barge to the edge of the desert. The blocks were then lashed on to sledges. They were dragged over wooden rollers, which had to be kept damp to prevent friction. Mud-brick ramps were probably used to get the stones up to where they were needed. Some believe that his pyramid at Giza was built by slaves, but this is not true. One hundred thousand people worked on it for three months of each year. This was the time of the Nile's annual flood which made it impossible to farm the land and most of the population was unemployed. Pharaoh provided food and clothing for his workers and was kindly remembered in folk tails for many centuries. Inside each Old Kingdom pyramid is a series of stepped buttress walls around a central core. Packing blocks were used to fill in the steps. Then the casting stones were added. These walls were fitted closely to form the smooth outer walls. The casing stones were mainly pale Tura limestone so the pyramids would originally have looked white. The capstones at the very top of a pyramid was covered in gold.

EMPTY BURIAL CHAMBERS

The King's burial chamber was usually under the center of the pyramid. In the Great Pyramid the granite burial chamber is reached by a steeply ascending corridor known as the Grand Gallery. After Khufu's funeral huge granite blocks were slid down to seal off the burial chamber. These impressive precautions failed to stop tomb robbers. No bodies or grave goods have been found in any of the Old Kingdom Pyramids.

THE SPHINX

In Egyptian legend, the Sphinx (the statue that guards the Pyramids) appeared to a young prince in a dream. It promised to make him king if he cleared away the sand covering its body. He did so, and became Thutmose IV. Chephren, the same king who built the second pyramid at Giza, also built the Sphinx at Giza. While building his pyramids, a laborer noticed that the limestone lump near by looked like a lion. Unless they could find another use for it, it would have to be leveled since it was so close to the pyramid. Since the king was often represented by a lion, they decided to make a statue with the head of king Chephren and the body of a lion. The body is 66 feet high and 240 feet long. The nose was the height of an average Egyptian and the lips stretched seven feet across. Almost as soon as it was built, the king it resembled was forgotten and the Sphinx became a god by itself. Presents and prayers were brought to a temple built near by. It was popularly thought to have been created by the gods. Other sphinxes were also made. At Abu Roash, a female sphinx associated with Chephren's older half brother has been discovered. Probably representing a Fourth Dynasty queen, it might be older than the one in Giza. Later variations on the sphinx included leaving the lion's ears and mane and only humanizing the face, and the criosphinx, with the head of a ram. (Graphics and text taken from http://www.egypt.com).

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS 

 Famous Kings and Queens

Click on the name of the King or Queen to go to their own distinct page

~Kings~

Akhenaton - The New Religion Ramses II - Egypts Founding Father! Seti I - Strong Millitary Leader Thutmose I - The Commoner Come King Thutmose III - The Warrior Pharaoh Imonhotep and Djoser - The Pyramid Dreamers Tutankhamen - The Boy King

~Queens~

Nefertiti - The Great Royal Wife Cleopatra Queen of the Nile Hatshepsut The First Female Pharaoh (Graphics and text taken from http://www.egypt.com).

  INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | INFORMATION SOURCES | GUIDANCE | EVALUATION | CONCLUSION | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS  

Akhenaton The New Religion

Akhenaton, the tenth king of the 18th Dynasty, was perhaps the most controversial because of his break with traditional religion. Some say that he was the most remarkable king to sit upon Egypt's throne, others disagree. Akhenaton was traditionally raised by his parents, Amenhotep III and Queen Tiy, to worship Amon. Akhenaton, however, preferred the god Aten, the sun god that was worshipped in earlier times. Early in his reign he changed his name from Amenhotep IV to Akhenaton, meaning "He who is of service to Aten" and renamed his queen, Nefertiti, to Nefer-Nefru-Aten, which is "Beautiful is the beauty of Aten." The King and his Queen, leaving Thebes behind, built elaborate buildings at Amarna meaning, "The Horizon of Aten." He then sent his officials out to destroy Amons statues and to desecrate the worship sites. These actions were so contrary to the traditional belief system that opposition arose against him. The estates of the great temples of Thebes, Memphis and Heliopolis reverted back to the old religion. Corruption grew out of the mismanagement of such large unattended groups. Akhenaton is theorized as being the worlds first monotheist. A monotheist is a person who tries to convert worship of deities to the worship of just one god or deity. Akhenaton is credited for the beginning of monotheism. Christianity is a very distinct form of monotheism. Akhenaton died in the 18th year of his reign. His successor, Horemhab, claimed his reign began from the date of Amenhotep III, thus wiping out the entire rule of Akhenaton for future generations. (Graphics and text taken from http://www.egypt.com).

  INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

Ramses II

Egypt's Founding Father!

 Ramses II Usermaatre Setepenre, son of King Sethi I, was one of the longest reigning pharaohs of Ancient Egypt. He reigned 67 years (roughly from 1290-1224 BC), in the he was beginning co regent with his father. He was said to have lived for more than 80 years this must have made him seem even more than godly for the average life expectancy was nearly half that. During his life he made quite a reputation as a builder and a warrior, but also as a ladies man. He had 5 or 6 main wives, foremost of all being Nefertari, but he is also known to have had more than 100 children with all of his wives! It seems that in Ancient Egypt people seemed to have made fun of this fact, since the contemporary and famous Turin Papyrus features erotic scenes involving a pharaoh --probably Ramses II--and several women. Ramses II is, however, best known for all the buildings he had constructed in his name across the country. Especially the monumental temples of Karnak (near Luxor) and Abu Simbel (in the south of the country in so-called Nubia), and his mortuary temple The Ramesseum (on the West Bank near Luxor) give evidence of his love for grandeur. In all of his monuments he had his name cartouche and texts engraved so deep that no successor would be able to remove it. Ramses' energetic building activities more or less, led to a degrading period of Egyptian art as far as the engraving of texts and images on temple walls was concerned. He demanded the monuments to be erected with greater speed than usual, the result was that carefully engraved texts and images with many beautiful details were now made more superficially, a practice which was unfortunately continued by his successors. Most famous of his military engagements is the Battle of Kadesh against the Hittites (from Western Asia), with whom the Egyptians had been struggling for many years. He seems to have escaped with nothing but pure luck, as his main force --the pharaoh himself commanding-- was ambushed by the Hittites, and was only saved just in time by reinforcements while retreating. Both sides claimed the victory in this battle, but it seems more likely to have ended in a status quo. Ramses II recorded 'his' victory on several monuments, showing him slaying the Hittites in person. The problems between Egyptians and Hittites were finally settled though, several years later, when Ramses married a Hittite princess. After he died, Ramses was buried in the famous royal necropolis of the Valley of the Kings, located in the hills on the west bank of the Nile opposite the modern town of Luxor. However, the mummy of Ramses II was not found on location in his tomb, but was discovered in 1881 among many other royal mummies in the so-called Royal Cache in Deir el-Bahri on the Theban west-bank. According to a hieroglyphic text found on the mummy it was removed from the actual royal tomb for safety reasons by Egyptian priests in the 10th year of the reign of king Pinodjem (around 1070 B.C.) after robbers violated the burial. Though the text stated it was placed together with the body of his father, Seti, in the tomb of Amenhotep I, it was apparently later moved again to its final resting place in the royal cache. The mummy is now in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. (Graphics and text taken from http://www.egypt.com).

INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES | TEACHER'S PAGE | EXTENSIONS

Seti I

Military Leader

Seti I, was the second king of the 19th Dynasty, the son of Ramesses I and Queen Sitre. Like his father before him, Seti was a good military leader. On a campaign in Asia, Seti took three divisions of 60,000 men each into battle. He reoccupied Egyptian posts and garrisoned cities in the Syrian territory. He plundered Palestine and brought Damascus back into Egyptian control. He reconciled with the Hittites who were becoming the most powerful state in the region. Seti I and his heir, Ramesses II campaigned against Kadesh. In Karnak he completed his father's plan by converting the court between the second and third pylons into a vast hypo style hall. He built his vast mortuary complex at Abydos. In Thebes, he built his tomb, located in the Valley of the Kings. Cut 300 feet into the cliffs, it was the largest tomb in the area. Buried with him were over 700 Shabti. These were carved stone or wooden figures that were to accompany him to the afterlife to comply with the requests from the gods. His tomb in the Valley of the Kings was vandalized and his body was relocated to Deir el Bahri. It is currently located in the Cairo Museum. (Graphics and text taken from http://www.egypt.com).

  INTRODUCTION | TASK | PROCESS | EVALUATION | GUIDANCE | CONCLUSION | RESOURCES