7/30/2019 Lesson Plan: GE in Egypt

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FORWARDFOUNDRY

B R O U G H T T O Y O U B

forwardfoundry.com

OverviewThis lesson expands on the history of the pyramids and focuses primarily on the

pyramids of Giza, which lay outside of the city of Cairo, Egypt. We will focus on

the purpose of the pyramids and the kings for whome they were built.

Objectives Describe the pyramids in Egypt and explain their use.

Identify the kings buried in the pyramids of Giza.

Understand the vast size of the Great Pyramid.

Recognize and explain the Great Sphinx.

Invitation & ExplorationBegin the lesson by breaking the students into groups. Give each group a set

number (teacher determines) of sugar cubes and have each group build a pyra-

mid using the attached pyramid activity.

Once the pyramids are completed, have each group explain what they would use

a pyramid for. Once all the groups have spoken, navigate to http://www.ge-expe-

rience.com and watch the video GE and the Great Pyramids.

EvaluationAfter the lesson, students should be able to answer questions #3 and #5 of the

multiple choice, as as complete activities #9 and #10 in the Egypt section of the

Travel Companion.

Materials Needed

- Pyramid Activity

Other Resources

There is an interesting

article on history.comabout the pyramids

with a section speci-

cally on the pyramids

of Giza: http://www.

history.com/topics/the

egyptian-pyramids.

COUNTRY: EgyAUXILIARY LESSThe Great Pyramid

7/30/2019 Lesson Plan: GE in Egypt

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FORWARDFOUNDRY

B R O U G H T T O Y O U B

forwardfoundry.com

OverviewSet the scene: It is 2500 BC. There are no computers, no cars, and no electricity.

You are in the middle of a giant desert watching 20,000 to 30,000 people push

enormous bricks around to build a giant pyramid for their king. It is incredibly hot

and dry, but what they will accomplish will eventually become one of the Seven

Wonders of the Ancient World.

Preparations for the ActivityFor each group, you will need to rst have a cardboard base on which to placetheir sugar cubes. The cardboard should be 15 cm X 15 cm. For a pyramid with a

base of 10 rows, the pyramid will take up an area of 10 cm X 10 cm. Draw a square

on the cardboard for the base of they pyramid. Teachers, you may determine the

actual base size depending on your supplies.

Begin the Activity

1) Have the students begin in one corner of the base-square. Have them glue

one sugar cube in the corner. Continue adding and gluing sugar cubes until the

square on the cardboard base is completely lled. Be sure to form straight lines;

use the lines on the cardboard base as a guide. The students should continue toplace one cube in one corner and then glue nine more cubes to form one row.

After this row, continue in the same fashion until the base is covered. In this ex-

ample, you would need 100 sugar cubes to complete the base

2) Reduce each base by one sugar cube and glue the sugar cubes to the subse-

quent bases. After the base is complete, indent the next base slightly (less than

1 cm) and begin the second base. In the example, the bottom base was 10x10

cubes. The second base should be 9x9 cubes. Make each subsequent base just

as you made the bottom base: start with the corner and make a row.

3) Optional: Once the glue has dried, allow the students to take the pyramids

outside to sand the sides in order to make the pyramids sides smooth.

4) Give time for the students to decorate their pyramids.

Materials Needed

- Cardboard for the

base

- Sugar cubes (amount

varies on size, but if

you use a base of 10rows, youll need 2

boxes of 198 cubes)

- Glue

- Sand Paper

- Materials to decorate

the pyramids: glitter,

sequins, stickers, paint,

etc.

Note: You can drasticallyreduce the amount of sugar

cubes and time needed for

this activity by starting with

a base of 5 rows instead of

ten.

COUNTRY: EgyATTACHMEBuilding Pyramids Activity