ancient Egypt Archives - Growing In Grace

Notebooking Egypt

October 31, 2012Tracy

Last year was our first year to delve into notebooking with our geography study. But this year, I feel like I’m really embracing the process—adding more lapbooking elements, letting the kids create, and weaning ourselves from pre-made pages.

The result has been beautiful, in every sense. My son has really taken ownership of the process, letting me know what he’d like to do. I still have narration elements for some of the more complicated ideas that I want him to remember. But overall, he learns, he creates, he remembers.

Two of my favorites lately have been his Pharaoh page, which he completed shortly after our double-crown craft, and “The 10 Plagues” that included a flip book he colored and cut out (totally his idea, I just folded the paper to help him cut it out evenly).

And I will add that I am now a huge fan of colored paper for notebooking.

Little Pharaohs

October 26, 2012Tracy1 Comment

Another fun Egypt activity that we’ve done was to make the double-crown of Egypt that represented the Upper and Lower kingdoms. (idea from Pyramids! 50 hands-on activities to experience ancient Egypt)

This was super easy: wax paper, construction paper, and aluminum foil (for the cobra). No patterns or templates. I basically free-handed the entire thing, which is why the cobra is not recognizable on its own without explanation. Though the project wasn’t difficult, it made a huge impression on the kids who instantly ran off to play Pharaohs. (I was later told that one of my daughter’s dolls had been selected to be mummified, and they were using the baby-doll cradle as a sarcophagus.)

Honestly, just to be open and vulnerable, I don’t always feel like making the mess and doing the crafts. But when I see how much the kids learn, and I watch their studies come alive for them, I never regret the sacrifice of time, energy, or orderliness. We’ll only have this day once.

Flooding the Nile

October 24, 2012Tracy

We’ve had so much fun with our Egypt geography. Some of our ideas have come from the Tapestry of Grace curriculum, and some we’ve added from other sources.

One goldmine of a source has been the book Pyramids! 50 hands-on activities to experience ancient Egypt which I picked up from our local library.

Since we’ve been studying about the importance of the Nile and it’s annual flooding, the idea of building our own Nile River and flooding it was extremely appealing. And anything that involves mud is high on the list of FUN at our house right now.

Detailed directions are provided in the above mentioned book, but here’s the gist. Find a pan, fill it with sand. Add black soil for the fertile flood plains or Black Land. Build a Nile River from aluminum foil. Wedge it into the dirt and weight it with stones. Add grass seed or other fast-sprouting green to the “Black Lands.” Flood regularly.

hands-on Egypt study — Planting seeds along the Nile

What a blast! The kids regularly beg to “flood the Nile,” and we were all just giddy when our grass started to sprout.

Pyramid Construction: Lessons in Motion

October 10, 2012Tracy1 Comment

As if Tapestry of Grace didn’t have enough hands-on activities planned into the curriculum, I picked up this book of activities from our local library.

Among the many great ideas was an activity that illustrated how Egyptians moved blocks that weighed as much as a mini van to the tops of pyramids.

First, Oldest had to try moving a large, heavy book across the floor with his nose. Not easy!

Next, we placed a number of pencils underneath the book to simulate the logs the Egyptians would have placed underneath the large blocks they were moving. The Egyptians also added mud to the logs to lessen the friction and to slide the block along even easier. But even with just the pencils, pushing our large book was much easier.

Not only was it a great illustration, but it was a very memorable and fun way to study Egypt and add in a little science for a bonus.

In Moses’ Day…

October 3, 2012Tracy

We’re studying ancient Egypt right now: mummies, pyramids, the Nile River, the 10 plagues, the Exodus. One of the things I’m loving about Tapestry of Grace is how Bible and history are woven together so tightly.

The kids have been learning about life in ancient Egypt and Moses. What would he have eaten? What toys would he have played with? Why was the Nile important? Why would Moses have been afraid to go before Pharaoh? Why would Pharaoh have not believed in God? What was the purpose of the 10 plagues?

Another highlight are the hands-on activities—the crafts that really bring this curriculum to life. For our Egypt crafts, we made toys that children in Moses’ day would have played with. Oldest made a throwing stick that little boys would have used for target practice.

Middlest chose to make a paddle doll.

Tapestry of Grace activities

These crafts and other hands-on activities that we have done, along with the enjoyable read-alouds, have really served to anchor the information for my kids. The facts are not random lists of names and terms but are connected with pictures they’ve seen in stories or crafts they can hold in their hand. The result has been an astounding amount of information they’ve been able to retain, particularly Oldest. (I’ve allowed Middlest to play close by while I read and simply absorb what’s going on.)

I’m learning a ton, too! And I feel blessed to have found a curriculum that so beautifully reinforces our vision for our children’s education with such a practical daily plan.