The Ancient Egyptian Pharaohs TCI

What did the pharaohs of ancient Egypt accomplish, and how did they do it?

​Read: Introduction of "The Ancient Egyptian Pharaohs."

Multiple Select

What items were found in the tomb of King Tut?

• three coffins

• a golden mask

• good luck charms

• King Tut's diary

• dinosaur fosssils

In this lesson, you will “sail” the Nile River and visit four of these monuments to learn about some ancient Egyptian pharaohs and their accomplishments.

Listen as your tour guide welcomes you to your felucca tour.

Welcome to the tour!

Read Section One:
Ancient Egypt and its rulers

Match

Match the name of each kingdom by another name it's known by.

• Old Kingdom

  2700–2200 B.C.E.

• Middle Kingdom

  2000

  B.C.E.

• New Kingdom

  1500

  B.C.E.

Age

of the Pyramids

Period

of Reunification

Egypt’s

Golden Age

• Age

  of the Pyramids

• Period

  of Reunification

• Egypt’s

  Golden Age

The first site on the tour is Giza. Listen as your tour guide tells you about Giza. Then read Section 2

For centuries, people have wondered how the ancient Egyptians were able to build the Great Pyramid. The Great Pyramid is more than 450 feet tall and constructed of more than 2 million huge blocks, many of which weigh 3 tons or more. Most scientists agree that the Great Pyramid was likely built in about 20 years. There have been several hypotheses put forth to explain how the Great Pyramid was built.

Theory One

​Ancient Egyptians cut the huge stone blocks from the earth

and dragged the blocks to the site of the pyramid. At the site, the blocks were pulled up a long, sloping ramp and then pushed into position on the

pyramid.

Theory Two

Egyptians used local materials to create a cementlike substance, which workers carried up the pyramid. The cement was poured

into a mold and mixed with water to form the huge blocks. These molds were placed directly on the pyramid so that when the mixture dried and the mold was removed, the block sat perfectly in place.

Theory Three

Extraterrestrials either built the Great Pyramid or gave technical knowledge to the ancient Egyptians for building it.

Poll

Which hypothesis you think best

explains how the Great Pyramid was built?

Be prepared to explain your

answer.

• Ancient Egyptians cut huge blocks from the earth and

  dragged them into place.

• Ancient Egyptians used local materials to create

  cementlike blocks.

• Extraterrestrials gave technical knowledge to the

  ancient Egyptians.

Open Ended

Explain why you chose your hypothesis.

Now listen to what your tour guide tells you about how

Khufu built the Great Pyramid.

Complete the Post Card for Section Two

​Write a postcard to a friend or relative about the pharaoh Khufu and your visit to the Great Pyramid. Make sure your postcard includes the following:

• an appropriate greeting (such as “Dear Maria,”) and closing (such as “See you soon!”)

• information about the pharaoh Khufu, such as when he ruled, what kind of ruler he was, and what some of his important accomplishments were

• information about the Great Pyramid, such as how big it was, what it was made of, how long it took to build, and how the Egyptians might have built it Sketch a stamp for the postcard by drawing a visual or symbol that relates to what you learned.

Now we’ll visit the next site on the tour. Listen as your tour guide tells you about Karnak. Then read Section 3.

​Read Section 3, Pharaoh Senusret I: Patron of the Arts

With your partner, do the following:

• Read the directions on Handout A.

• Look in the envelope. Reassemble the broken carving of the White Chapel.

• Put the carving pieces back in the envelope and reboard the felucca.

Step off the Falucca & visit a tourist Stop!

Open Ended

What do you think the carving might represent?

Now listen to what your tour guide tells you about the

carving from the White Chapel.

Complete the Post Card for Section Three

​Write a postcard to a friend or relative about the pharaoh Senusret I and your visit to the White Chapel. Make sure your postcard includes the following:

• an appropriate greeting and closing

• information about the pharaoh Senusret I, such as when he ruled, what kind of ruler he was, and what some of his greatest accomplishments were

• information about the White Chapel, such as what it was made of, what kind of artwork it included, and how it was discovered by archaeologists

Sketch a stamp for the postcard by drawing a visual or symbol

that relates to what you learned.

Read Section 4, Pharaoh Hatshepsut: Promoter of Egyptian Trade

The next stop on the tour is Dayr al-Bahri (deer ahl-BAH-ray). Listen as your tour guide tells you about its great temple. Then read Section 4

With your partner, do the following:

Read the directions on Handout C.

• Examine Handout D and create a list of items you can identify in the "carving."

• When you are finished, reboard the felucca.

Step off the Falucca & visit a tourist Stop!

Open Ended

How might these items might have been used by the ancient

Egyptians?

Draw

Circle the items identified by your tour guide on the carving from Hatshepsut’s temple.

Complete the Post Card for Section Four

​Write a postcard to a friend or relative about the pharaoh Hatshepsut and your visit to the temple at Dayr al-Bahri. Make sure your postcard includes the following:

• an appropriate greeting and closing

• information about the pharaoh Hatshepsut, such as when she ruled,

what was unique about her rule, and what she accomplished in relation to trade with other countries

• information about the temple at Dayr al-Bahri, such as where it was

built and how were the outside and the inside walls decorated

Sketch a stamp for the postcard by drawing a visual or symbol

that relates to what you learned.

Now we’ll visit the final site on the tour. Listen as your tour guide tells you about Abu Simbel. Then Read Section 5

Read Section 5, Pharaoh Ramses II: Military Leader and Master Builder

The Great Temple of Ramses II at Abu Simbel was one of the most amazing architectural achievements of the New Kingdom. Probably the most outstanding features of the temple are the four enormous statues of Ramses, some of which arevmore than six stories tall. This monument has survived for over 3,000 years. In the 1950s, the Egyptian government decided to build a new dam on the Nile River to generate electricity. Once the dam was built, water would back up behind the dam and bury the temple under hundreds of feet of water. The Egyptian government considered several different options for dealing with this problem.

Abandon the project and do without the

electricity that would have been provided to the Egyptian

people.

Option A:

Find a new location for the dam, one that

would not threaten to flood the Great Temple.

Option B:

Cut the entire temple away from the cliff sideand move it to a higher location that would not be in the

flood zone created by the dam.

Option D:

Poll

Which option would you recommend to the Egyptian government?

Be prepared to explain your answer.

• Abandon the project.

• find a new location for the dam

• continue the project

• move the temple to a higher location

Open Ended

Explain why you recommend this option.

Now listen to what your tour guide tells you about how the Egyptian government saved the temple.

Complete the Post Card for Section Five

​Write a postcard to a friend or relative about the pharaoh Ramses II (Ramses the Great) and your visit to the temple at Abu Simbel. Includes
the following:

• an appropriate greeting and closing

• information about the pharaoh Ramses II, such as when he ruled and
why he was called Ramses the Great

• information about the temple at Abu Simbel, such as what the sculptures at the main entrance were, what caused a unique event to happen twice a year, and how the temple was saved from near destruction Sketch a stamp for the postcard by drawing a visual or symbol that relates to what you learned.

Match

Vocabulary

• pharaoh

• Haphetsut

• Ramses II

• treaty

a ruler in ancient Egypt

The first woman pharaoh

Built Abu Sambel

An agreement of peace

• a ruler in ancient Egypt

• The first woman pharaoh

• Built Abu Sambel

• An agreement of peace