Ancient Egypt: Geography
Ancient Egypt was so vast and complex. Of course, any study of this fascinating old world will prove to be vast and complex, too. Where to begin?
We chose to begin in the theater. The home theater, that is. Last night, we watched Cecil Demille's 1956 classic, The Ten Commandments, starring Charlton Heston and none other than Yul Brynner. We followed up with the more recent Dreamworks animated production, The Prince of Egypt. Both movies -- though hailing from different eras -- were equally moving and visually stunning. A great way to hook our interest and really get us in the mood for learning more about Egypt.
Today, I spent most of my time sniffing out resources (and they are infinite!), narrowing them down to a few we can actually use without going overboard. Loosely utilizing the Smith Life Science website as a guide, I broke our study up into subtopics which may take a day or two (or more) to get through, depending on if the kids want to linger and learn more, or move on. Examples of these subtopics (not necessarily in order) include but are not limited to...
Today, we took a look at Egypt's geography. As listed in the Smith resources list, we viewed "The Origin of Egyptian Civilization," parts 1, 2, & 3 (YouTube). However, the videos tended to focus less on the beginning of Egyptian civilization, and more on the possibility Egypt has its most ancient roots in the Nubian culture. While interesting, I didn't find the material pertinent to our focus of study. I would've rather have devoted the time to something more immediate to the development of Egyptian civilization. However, I don't regret sharing it with the kids.
Afterward, we took a look at a map of Ancient Egypt. I expanded on the original map just a bit, adding an inset of the Sahara Desert and another of the continent of Africa and Egypt's location therein (Files available for download via the links below.)
We talked about the major land features pictured on the map and briefly touched on the traditional Exodus route of Moses (which is thought to have traversed the Red Sea just along the northern tip).
Next, I challenged the kids to identify major features on their own blank maps (which differ considerably from the original, but are similar enough to recognize where these features might be located).
Now that we're familiar with the basic geography of Egypt, we'll move on to exploring how Egypt's unique geography allowed this civilization to become the most enriched, advanced, and powerful civilizations in the world.
Download map files here.
We chose to begin in the theater. The home theater, that is. Last night, we watched Cecil Demille's 1956 classic, The Ten Commandments, starring Charlton Heston and none other than Yul Brynner. We followed up with the more recent Dreamworks animated production, The Prince of Egypt. Both movies -- though hailing from different eras -- were equally moving and visually stunning. A great way to hook our interest and really get us in the mood for learning more about Egypt.
Today, I spent most of my time sniffing out resources (and they are infinite!), narrowing them down to a few we can actually use without going overboard. Loosely utilizing the Smith Life Science website as a guide, I broke our study up into subtopics which may take a day or two (or more) to get through, depending on if the kids want to linger and learn more, or move on. Examples of these subtopics (not necessarily in order) include but are not limited to...
- Daily Life
- Geography
- Hieroglyphs
- Mummification
- Pyramids
- Sphinx
- Other Activities
Today, we took a look at Egypt's geography. As listed in the Smith resources list, we viewed "The Origin of Egyptian Civilization," parts 1, 2, & 3 (YouTube). However, the videos tended to focus less on the beginning of Egyptian civilization, and more on the possibility Egypt has its most ancient roots in the Nubian culture. While interesting, I didn't find the material pertinent to our focus of study. I would've rather have devoted the time to something more immediate to the development of Egyptian civilization. However, I don't regret sharing it with the kids.
We talked about the major land features pictured on the map and briefly touched on the traditional Exodus route of Moses (which is thought to have traversed the Red Sea just along the northern tip).
Next, I challenged the kids to identify major features on their own blank maps (which differ considerably from the original, but are similar enough to recognize where these features might be located).
Now that we're familiar with the basic geography of Egypt, we'll move on to exploring how Egypt's unique geography allowed this civilization to become the most enriched, advanced, and powerful civilizations in the world.
Download map files here.
- Map of Ancient Egypt (labeled) - Note: Resize for printing.
- Blank map of Ancient Egypt - Note: Resize for printing.
- Map worksheet instructions.
Math: Rounding Mini-booklets
We began learning to round numbers to tens today. After a brief introduction, I handed out these little mini-booklets for practice. The kids filled them up in less than three minutes, which was great because that meant they all grasped the concept just fine!
The next few days, we'll cover rounding to the hundreds, thousands, and mixed places. I created mini-booklets for each day.
To make the mini-booklets:
Download Rounding Mini-booklets.
The next few days, we'll cover rounding to the hundreds, thousands, and mixed places. I created mini-booklets for each day.
To make the mini-booklets:
- Download mini-booklets in Word.docx format (links below).
- Cut along bold lines. To save time, cut along horizontal lines ONLY. Fold strips down the center (blank sides together), and stack for binding.
- Cut strips of construction paper for cover.
- Staple together.
Download Rounding Mini-booklets.
The Number Line & Introduction to Negative Numbers
We headed outside this morning to learn about the number line and where negative numbers are in reference to positive numbers and zero.
To prepare this quick, fun activity, I grabbed Priss's homemade jump rope she finger-crocheted from yarn. I cut several index cards in half and wrote several random numbers on them -- positive, negative, and zero -- and then I cut a "hook" in the top so they'd slip onto the rope and hang freely.
Outside, the oldest and youngest kids took the ends of the rope, and we marked '0' at the mailbox. Squeak held the "negative" end of the rope because she's the youngest/smallest, and Rocky held the "positive" end of the rope, because he's the oldest/tallest.
Then I explained how I could walk "up" the street (and the number line), counting up through the positive numbers with each step. I turned around and walked "down" the street (and the number line), counting backward through zero and beyond through the negative numbers.
When they grasped the concept, the kids each took a few random number cards and placed them on the number line where they belonged! Of course, we made sure to swap out the rope-holders so they'd have a turn, too.
Great fun! A fast, easy activity that solidified their understanding of the number line and negative numbers!
To prepare this quick, fun activity, I grabbed Priss's homemade jump rope she finger-crocheted from yarn. I cut several index cards in half and wrote several random numbers on them -- positive, negative, and zero -- and then I cut a "hook" in the top so they'd slip onto the rope and hang freely.
Outside, the oldest and youngest kids took the ends of the rope, and we marked '0' at the mailbox. Squeak held the "negative" end of the rope because she's the youngest/smallest, and Rocky held the "positive" end of the rope, because he's the oldest/tallest.
Then I explained how I could walk "up" the street (and the number line), counting up through the positive numbers with each step. I turned around and walked "down" the street (and the number line), counting backward through zero and beyond through the negative numbers.
When they grasped the concept, the kids each took a few random number cards and placed them on the number line where they belonged! Of course, we made sure to swap out the rope-holders so they'd have a turn, too.
Great fun! A fast, easy activity that solidified their understanding of the number line and negative numbers!
"Today-I-learned" Booklets
(Note: We're off! A new homeschooling blog for a new wind of inspiration blowing through our little house. Perhaps it's because a baby is on the way. Perhaps it's because spring is right around the corner and the warm sunshine and fragrant breezes are working their motivational magic. Who knows! I'm just thankful I took the step to create a place to log all the neat projects we launch and subjects we conquer from day to day.)
We've kept journals from the very beginning of homeschooling as a way of getting in daily writing practice. I make no requirements on what the kids write -- only that they write to fill about a page. That's worked well. But rarely do the kids write about what they've learned. Normally, they write about their frustrations or fantasies, or they'll continue serial stories they've been working on over the course of days or weeks.
For a couple years now, I've been recording our daily activities on assignment cards I created to function as checklists. They've also served as a record of the subjects we've covered (or not covered), field trips we've taken, and projects we've done around the house.
What's been missing is a record of our activities from the kids' unique perspective -- a log of the research, reading, and projects they've done, as experienced by them, the students.
Thus, "Today-I-learned" booklets were born. I simply stapled folded books of blank paper between a half-sheet of construction paper and labeled the front of the booklet for each child. The rest is up to them!
Each day, they record anything they learned and would like to remember. They can draw pictures, comics or cartoons, make a list, write a story or journal entry, or even paste a photo inside -- whatever they're inspired to put on the page for the day.
I'll make these at the beginning of each month, so at the end of the year, they'll have a cute little collection of twelve booklets to store in the annual archive bin.
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